Data for: Scale-dependent responses of understory vegetation to the physical structure of undisturbed tundra shrub patches

• Main Authors: Wallace, Cory A., Baltzer, Jennifer L.
• Language: English
• Published: Borealis
• Subjects: Earth and Environmental Sciences; Alnus alnobetula; shrub expansion; ecotone; physical structure; stem map; understory vegetation; Valley Creek; Tundra
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.5683/SP3/9Q6NQ4

These data were collected in order to explore relationships between the physical structure of tundra shrubs and local vegetation and abiotic conditions. In order to do this we established 3 x 3 m sampling plots at the top, middle, and bottom of ten Alnus alnobetula (green alder) patches. All patches were situated on south-southeast facing hillslopes within 2 km of the Tail Valley Creek Research Station. Within each of these plots we selected two sub-plots for vegetation community composition. We also measured several abiotic variables within 50 cm of each 3 x 3 m plot. At each patch a 9 m belt was established from 13 m above the top edge to at least 12 m below the bottom edge, encompassing all 3 x 3 m sampling plots. Within this belt we mapped the relative location of all mature alder individuals and recorded their height and canopy width. These data were used to derive the structural data associated with each sampling plot and the data used for analysis of topographic trends in structural characteristics.