Data from: Plant community composition and species richness in the High Arctic tundra: from the present to the future ...

• Main Authors: Nabe-Nielsen, Jacob, Normand, Signe, Hui, Francis K. C., Stewart, Lærke, Bay, Christian, Nabe-Nielsen, Louise I., Schmidt, Niels Martin, Stewart, Laerke
• Format: Dataset
• Language: English
• Published: Dryad 2018
• Subjects: Cassiope tetragona; Silene involucrata; Pedicularis flammea; Silene acaulis; Draba arctica; carex marítima; Stellaria longipes; Euphrasia frigida; Festuca hyperborea; Luzula nivalis; Festuca brachyphylla; plant cover; Equisetum variegatum; Arctagrostis latifolia; High Arctic tundra vegetation; Bistorta vivipara; Arenaria pseudofrigida; Sabulina stricta; boral; Arnica angustifolia; Minuartia biflora; Pedicularis hirsuta; Poa glauca; Poa arctica; Potentilla nivea; Sabulina rubella; Hierochloe alpina; Cerastium arcticum; Festuca rubra; Salix arctica; Carex bigelowii; Carex fuliginosa; Juncus castaneus; Draba glabella; Rhododendron lapponicum; Micranthes nivalis; Eriophorum triste; Kobresia myosuroides; Potentilla rubricaulis; Carex nardina; Papaver radicatum; Saxifraga oppositifolia; Equisetum arvense; Polemonium boreale; Potentilla hyparctica; Juncus triglumis; Saxifraga cespitosa; Carex capillaris; Oxyria digyna; Chamerion latifolium; Arctic; Greenland; Nivea; Sund; Tyrolerfjord; Young Sund; Eriophorum; Tundra; Zackenberg
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.5061/dryad.8gr16; https://datadryad.org/stash/dataset/doi:10.5061/dryad.8gr16

Arctic plant communities are altered by climate changes. The magnitude of these alterations depends on whether species distributions are determined by macroclimatic conditions, by factors related to local topography, or by biotic interactions. Our current understanding of the relative importance of these conditions is limited due to the scarcity of studies, especially in the High Arctic. We investigated variations in vascular plant community composition and species richness based on 288 plots distributed on three sites along a coast-inland gradient in Northeast Greenland using a stratified random design. We used an information theoretic approach to determine whether variations in species richness were best explained by macroclimate, by factors related to local topography (including soil water) or by plant-plant interactions. Latent variable models were used to explain patterns in plant community composition. Species richness was mainly determined by variations in soil water content, which explained 35% of ... : Species presence in plotgroupsThe file “Nabe-Nielsen etal 2017 Young Sund spp pres in plotgrps” contains data on the number of plots where each vascular plant species was present within each of the 48 plot groups. Species names are based on nomenclature in Supplementary Information in the published paper.Nabe-Nielsen etal 2017 Young Sund spp pres in plotgrps.csvVegetation cover and environmental data per plot groupThe file “Nabe-Nielsen etal 2017 Young Sund plotgroup data.csv” contains data on average vegetation cover, average number of plant species per plot and average environmental variables in each of 48 plot groups distributed along Young Sund, a High Arctic fjord in Northeast Greenland. The plots are located in three sites: “Zackenberg”, “Blæsedalen” and “Tyrolerfjord”. Each plot group consists of six plots. See the published paper for further details. Environemental variables include: altitude [m], continentality index [*], slope [degrees], solar radiation index [*], soil water [percent], and ...