Data Package Metadata   View Summary

These datasets document our measurements of dune plant species abundance and topography from paired vegetation and topographic cross-shore foredune surveys in the United States Pacific Northwest (Oregon and southern Washington coastlines) in Summer 2012 and Summer 2014. In 2012, we conducted cross-shore paired topographic and vegetation surveys at 126 transect locations, and performed three replicate cross-shore transects per location (for a total of 378 transects). Of these surveys, 58 transect locations were positioned within Habitat Restoration Areas (as described in Biel et al. 2017). In 2014, we repeated these topographic and vegetation surveys at 83 of the 2012 transect locations (performing a single transect survey per location).

Within each transect, we measure elevation (using RTK GPS) and plant species abundance (using 0.25 m^2 quadrats) at 5 m intervals between the vegetation line and the foredune heel. Within each quadrat, we measure the percent cover of all plant species present, and the tiller abundance of the three dune building grasses, Ammophila arenaria (invasive), Ammophila breviligulata (invasive), and Elymus mollis (native). Together, these datasets encompass measurements of elevation and plant abundance from 7953 quadrats in 2012, and 1616 quadrats in 2014.