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Density and cover of winter annual plants

General Information
Data Package:
Local Identifier:knb-lter-jrn.210368001.44
Title:Density and cover of winter annual plants
Alternate Identifier:DOI PLACE HOLDER
Abstract:

This dataset contains plant cover and density data collected in three harvester ant (Pogonomyrmex rugosus) nesting habitats at the Jornada Basin LTER site in 1987. The purpose of this investigation was to answer three general questions: 1. How does the modification of soil properties and the ratios of resources (e.g., water-N) by ants alter species assemblages of winter annual plants at the edge of the ant nests? 2. How does the "spring cleaning", clipping, predation or herbivory by ants affect success of the winter annual plants at the edge of ant nests? 3. Are there significant differences in the floristic assemblage and belowground standing crop (root biomass) between the edge of ant nest and the surrounding unaffected soils? Variables included in the dataset include density and cover of all winter annual plants measured at regular intervals between January and May of 1987. Density is expressed as the number of individuals of a species per square meter. The cover of each species was calculated as the area covered by a perpendicular (not vertical) projection of its aerial parts onto the ground surface and expressed in covered area (cm squared) per square meter. This study is completed.

Publication Date:2021-12-14
Language:English
For more information:
Visit: https://jrn.lternet.edu
Visit: DOI PLACE HOLDER

Time Period
Begin:
1987-01-01
End:
1987-05-31

People and Organizations
Contact:Jornada Basin LTER Information Manager (Jornada Basin LTER) [  email ]
Creator:Di Marco, Rodolfo (New Mexico State University)
Creator:Whitford, Walter G (Jornada Basin LTER/New Mexico State University)

Data Entities
Data Table Name:
Winter annual plant cover data
Description:
Plant cover and density by species or other taxonomic group at three ant nesting habitat locations, January-May 1987
Other Name:
JRN DSD file (Dataset Documentation)
Description:
Early format Jornada metadata file for this dataset.
Detailed Metadata

Data Entities

Data Table

Data:https://pasta-s.lternet.edu/package/data/eml/knb-lter-jrn/210368001/44/67802a8b8cb9b89fa7e505b4c5732b3f
Name:Winter annual plant cover data
Description:Plant cover and density by species or other taxonomic group at three ant nesting habitat locations, January-May 1987
Number of Records:6080
Number of Columns:12

Table Structure
Object Name:JRN368001_ant_nest_winterann_cover.csv
Size:443664 byte
Authentication:09c1e56275b041a2996e9e679eafce41 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
 Sample date codePlaceReplicateTreatmentSidePlant densityTotal plant coverLTER species codeUSDA PLANTS symbolBinomial namePlant species densitySpecific species plant cover
Column Name:sample_time  
place  
rep  
trt  
side  
npt  
sft  
spp_old  
USDA_code  
Species_binomial  
spn  
sps  
Definition:Sample day - julian day in 1987 [1-113]Sampling location - one of three locationsReplicate number [1-8 in location 1, replicate 1-5 in location 2, replicate 1-7 in location 3]Treatment [perimeter or reference sample]Sampling quadrat number [1 or 2]Plant density (plants per square meter)Total plant cover (cm2/m2)Species code - old JRN LTER styleUSDA PLANTS symbol (https://plants.usda.gov)Binomial name (Genus species) or other descriptionPlant species density (number of specific species per m2)Specific species plant cover
Storage Type:integer  
string  
integer  
string  
integer  
float  
float  
string  
string  
string  
float  
float  
Measurement Type:intervalnominalintervalnominalintervalratiorationominalnominalnominalratioratio
Measurement Values Domain:
UnitnominalDay
Typeinteger
Allowed Values and Definitions
Enumerated Domain 
Code Definition
Codeloc2
DefinitionCollege Playa fringe
Source
Code Definition
Codeloc1
Definitionburrograss-tobosa swale
Source
Code Definition
Codeloc3
Definitionupper basin slope mixed grassess
Source
Unitnumber
Typeinteger
Allowed Values and Definitions
Enumerated Domain 
Code Definition
Codeperimeter
Definitionant nest perimeter
Source
Code Definition
Codereference
Definitionreference site
Source
Unitnumber
Typeinteger
UnitnumberPerMeterSquared
Typereal
UnitcentimeterSquaredPerMeterSquared
Typereal
Definitionany text
Definitionany text
Definitionany text
UnitnumberPerMeterSquared
Typereal
UnitcentimeterSquaredPerMeterSquared
Typereal
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
Accuracy Report:                        
Accuracy Assessment:                        
Coverage:                        
Methods:                        

Non-Categorized Data Resource

Name:JRN DSD file (Dataset Documentation)
Entity Type:otherEntity
Description:Early format Jornada metadata file for this dataset.
Physical Structure Description:
Object Name:andencov.dsd.txt
Size:21087 byte
Authentication:3267a264777dc308779c06a8060ab1bf Calculated By MD5
Externally Defined Format:
Format Name:text/plain
Data:https://pasta-s.lternet.edu/package/data/eml/knb-lter-jrn/210368001/44/392ffff125b26f947b8cfc5727b5b805

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 AreasDisturbance
LTER Controlled Vocabulary v1Disturbance, LTER, ants, insects, plant communities, plant cover, vascular plants
noneAnimal, LTER, annual plants, ant nests
Jornada Basin LTER dataset keywordsAnimal
Jornada Basin project namesstudy 368

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:

Methods in brief

During winter 1987, eight harvester ant (Pogonomyrmex rugosus) nests at site 1, five harvester ant nests at site 2 and seven ant nests at site 3 were randomly selected and systematically sampled. At each nest, a 0.16 square meter quadrat frame was randomly placed at the ant nest edge, a second 0.16 square meter quadrat was also placed on the ant nest edge opposite to the first quadrat. Two additional quadrat frames were placed 5 meters distance from the two at the edge of the ant nests. These quadrats represent the soil unmodified by the activity of the ants and served as a reference.

The density and the cover of all winter annual plants were measured at regular intervals (approximately 30 days). Density was expressed as the number of individuals of a species per square meter. The cover of each species was calculated as the area covered by a perpendicular (not vertical) projection of its aerial parts onto the ground surface and expressed in covered area (cm2) per m2 and in percentage. Overlap was always counted, resulting in the potential for total cover to exceed 100%. Density and cover is measured four times, at the end of January, February and March and in mid-May. Each measurement required three to four days to complete. Affinity for ant nest edge for each species was calculated as mean cover of a species on the edge of an ant nest divided by the sum of mean cover of that species n the edge of an ant nest and mean cover on the reference sites. This was expressed as percentage. Mean cover of all species was determined as an arithmetic mean throughout the experiment.

Data set contains density and cover of all winter annual plants measured at regular intervals. Density is expressed as the number of individuals of a species per square meter. The cover of each species was calculated as the area covered by a perpendicular (not vertical) projection of its aerial parts onto the ground surface and expressed in covered area (cm squared) per square meter.

Additional Files

An additional metadata file - andencov.dsd.txt - from the earlier Jornada information management system is included and may contain useful metadata.

People and Organizations

Publishers:
Organization:Environmental Data Initiative
Email Address:
info@environmentaldatainitiative.org
Web Address:
https://environmentaldatainitiative.org
Id:https://ror.org/0330j0z60
Creators:
Individual: Rodolfo Di Marco
Organization:New Mexico State University
Individual: Walter G Whitford
Organization:Jornada Basin LTER/New Mexico State University
Address:
P.O. Box 30003; MSC 3JER New Mexico State University,
Las Cruces, NM 88003-8003 U.S.A.
Contacts:
Organization:Jornada Basin LTER
Position:Jornada Basin LTER Information Manager
Address:
P.O. Box 30003, MSC 3JER New Mexico State University,
Las Cruces, NM 88003-8003 USA
Phone:
575-646-1739
Email Address:
jornada.data@nmsu.edu
Web Address:
https://lter.jornada.nmsu.edu/information-management/
Metadata Providers:
Organization:Jornada Basin LTER
Address:
P.O. Box 30003; MSC 3JER New Mexico State University,
Las Cruces, NM 88003-8003 USA
Web Address:
https://lter.jornada.nmsu.edu

Temporal, Geographic and Taxonomic Coverage

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

Time Period
Begin:
1987-01-01
End:
1987-05-31
Geographic Region:
Description:Basin Floor: Study occurred in the basin floor geomorphic zone in the Jornada Basin. More precise geographic coordinates for this study may be requested from the JRN LTER Data Manager (jornada.data@nmsu.edu).
Bounding Coordinates:
Northern:  32.749487Southern:  32.473173
Western:  -106.872883Eastern:  -106.692716

Project

Parent Project Information:

Title:Jornada Basin LTER
Personnel:
Individual:Dr. Walter Whitford
Address:
P.O. Box 30003, MSC 3JER,
New Mexico State University,
Las Cruces, NM 88003-8003 United States
Phone:
575-646-1739 (voice)
Email Address:
jornada.lter@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 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.

Funding:

At the time of this study, JRN LTER was funded by the National Science Foundation under award DEB 8114466 (LTER-I).

Maintenance

Maintenance:
Description:completed
Frequency:notPlanned
Other Metadata

Additional Metadata

additionalMetadata
        |___text '\n    '
        |___element 'metadata'
        |     |___text '\n      '
        |     |___element 'unitList'
        |     |     |___text '\n        '
        |     |     |___element 'unit'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'abbreviation' = 'cm²/m²'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'id' = 'centimeterSquaredPerMeterSquared'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'multiplierToSI' = '0.01'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'name' = 'centimeterSquaredPerMeterSquared'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'parentSI' = 'percent'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'unitType' = 'dimensionless'
        |     |     |     |___text '\n          '
        |     |     |     |___element 'description'
        |     |     |     |     |___text 'square centimeters per square meter measured'
        |     |     |     |___text '\n        '
        |     |     |___text '\n        '
        |     |     |___element 'unit'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'id' = 'nominalDay'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'multiplierToSI' = '86400'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'name' = 'nominalDay'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'parentSI' = 'second'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'unitType' = 'time'
        |     |     |     |___text '\n          '
        |     |     |     |___element 'description'
        |     |     |     |     |___text 'one day excluding leap seconds, 86400 seconds'
        |     |     |     |___text '\n        '
        |     |     |___text '\n        '
        |     |     |___element 'unit'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'id' = 'number'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'name' = 'number'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'unitType' = 'dimensionless'
        |     |     |     |___text '\n          '
        |     |     |     |___element 'description'
        |     |     |     |     |___text 'a quantity or amount'
        |     |     |     |___text '\n        '
        |     |     |___text '\n        '
        |     |     |___element 'unit'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'id' = 'numberPerMeterSquared'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'multiplierToSI' = '1'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'name' = 'numberPerMeterSquared'
        |     |     |     |  \___attribute 'unitType' = 'arealDensity'
        |     |     |     |___text '\n          '
        |     |     |     |___element 'description'
        |     |     |     |     |___text 'number per meter squared, e.g., for a population density.'
        |     |     |     |___text '\n        '
        |     |     |___text '\n      '
        |     |___text '\n    '
        |___text '\n  '

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