Data Package Metadata   View Summary

Seasonal reference harvest measurements of vegetation at 15 net primary production (NPP) study sites at Jornada Basin LTER, 1989-ongoing

General Information
Data Package:
Local Identifier:knb-lter-jrn.210011004.51
Title:Seasonal reference harvest measurements of vegetation at 15 net primary production (NPP) study sites at Jornada Basin LTER, 1989-ongoing
Alternate Identifier:DOI PLACE HOLDER
Abstract:

This data package contains reference harvest measurements for the long-term Net Primary Production (NPP) study at the Jornada Basin LTER. Data here include horizontal cover, vertical height, and aboveground biomass of plants harvested near, but outside, a grid of permanent NPP quadrats at each of 15 NPP sites. These sites were selected to represent the 5 major ecosystem types in the Chihuahuan Desert (upland grasslands, playa grasslands, mesquite-dominated shrublands, creosotebush-dominated shrublands, tarbush-dominated shrublands). For each ecosystem type, three sites were selected to represent the range in variability in production and plant diversity; thus the locations are not replicates. At each site, a 1 hectare area was fenced in 1988 and a grid of 49 (48 at one playa location) 1m x 1m replicate quadrats was laid out when sampling began in 1989. Harvests are made outside the quadrat grid, but inside the fence. Height and cover are recorded in the field. Live biomass is weighed in the lab and all measurements are recorded as reference harvest data. Subsequently, regressions between the harvested biomass and plant volume values are used to derive allometric equations that determine biomass from non-destructive volume measurements in the permanent NPP quadrats. Further details are described in the methods metadata. This is an ongoing study with new harvest data (from selected species) collected in the spring, fall, and winter each year.

Attention:

These data are not appropriate for estimates of percentage cover because of the way the data are collected.

Publication Date:2023-08-18
Language:English
For more information:
Visit: https://jrn.lternet.edu
Visit: DOI PLACE HOLDER

Time Period
Begin:
1989-04-25
End:
2023-05-15

People and Organizations
Contact:Information Manager (Jornada Basin LTER) [  email ]
Creator:Peters, Debra C (USDA-ARS Jornada Experimental Range)
Creator:Huenneke, Laura F (New Mexico State University (Now at NAU))
Associate:Anderson, John (Jornada Basin LTER/New Mexico State University, Jornada Research Site Manager, field data collection)
Associate:JRN field crew,  (Jornada Basin LTER/New Mexico State University, Jornada Basin LTER Field Crew, field data collection)

Data Entities
Data Table Name:
Plant destructive harvest data
Description:
Plant dimensions (cover, height) and biomass (g) collected by quadrat, species, site, and season
Other Name:
Destructive harvest protocols
Description:
Field and lab protocol for reference harvest measurements at NPP sites
Detailed Metadata

Data Entities


Data Table

Data:https://pasta-s.lternet.edu/package/data/eml/knb-lter-jrn/210011004/51/3596ac427ef2468db9c646e2633d2dbb
Name:Plant destructive harvest data
Description:Plant dimensions (cover, height) and biomass (g) collected by quadrat, species, site, and season
Number of Records:18113
Number of Columns:22

Table Structure
Object Name:JRN011004_npp_ref_harvest_meas.csv
Size:1785576 byte
Authentication:7e22834c5851efcfedd12112011763d5 Calculated By MD5
Text Format:
Number of Header Lines:1
Number of Foot Lines:0
Record Delimiter:\n
Orientation:column
Simple Delimited:
Field Delimiter:,
Quote Character:"

Table Column Descriptions
 YearSeasonDateVegetation zoneNPP SiteSpeciesObservationPercent coverHeightLeaf weightStem weightFlower weightTotal weightCountMax diameterPerpendicular diameterCommentsUSDA Plants codeSpecies binomialHabitFormPS pathway
Column Name:year  
season  
date  
zone  
site  
spp  
obs  
cover  
ht  
leaf  
stem  
flwr  
totwt  
ct  
md  
pd  
comment  
USDA_code  
Species_binomial  
habit  
form  
cpath  
Definition:Harvest yearHarvest season indicatorCollection dateJornada Basin vegetation zoneName of Jornada NPP project site (one of 15)Plant species code - a JRN LTER plant code. Current, recognized taxonomic codes are in the "USDA_code" column, or refer to the JRN Vascular Plant List EDI package (knb-lter-jrn.210520001)Observation number (harvest sample number)Percent cover of 1 m^2 quadHeight in centimetersLeaf dry weight of total live dry weight (g)Stem dry weight of total live dry weight (g)Reproductive parts dry weight of total live dry weight (g) (may include bud, flower, or seed/fruit)Total dry weight of live material (g)Count of individuals in sampleMaximum diameter (cm)Perpendicular diameter (perp. to maximum diameter) (cm)Comments regarding data recordTaxonomic code from USDA Plants database (https://plants.usda.gov)Binomial name of taxa, if known.Life history habit (annual, perennial, etc)Vegetation growth formPhotosynthetic pathway
Storage Type:date  
string  
date  
string  
string  
string  
integer  
float  
float  
float  
float  
float  
float  
integer  
float  
float  
string  
string  
string  
string  
string  
string  
Measurement Type:dateTimenominaldateTimenominalnominalnominalintervalratioratioratioratioratioratiointervalratiorationominalnominalnominalnominalnominalnominal
Measurement Values Domain:
FormatYYYY
Precision1
Allowed Values and Definitions
Enumerated Domain 
Code Definition
CodeW
DefinitionWinter
Source
Code Definition
CodeS
DefinitionSpring
Source
Code Definition
CodeF
DefinitionFall
Source
FormatYYYY-MM-DD
Precision1
Allowed Values and Definitions
Enumerated Domain 
Code Definition
CodeG
DefinitionGrassland vegetation type
Source
Code Definition
CodeC
DefinitionCreosote shrubland vegetation type
Source
Code Definition
CodeP
DefinitionPlaya vegetation type (grassland)
Source
Code Definition
CodeT
DefinitionTarbush vegetation type
Source
Code Definition
CodeM
DefinitionMesquite dune vegetation type
Source
Allowed Values and Definitions
Enumerated Domain 
Code Definition
CodeIBPE
DefinitionIBP Exclosure site (grassland)
Source
Code Definition
CodeBASN
DefinitionBasin site (grassland at lower trailer)
Source
Code Definition
CodeSUMM
DefinitionMt. Summerford site (grassland)
Source
Code Definition
CodeWELL
DefinitionWest well site (mesquite)
Source
Code Definition
CodeNORT
DefinitionNorth natural vegetation exclosure site (mesquite)
Source
Code Definition
CodeTOBO
DefinitionTobosa tank site (playa)
Source
Code Definition
CodeEAST
DefinitionEast of Jornada road tarbush site (tarbush)
Source
Code Definition
CodeTAYL
DefinitionTaylor well site (tarbush)
Source
Code Definition
CodeCALI
DefinitionCaliche site (creosote shrubland)
Source
Code Definition
CodeGRAV
DefinitionGravel site (creosote shrubland)
Source
Code Definition
CodeSAND
DefinitionSand site (creosote shrubland; formerly UPTR - upper trailer)
Source
Code Definition
CodeRABB
DefinitionRabbit rain gauge site (mesquite)
Source
Code Definition
CodeCOLL
DefinitionCollege Ranch site (playa)
Source
Code Definition
CodeSMAL
DefinitionSmall site (playa)
Source
Code Definition
CodeWEST
DefinitionWest of Jornada road tarbush site (tarbush)
Source
Definitionany text
Unitnumber
Typeinteger
Unitdimensionless
Typereal
Unitcentimeter
Typereal
Unitgram
Typereal
Unitgram
Typereal
Unitgram
Typereal
Unitgram
Typereal
Unitnumber
Typeinteger
Unitcentimeter
Typereal
Unitcentimeter
Typereal
Definitionany text
Definitionany text
Definitionany text
Allowed Values and Definitions
Enumerated Domain 
Code Definition
CodeP
DefinitionPerennial
Source
Code Definition
CodeA
DefinitionAnnual
Source
Code Definition
CodeB
DefinitionBiennial
Source
Allowed Values and Definitions
Enumerated Domain 
Code Definition
CodeSHRUB
DefinitionShrub form/functional type
Source
Code Definition
CodeGRASS
DefinitionGrass or graminoid form/functional type
Source
Code Definition
CodeFORB
DefinitionForb or broad-leaved herb form/functional type
Source
Code Definition
CodeS-SHR
DefinitionSub-shrub form/functional type
Source
Code Definition
CodeST-SU
DefinitionStem succulent form/functional type
Source
Code Definition
CodeLF-SU
DefinitionLeaf succulent form/functional type
Source
Code Definition
CodeUNKN
DefinitionUnknown form/functional type
Source
Code Definition
CodeVINE
DefinitionVine form/functional type
Source
Allowed Values and Definitions
Enumerated Domain 
Code Definition
CodeC3
DefinitionC3 photosynthetic pathway
Source
Code Definition
CodeC4
DefinitionC4 photosynthetic pathway
Source
Code Definition
CodeCAM
DefinitionCAM photosynthetic pathway
Source
Missing Value Code:            
CodeNA
ExplMissing value - data not collected or otherwise unavailable
CodeNA
ExplMissing value - data not collected or otherwise unavailable
CodeNA
ExplMissing value - data not collected or otherwise unavailable
CodeNA
ExplMissing value - data not collected or otherwise unavailable
CodeNA
ExplMissing value - data not collected or otherwise unavailable
CodeNA
ExplMissing value - data not collected or otherwise unavailable
CodeNA
ExplMissing value - data not collected or otherwise unavailable
CodeNA
ExplMissing value - data not collected or otherwise unavailable
CodeNA
ExplMissing value - data not collected or otherwise unavailable
CodeNA
ExplMissing value - data not collected or otherwise unavailable
CodeNA
ExplNo comment, quality flag, or additional information available
   
CodeNA
ExplMissing value - data not collected or otherwise unavailable
CodeNA
ExplMissing value - data not collected or otherwise unavailable
CodeNA
ExplMissing value - data not collected or otherwise unavailable
Accuracy Report:                                            
Accuracy Assessment:                                            
Coverage:                                            
Methods:                                            

Non-Categorized Data Resource

Name:Destructive harvest protocols
Entity Type:otherEntity
Description:Field and lab protocol for reference harvest measurements at NPP sites
Physical Structure Description:
Object Name:Harvestprotocol.pdf
Size:35211 byte
Authentication:dbf1a4ff7d41b66e89cb8084088d8090 Calculated By MD5
Externally Defined Format:
Format Name:PDF
Data:https://pasta-s.lternet.edu/package/data/eml/knb-lter-jrn/210011004/51/f9ca31c42c62fca1e66d479df7c3d0c5

Data Package Usage Rights

This information is released under the Creative Commons license - Attribution - CC BY (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The consumer of these data ("Data User" herein) is required to cite it appropriately in any publication that results from its use. The Data User should realize that these data may be actively used by others for ongoing research and that coordination may be necessary to prevent duplicate publication. The Data User is urged to contact the authors of these data if any questions about methodology or results occur. Where appropriate, the Data User is encouraged to consider collaboration or co-authorship with the authors. The Data User should realize that misinterpretation of data may occur if used out of context of the original study. While substantial efforts are made to ensure the accuracy of data and associated documentation, complete accuracy of data sets cannot be guaranteed. All data are made available "as is." The Data User should be aware, however, that data are updated periodically and it is the responsibility of the Data User to check for new versions of the data. The data authors and the repository where these data were obtained shall not be liable for damages resulting from any use or misinterpretation of the data. Thank you.

Keywords

By Thesaurus:
LTER Core Research Areaspopulations, primary production
LTER Controlled Vocabulary v1aboveground production, deserts, net primary production, vegetation
Jornada Basin LTER dataset keywordsongoing
Jornada Basin project namesNPP study, study 011
Jornada Basin place namesC-CALI, C-GRAV, C-SAND, G-BASN, G-IBPE, G-SUMM, M-NORT, M-RABB, M-WELL, NPP locations, P-COLL, P-SMAL, P-TOBO, T-EAST, T-TAYL, T-WEST

Methods and Protocols

These methods, instrumentation and/or protocols apply to all data in this dataset:

Methods and protocols used in the collection of this data package
Description:

General study design

There are 15 net primary production (NPP) monitoring sites located in 5 vegetation communities that represent the major vegetation types of the Jornada Basin. These vegetation zones and their associated NPP sites (3 per zone) are: 1) creosotebush scrub (CALI, GRAV, SAND), 2) tarbush flats (EAST, TAYL, WEST), 3) grassland (BASN, IBPE, SUMM), 4) mesquite dunes (NORT, RABB, WELL), and 5) playa (COLL, SMAL, TOBO). Grids of permanent 1 square meter replicate quadrats have been established at each site for long-term monitoring of net primary production. Grids consist of 49 quadrats arranged in a square 7 x 7 pattern, with quadrats 10 m apart. (Exception: P-COLL, the College Ranch playa, has 48 quadrats arranged in a 3 x 16 pattern). NPP observations, both non-destructive and off-grid harvests (this package) began in April 1989.

Site maps may be available on request from the Data Manager (currently missing).

Reference harvest methods

This data package contains the volumetric and aboveground biomass data from vegetation harvested outside the permanent NPP quadrats. These measurements comprise a reference dataset from which biomass is regressed against plant volume to create allometric models that estimate biomass from non-destructive volume measurements in permanent quadrats (see package 210011002). These methods were first established by Huenneke et al. (2001) and were updated by Peters et al. (2012). They are detailed in an attached protocol document (see "Additional files"), and are outlined below.

Off-quadrat plant harvests at each site occur on the same day that non-destructive measurements are collected inside the permanent quadrats. Plant samples selected for harvest vary by species, functional type, abundance, phenological stage, phenotypic plasticity, and other criteria. Dominant species, and others showing significant differences among sites in past regressions, are harvested from each site; for other species, samples may be taken in smaller numbers at any one site and samples from different sites may be pooled in the regression (see species list). Sample sizes are 15 for dominants, 10 for most other species (see species list). The range of cover values to be harvested is based on the range of cover values recorded from the permanent quadrats. Plants to be harvested are found in areas typical of those encountered in the permanent quadrats, and sampling avoids plants obviously damaged by livestock or previous harvests, or otherwise not representative of plants within permanent quadrats.

Once suitable plants are identified, their horizontal cover and vertical height are measured in the field as for the quadrats. Volumes are then harvested, returned to the laboratory, held in a cold room (4 degree Celsius), sorted (dead material discarded, unless obviously from the current season of growth), dried (55 degree Celsius), and weighed to nearest 0.01 g. Dominant shrubs (Larrea, Flourensia, Prosopis) are separated into leaves, stems, and reproductive material (either before or after weighing of total biomass); these components are weighed separately.

During the first five years of the study, off-quadrat reference harvests of species occurring in the NPP quadrats were common. As allometric models have become more robust, harvests for many species have ceased, and only a limited subset of highly variable or newly occurring species are harvested each year.

IMPORTANT NOTES

NOTE 1: Plant species codes in the "spp" column of the data file are specific to the Jornada Basin LTER. However, USDA Plants Database codes (plants.usda.gov) have been assigned to most of these local codes in a separate column. Further details for linking the local codes to currently recognized taxa may be found in the "JRN Vascular Plants" EDI package (knb-lter-jrn.210520001).

Additional files

A harvest protocol included with this data package ("Harvestprotocol.pdf") provides details of field and laboratory methods used to create these data.

Derived data packages

knb-lter-jrn.210011001 - Quadrat biomass by species, site, and season

knb-lter-jrn.210011003 - Annual NPP summaries by site

References

Huenneke, Laura F., Dennis Clason, and Esteban Muldavin. "Spatial heterogeneity in Chihuahuan Desert vegetation: implications for sampling methods in semi-arid ecosystems." Journal of Arid Environments 47, no. 3 (2001): 257-270.

Peters, Debra PC, Jin Yao, Osvaldo E. Sala, and John P. Anderson. "Directional climate change and potential reversal of desertification in arid and semiarid ecosystems." Global Change Biology 18, no. 1 (2012): 151-163.

People and Organizations

Publishers:
Organization:Environmental Data Initiative
Email Address:
info@edirepository.org
Web Address:
https://edirepository.org
Id:https://ror.org/0330j0z60
Creators:
Individual: Debra C Peters
Organization:USDA-ARS Jornada Experimental Range
Address:
P.O. Box 30003; MSC 3JER New Mexico State University,
Las Cruces, NM 88003-8003 U.S.A.
Id:https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5842-8099
Individual: Laura F Huenneke
Organization:New Mexico State University (Now at NAU)
Id:https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2562-6822
Contacts:
Organization:Jornada Basin LTER
Position:Information Manager
Phone:
575-322-2430
Email Address:
jornada.data@nmsu.edu
Web Address:
https://lter.jornada.nmsu.edu/information-management/
Associated Parties:
Individual: John Anderson
Organization:Jornada Basin LTER/New Mexico State University
Position:Jornada Research Site Manager
Address:
P.O. Box 30003; MSC 3JER New Mexico State University,
Las Cruces, NM 88003-8003 U.S.A.
Email Address:
janderso@jornada.nmsu.edu
Id:https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6417-8022
Role:field data collection
Individual: JRN field crew
Organization:Jornada Basin LTER/New Mexico State University
Position:Jornada Basin LTER Field Crew
Address:
P.O. Box 30003; MSC 3JER New Mexico State University,
Las Cruces, NM 88003-8003 U.S.A.
Role:field data collection
Metadata Providers:
Organization:Jornada Basin LTER
Position:Jornada Basin LTER program
Address:
P.O. Box 30003; MSC 3JER New Mexico State University,
Las Cruces, NM 88003-8003 USA
Email Address:
jornada.lter@nmsu.edu
Web Address:
https://lter.jornada.nmsu.edu
Id:https://ror.org/05976ta47

Temporal, Geographic and Taxonomic Coverage

Temporal, Geographic and/or Taxonomic information that applies to all data in this dataset:

Time Period
Begin:
1989-04-25
End:
2023-05-15
Geographic Region:
Description:NPP study locations: There are 15 sites used in the NPP study, spanning 5 vegetation community types in the Jornada Basin. This bounding box includes all 15 sites. More precise geographic coordinates for this study may be requested from the JRN LTER Data Manager (jornada.data@nmsu.edu).
Bounding Coordinates:
Northern:  32.669000Southern:  32.488000
Western:  -106.865000Eastern:  -106.713000

Project

Parent Project Information:

Title:Jornada Basin LTER
Personnel:
Individual:Dr. Niall Hanan
Address:
P.O. Box 30003, MSC 3JER,
New Mexico State University,
Las Cruces, NM 88003-8003 United States
Phone:
575-646-3335 (voice)
Email Address:
nhanan@nmsu.edu
Role:Principal Investigator
Abstract:

The Jornada Basin Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) program is part of a national network of long-term ecological research sites funded by the US National Science Foundation (NSF). The Jornada LTER program has been continuously funded since 1982 (Current NSF award: DEB-2025166) to develop general principles governing changes between grassland and shrubland ecosystems based on long-term data collected in the Chihuahuan Desert. We translate our findings to dryland ecosystems around the world, and forecast the dynamics of future ecosystem states in response to changing climate and land use.

Additional Award Information:
Funder:National Science Foundation
Funder ID:https://ror.org/05976ta47
Number:2025166
Title:LTER: Long –Term Research at the Jornada Basin (LTER VII)
URL:https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2025166
Additional Award Information:
Funder:National Science Foundation
Number:DEB 1832194
Title:Prior award: LTER: Long - Term Research at the Jornada Basin (LTER VII)
Additional Award Information:
Funder:National Science Foundation
Number:DEB 1235828
Title:Prior award: LTER: Long-Term Research at the Jornada Basin (LTER-VI)
Additional Award Information:
Funder:National Science Foundation
Number:DEB 0618210
Title:Prior award: Jornada Basin LTER V: Landscape Linkages in Arid and Semiarid Ecosystems
Additional Award Information:
Funder:National Science Foundation
Number:DEB 0080412
Title:Prior award: LTER IV: Jornada Basin: Linkages in Semi-arid Landscapes
Additional Award Information:
Funder:National Science Foundation
Number:DEB 9411971
Title:Prior award: LTER: The Chihuahuan Desert (The Jornada LTER III Consortium)
Additional Award Information:
Funder:National Science Foundation
Number:DEB 8811160, 9240261
Title:Prior award: Interactions in Time and Space Variability in a Chihuahuan Desert Ecosystem: Jornada LTER (II)
Additional Award Information:
Funder:National Science Foundation
Number:DEB 8114466, 8612106
Title:Prior award: Interactions of Time and Space Variability in a Chihuahuan Desert Ecosystem in New Mexico (Jornada LTER I)

Maintenance

Maintenance:
Description:ongoing
Frequency:annually
Other Metadata

Additional Metadata

additionalMetadata
        |___text '\n    '
        |___element 'metadata'
        |     |___text '\n      '
        |     |___element 'unitList'
        |     |     |___text '\n        '
        |     |     |___element 'unit'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'abbreviation' = 'cm'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'id' = 'centimeter'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'multiplierToSI' = '0.01'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'name' = 'centimeter'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'parentSI' = 'meter'
        |     |     |     |___text '\n          '
        |     |     |     |___element 'description'
        |     |     |     |     |___text '.01 meters'
        |     |     |     |___text '\n        '
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        |     |     |___element 'unit'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'id' = 'dimensionless'
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        |     |     |     |     |___text 'a designation asserting the absence of an associated unit'
        |     |     |     |___text '\n        '
        |     |     |___text '\n        '
        |     |     |___element 'unit'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'abbreviation' = 'g'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'id' = 'gram'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'multiplierToSI' = '0.001'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'name' = 'gram'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'parentSI' = 'kilogram'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'unitType' = 'mass'
        |     |     |     |___text '\n          '
        |     |     |     |___element 'description'
        |     |     |     |     |___text '0.001 kg'
        |     |     |     |___text '\n        '
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        |     |     |___element 'unit'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'id' = 'number'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'name' = 'number'
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        |     |     |     |___text '\n          '
        |     |     |     |___element 'description'
        |     |     |     |     |___text 'a quantity or amount'
        |     |     |     |___text '\n        '
        |     |     |___text '\n      '
        |     |___text '\n    '
        |___text '\n  '

EDI is a collaboration between the University of New Mexico and the University of Wisconsin – Madison, Center for Limnology:

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