Find research datasets worth reusing

Data from: Multiple glacial refugia and contemporary dispersal shape the genetic structure of an endemic amphibian from the Pyrenees

Historical factors (colonization scenarios, demographic oscillations) and contemporary processes (population connectivity, current population size) largely contribute to shaping species' present-day genetic diversity and structure. In this study, we use a combination of mitochondrial and nuclear DNA markers to understand the role of Quaternary climatic oscillations and present-day gene flow dynamics in determining the genetic diversity and structure of the newt Calotriton asper (Al. Dugès, 1852), endemic to the Pyrenees. Mitochondrial DNA did not show a clear phylogeographic pattern and presented low levels of variation. In contrast, microsatellites revealed five major genetic lineages with admixture patterns at their boundaries. Approximate Bayesian computation analyses and linear models indicated that the five lineages likely underwent separate evolutionary histories and can be tracked back to distinct glacial refugia. Lineage differentiation started around the Last Glacial Maximum at three focal areas (western, central and eastern Pyrenees) and extended through the end of the Last Glacial Period in the central Pyrenees, where it led to the formation of two more lineages. Our data revealed no evidence of recent dispersal between lineages, whereas borders likely represent zones of secondary contact following expansion from multiple refugia. Finally, we did not find genetic evidence of sex-biased dispersal. This work highlights the importance of integrating past evolutionary processes and present-day gene flow and dispersal dynamics, together with multilocus approaches, to gain insights into what shaped the current genetic attributes of amphibians living in montane habitats.

Data from: The preparation and characterization of uniform nanoporous structure on glass

A novel fabrication method of uniform porous structures on the glass surface is proposed. The hydrofluoric acid fog formed by air-jet atomization etches the glass surface to fabricate nanoporous structure (NPS) on glass surface. This NPS shows the enhanced average light transmittance of ~92.9% and the superhydrophilic property with a contact angle less than 1° which presents an excellent anti-fog property. Passivated by fluorosilane, the NPS shows nearly the superhydrophobic property with a contact angle of 141.2°. This fabrication method has shown promising application prospects due to its simplicity, low cost and efficiency, which can be easily applied to large-scale industrial production.

Data from: Increased diversity and concordant shifts in community structure of coral-associated Symbiodiniaceae and bacteria subjected to chronic human disturbance

Coral-associated bacteria and endosymbiotic algae (Symbiodiniaceae spp.) are both vitally important for the biological function of corals. Yet little is known about their co-occurrence within corals, how their diversity varies across coral species, or how they are impacted by anthropogenic disturbances. Here, we sampled coral colonies (n = 472) from seven species, encompassing a range of life history traits, across a gradient of chronic human disturbance (n = 11 sites on Kiritimati (Christmas) atoll) in the central equatorial Pacific, and quantified the sequence assemblages and community structure of their associated Symbiodiniaceae and bacterial communities. Although Symbiodiniaceae alpha diversity did not vary with chronic human disturbance, disturbance was consistently associated with higher bacterial Shannon diversity and richness, with bacterial richness by sample almost doubling from sites with low to very high disturbance. Chronic disturbance was also associated with altered microbial beta diversity for Symbiodiniaceae and bacteria, including changes in community structure for both and increased variation (dispersion) of the Symbiodiniaceae communities. We also found concordance between Symbiodiniaceae and bacterial community structure, when all corals were considered together, and individually for two massive species, Hydnophora microconos and Porites lobata, implying that symbionts and bacteria respond similarly to human disturbance in these species. Finally, we found that the dominant Symbiodiniaceae ancestral lineage in a coral colony was associated with differential abundances of several distinct bacterial taxa. These results suggest that increased beta diversity of Symbiodiniaceae and bacterial communities may be a reliable indicator of stress in the coral microbiome, and that there may be concordant responses to chronic disturbance between these communities at the whole-ecosystem scale.

Data from: Sierra Nevada mountain lake microbial communities are structured by temperature, resources, and geographic location

Warming, eutrophication (nutrient fertilization) and brownification (increased loading of allochthonous organic matter) are three global trends impacting lake ecosystems. However, the independent and synergistic effects of resource addition and warming on autotrophic and heterotrophic microorganisms are largely unknown. In this study, we investigate the independent and interactive effects of temperature, dissolved organic carbon (DOC, both allochthonous and autochthonous), and nitrogen (N) supply, in addition to the effect of spatial variables, on the composition, richness, and evenness of prokaryotic and eukaryotic microbial communities in lakes across elevation and N deposition gradients in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California, USA. We found that both prokaryotic and eukaryotic communities are structured by temperature, terrestrial (allochthonous) DOC and latitude. Prokaryotic communities are also influenced by total and aquatic (autochthonous) DOC, while eukaryotic communities are also structured by nitrate. Additionally, increasing N availability was associated with reduced richness of prokaryotic communities, and both lower richness and evenness of eukaryotes. We did not detect any synergistic or antagonistic effects as there were no interactions among temperature and resource variables. Together, our results suggest that (a) organic and inorganic resources, temperature, and geographic location (based on latitude and longitude) independently influence lake microbial communities; and (b) increasing N supply due to atmospheric N deposition may reduce richness of both prokaryotic and eukaryotic microbes, likely by reducing niche dimensionality. Our study provides insight into abiotic processes structuring microbial communities across environmental gradients and their potential roles in material and energy fluxes within and between ecosystems.

Data from: Unraveling hierarchical genetic structure in a marine metapopulation: a comparison of three high-throughput genotyping approaches

Marine metapopulations often exhibit subtle population structure that can be difficult to detect. Given recent advances in high-throughput sequencing, an emerging question is whether various genetic approaches, in concert with improved sampling designs, will substantially improve our understanding of genetic structure in the sea. To address this question, we explored hierarchical patterns of structure in the coral reef fish Elacatinus lori using a high-resolution approach with respect to both genetic and geographic sampling. Previously, we identified three putative E. lori populations within Belize using traditional genetic markers and sparse geographic sampling: barrier reef and Turneffe Atoll; Glover's Atoll; and Lighthouse Atoll. Here, we systematically sampled individuals at ~10 km intervals throughout these reefs (1,129 individuals from 35 sites) and sequenced all individuals at three sets of markers: 2,418 SNPs; 89 microsatellites; and 57 non-repetitive nuclear loci. At broad spatial scales, the markers were consistent with each other and with previous findings. At finer spatial scales, there was new evidence of genetic substructure, but our three marker sets differed slightly in their ability to detect these patterns. Specifically, we found subtle structure between the barrier reef and Turneffe Atoll, with SNPs resolving this pattern most effectively. We also documented isolation by distance within the barrier reef. Sensitivity analyses revealed that the number of loci (and alleles) had a strong effect on the detection of structure for all three marker sets, particularly at small spatial scales. Taken together, these results illustrate empirically that high-throughput genotyping data can elucidate subtle genetic structure at previously-undetected scales in a dispersive marine fish.

Data from: One panel to rule them all: DArTcap genotyping for population structure, historical demography, and kinship analyses, and its application to a threatened shark

With recent advances in sequencing technology, genomic data are changing how important conservation management decisions are made. Applications such as Close-Kin Mark-Recapture demand large amounts of data to estimate population size and structure, and their full potential can only be realised through ongoing improvements in genotyping strategies. Here we introduce DArTcap, a cost-efficient method that combines DArTseq and sequence capture, and illustrate its use in a high resolution population analysis of Glyphis garricki, a rare, poorly known and threatened euryhaline shark. Clustering analyses and spatial distribution of kin pairs from four different regions across northern Australia and one in Papua New Guinea, representing its entire known range, revealed that each region hosts at least one distinct population. Further structuring is likely within Van Diemen Gulf, the region that included the most rivers sampled, suggesting additional population structuring would be found if other rivers were sampled. Coalescent analyses and spatially explicit modelling suggest that G. garricki experienced a recent range expansion during the opening of the Gulf of Carpentaria following the conclusion of the Last Glacial Maximum. The low migration rates between neighbouring populations of a species that is found only in restricted coastal and riverine habitats show the importance of managing each population separately, including careful monitoring of local and remote anthropogenic activities that may affect their environments. Overall we demonstrated how a carefully chosen SNP panel combined with DArTcap can provide highly accurate kinship inference and also support population structure and historical demography analyses, therefore maximising cost-effectiveness.

Data from: Effects of Habitat Structure and Adjacent Habitats on Birds in Tropical Rainforest Fragments and Shaded Plantations in the Western Ghats, India

This dataset includes bird community, habitat structure, and vegetation data from the following publication: Raman, T.R.S. 2006. Effects of Habitat Structure and Adjacent Habitats on Birds in Tropical Rainforest Fragments and Shaded Plantations in the Western Ghats, India. Biodiversity and Conservation 15: 1577–1607. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-005-2352-5 Abstract: As large nature reserves occupy only a fraction of the earth's land surface, conservation biologists are critically examining the role of private lands, habitat fragments, and plantations for conservation. This study in a biodiversity hotspot and endemic bird area, the Western Ghats mountains of India, examined the effects of habitat structure, floristics, and adjacent habitats on bird communities in shade-coffee and cardamom plantations and tropical rainforest fragments. Habitat and birds were sampled in 13 sites: six fragments (three relatively isolated and three with canopy connectivity with adjoining shade-coffee plantations and forests), six plantations differing in canopy tree species composition (five coffee and one cardamom), and one undisturbed primary rainforest control site in the Anamalai hills. Around 3300 detections of 6000 individual birds belonging to 106 species were obtained. The coffee plantations were poorer than rainforest in rainforest bird species, particularly endemic species, but the rustic cardamom plantation with diverse, native rainforest shade trees, had bird species richness and abundance comparable to primary rainforest. Plantations and fragments that adjoined habitats providing greater tree canopy connectivity supported more rainforest and fewer open-forest bird species and individuals than sites that lacked such connectivity. These effects were mediated by strong positive effects of vegetation structure, particularly woody plant variables, cane, and bamboo, on bird community structure. Bird community composition was however positively correlated only to floristic (tree species) composition of sites. The maintenance or restoration of habitat structure and (shade) tree species composition in shade-coffee and cardamom plantations and rainforest fragments can aid in rainforest bird conservation in the regional landscape.

opencc-zeroApr 2020View details →

Data from: Population genomic diversity and structure at the discontinuous southern range of the Great Gray Owl in North America

Species' distributions are often discontinuous near the edge of the range where the environment may be more variable than the core of the range. Range discontinuity can reduce or cut off gene flow to small peripheral populations and lead to genetic drift and subsequent loss of genetic diversity. The southern extent of the Great Gray Owl ( Strixnebulosa) range in North America is discontinuous, unlike their northern core range across the boreal forests. We sampled owls from five different locations on the periphery of the range across the western US (Wyoming, Idaho, California, northern Oregon, and southern Oregon) to investigate genetic population structure and genetic diversity. Using a reduced-representation genomic sequencing approach to genotype 123 individuals at 4,817 single nucleotide polymorphic loci, we identified four genetically differentiated populations: California, southern Oregon, northern Oregon, and Wyoming and Idaho grouped together as a single Rocky Mountain population. The four genetically differentiated populations of Great Gray Owls identified in this study display high differentiation and low genetic variation, which is suggestive of long-term isolation and lack of connectivity, potentially caused by range discontinuity. The populations that lack habitat connectivity to the rest of the breeding range (i.e. those in California and Oregon) had lower genetic diversity than the Rocky Mountain population that is connected to the core of the range. These factors and other risks (such as disease and human-caused mortality) heighten susceptibility of these range-edge populations to future habitat and climate changes, genetic diversity erosion, and potential extinction vortex. For these reasons, protecting and monitoring this species on the southern edge of their range is vital.

opencc-zeroDec 2019View details →

Data from: Convergent evolution of niche structure in Northeast Pacific kelp forests

<ol> <li>Much of the morphological and ecological diversity present on earth is believed to have arisen through the process of adaptive radiation. Yet, this is seemingly at odds with substantial evidence that niches tend to be similar among closely related species (i.e., niche conservatism). Identifying the relative importance of these opposing processes in driving niche evolution under different circumstances is therefore essential to our understanding of the interaction between ecological and evolutionary phenomena.</li> <li>In this study, we make use of recent advances in our understanding of the phylogeny of kelps (Laminariales) to investigate niche evolution in one of the most ecologically significant groups of benthic habitat-forming organisms on the planet. We quantify functional traits and use community sampling data from a kelp diversity hotspot to determine which traits are responsible for the habitat (β) niche of kelps and whether they are labile or conserved across the kelp phylogeny. </li> <li>We find that combinations of functional traits have evolved convergently across kelp subclades and that these functional traits are significant predictors of community structure. Specifically, traits associated with whole-kelp structural reinforcement and material properties were found to be significantly correlated with species distributions along a gradient of wave disturbance and thus predict the outcome of environmental filtering. However, kelp assemblages were made up of species that are more phylogenetically distinct than expected (i.e., phylogenetic overdispersion), suggesting that niche partitioning along this gradient of wave disturbance has been an important driver of divergence between close relatives.</li> <li>These results are consistent with the hypothesis that environmental filtering associated with wave disturbance plays an essential role in determining the habitat niche of kelps across local communities and further suggest that this process can drive phenotypic divergence and niche partitioning between close relatives. We propose that parallel adaptive radiation of kelp subclades has shaped the diversity and species composition of kelp forests in the Northeast Pacific and we discuss how evidence from the literature on incipient or ongoing speciation events support this hypothesis.</li> </ol>

opencc-zeroDec 2019View details →

Data from: Chemical structure predicts the effect of plant-derived low-molecular weight compounds on soil microbiome structure and pathogen suppression

1. Plant-derived low molecular weight compounds play a crucial role in shaping soil microbiome functionality. While various compounds have been demonstrated to affect soil microbes, most data are case-specific and do not provide generalizable predictions on their effects. Here we show that the chemical structural affiliation of low molecular weight compounds typically secreted by plant roots – sugars, amino acids, organic acids and phenolic acids – can predictably affect microbiome diversity, composition and functioning in terms of plant disease suppression. 2. We amended soil with single or mixtures of representative compounds, mimicking carbon deposition by plants. We then assessed how different classes of compounds, or their combinations, affected microbiome composition and the protection of tomato plants from the soil-borne Ralstonia solanacearum bacterial pathogen. 3. We found that chemical class predicted well the changes in microbiome composition and diversity. Organic and amino acids generally decreased the microbiome diversity compared to sugars and phenolic acids. These changes were also linked to disease incidence, with amino acids and nitrogen-containing compound mixtures inducing more severe disease symptoms connected with a reduction in bacterial community diversity. 4. Together, our results demonstrate that low molecular weight compounds can predictably steer rhizosphere microbiome functioning providing guidelines to engineer microbiomes based on root exudation patterns by specific plant cultivars or crop regimes.

Data from: Population structure, connectivity and demographic history of an apex marine predator, the bull shark Carcharhinus leucas

Knowledge of population structure, connectivity and effective population size remains limited for many marine apex predators, including the bull shark Carcharhinus leucas. This large-bodied coastal shark is distributed worldwide in warm temperate and tropical waters, and uses estuaries and rivers as nurseries. As an apex predator, the bull shark likely plays a vital ecological role within marine food webs, but is at risk due to inshore habitat degradation and various fishing pressures. We investigated the bull shark's global population structure and demographic history by analysing the genetic diversity of 370 individuals from 11 different locations using 25 microsatellite loci and three mitochondrial genes (CR, nd4, cytb). Both types of markers revealed clustering between sharks from the Western Atlantic and those from the Western Pacific and the Western Indian Ocean, with no contemporary gene flow. Microsatellite data suggested low differentiation between the Western Indian Ocean and the Western Pacific, but substantial differentiation was found using mitochondrial DN A. Integrating information from both types of markers and using Bayesian computation with a random forest procedure (ABC-RF), this discordance was found to be due to a complete lack of contemporary gene flow. High genetic connectivity was found both within the Western Indian Ocean and within the Western Pacific. In conclusion, these results suggest important structuring of bull shark populations globally with important gene flow occurring along coastlines , highlighting the need for management and conservation plans on regional scales rather than oceanic basin scale.

opencc-by-4.0Jul 2020View details →

Data for "Shallow lower mantle viscosity modulates the pattern of mantle structure"

Data, input files and plotting software for the journal article "Shallow lower mantle viscosity modulates the pattern of mantle structure", published in the journal Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems in 2020. <ol> <li>Simulation-data.tar.gz has information, input files, and data for the last time step of all the simulations run in the study.</li> <li>Post-processing.tar.gz  has post-processed data and the scripts used for analysis and plotting of data in the paper.</li> </ol>

Data from: Structural colours in diverse Mesozoic insects

Structural colours, nature's most pure and intense colours, originate when light is scattered via nanoscale modulations of the refractive index. Original colours in fossils illuminate the ecological interactions among extinct organisms and functional evolution of colours. Here we report multiple examples of vivid metallic colours in diverse insects from mid-Cretaceous amber. Scanning and transmission electron microscopy revealed a smooth outer surface and five alternating electron-dense and electron-lucent layers in the epicuticle of a fossil wasp, suggesting that multilayer reflectors, the most common biophotonic nanostructure in animals and even plants, are responsible for the exceptional preservation of colour in amber fossils. Based on theoretical modeling of the reflectance spectra, a reflective peak of wavelength of 514 nm was calculated, corresponding to the bluish green colour observed under white light. The green to blue structural colours in fossil wasps, beetles, and a fly most likely functioned as camouflage, although other functions such as thermoregulation cannot be ruled out. This discovery not only provides critical evidence of evolution of structural colours in arthropods, but also sheds light on the preservation potential of nanostructures of ancient animals through geological time.

Underlying data for "Global alignment and assessment of TRP channel transmembrane domain structures to explore functional mechanisms"

Output Files from Structural Alignment of TRP Channels The archive contains the key output files resulting from the structural alignment of members of the TRP channel family described in "Global alignment and assessment of TRP channel transmembrane domain structures to explore functional mechanisms", Huffer et al., (2020), eLife. Contents of trp_struct_align_outputs.tar.gz Aligned_structures For each alignment where the transmembrane (TM) domain of the mobile structure was aligned to the TM domain of the stationary/reference structure (6co7): 1) mobile_stationary_full_align.pdb: aligned based on Fr-TM-Align output matrix, contains all residues 2) mobile_stationary_tmem_align.pdb: aligned based on Fr-TM-Align output matrix, contains only TM residues used for alignment 3) mobile_stationary_hole.pdb: aligned based on Fr-TM-Align output matrix, contains HOLE profile of mobile structure Alignments Multiple sequence alignments constructed using the TM domain of each structure as the stationary/reference structure, with all other structures aligned pairwise. 1) stationary_full.ali: Full multiple sequence alignment containing all TM residues from all stationary and mobile structures. 2) stationary_nogap.ali: Multiple sequence alignment containing all TM residues from the stationary structure.  Any gaps in the stationary structure removed, which removes any residue in any mobile structure that does not align to the stationary/reference structure. Fr-TM-Align_outputs - frtmalign_output.csv: contains all information from Fr-TM-Align output files for each pairwise alignment of TM domains, including PDB IDs of mobile and stationary structures, lengths of mobile and stationary structures, length of pairwise alignment sequence, RMSD of alignment, TM-score of alignment, and sequence identity of alignment. - aligned_length.csv, RMSD.csv, sequence_identity.csv, and TM_score.csv: csv files containing the specified values for all pairwise alignments of TM domains, with the mobile structure in rows and stationary structure in columns Reproducibility Code to reproduce this alignment and analysis is available on GitHub at: <a href="https://github.com/kehuffer/TRP_Structural_Alignment">https://github.com/kehuffer/TRP_Structural_Alignment</a>

Data from: Long-term mechanistic hindcasts predict the structure of experimentally-warmed intertidal communities

Increases in global temperatures are expected to have dramatic effects on the abundance and distribution of species in the coming years. Intertidal organisms, which already experience temperatures at or beyond their thermal limits, provide a model system in which to investigate these effects. We took advantage of a previous study in which experimental plates were deployed in the intertidal zone and passively warmed for 12 years to a daily maximum temperature on average 2.7°C higher than control plots on the adjacent bedrock. We compared the composition of the biological communities on each experimental plate with its neighboring bedrock control. Plate communities showed decreased richness of taxa and percent cover of filamentous algae, mussels and mobile grazers relative to bedrock, and increased percent cover of biofilm. We then used short-term time-series measurements of plate and bedrock temperatures and a mechanistic heat-budget model to hindcast those temperatures back 12 years. Greater differences in long-term average temperature between the experimental plates and bedrock controls were correlated with lower similarity in community composition. Additionally, years with higher average differences between plate and bedrock temperatures were more predictive of current compositional similarity between plate and bedrock communities, even though they occurred farther in the past than did more recent, but cooler, years. We conclude that current intertidal communities reflect their long-term, rather than short-term, thermal histories. Mechanistic heat-budget models based on short-term measurements can provide this valuable, long-term information.

opencc-by-4.0Aug 2020View details →

Experimental and DFT structural data for OPE3-Ph - Au molecular junctions

Experimental crystal structures (CIF), plane wave DFT relaxed structures (Quantum ESPRESSO) and DFTB transport geometries (CIF, GEN) for OPE3-Ph - Au molecular junctions. Data for article: "Electronic Conductance and Thermopower of Single-molecule Junctions of Oligo(phenyleneethynylene) Derivatives" by Hervé Dekkiche, Andrea Gemma, Fatemeh Tabatabatai,  Andrei S. Batsanov, Thomas Niehaus, Bernd Gotsmann, and Martin R. Bryce to appear in Nanoscale

Data from: Multi-scale spatial genetic structure within and between populations of wild cherry trees in nuclear genotypes and chloroplast haplotypes

Spatial genetic structure (SGS) of plants mainly depends on the effective population size and gene dispersal. Maternally inherited loci are expected to have higher genetic differentiation between populations and more intensive SGS within populations than biparentally inherited loci because of smaller effective population sizes and fewer opportunities of gene dispersal in the maternally inherited loci. We investigated biparentally inherited nuclear genotypes and maternally inherited chloroplast haplotypes of microsatellites in 17 tree populations of three wild cherry species under different conditions of tree distribution and seed dispersal. As expected, inter-population genetic differentiation was 6–9 times higher in chloroplast haplotypes than in nuclear genotypes. This difference indicated that pollen flow 4–7 times exceeded seed flow between populations. However, no difference between nuclear and chloroplast loci was detected in within-population SGS intensity due to their substantial variation among the populations. The SGS intensity tended to increase as trees became more aggregated, suggesting that tree aggregation biased pollen and seed dispersal distances toward shorter. The loss of effective seed dispersers, Asian black bears, did not affect the SGS intensity probably because of mitigation of the bear loss by other vertebrate dispersers and too few tree generations after the bear loss to alter SGS. The findings suggest that SGS is more variable in smaller spatial scales due to various ecological factors in local populations.

Data from: Defining a spectrum of integrative trait-based vegetation canopy structural types

Vegetation canopy structure is a fundamental characteristic of terrestrial ecosystems that defines vegetation types and drives ecosystem functioning. We use the multivariate structural trait composition of vegetation canopies to classify ecosystems within a global canopy structure spectrum. Across the temperate forest subset of this spectrum we assess gradients in canopy structural traits, characterize canopy structural types (CST), and evaluate drivers and functional consequences of canopy structural variation. We derive CSTs from multivariate canopy structure data, illustrating variation along three primary structural axes and resolution into six largely distinct and functionally relevant CSTs. Our results illustrate that within-ecosystem successional processes and disturbance legacies can produce variation in canopy structure similar to that associated with sub-continental variation in forest types and ecoclimatic zones. The potential to classify ecosystems into CSTs based on suites of structural traits represents an important advance in understanding and modeling structure-function relationships in vegetated ecosystems.

opencc-zeroSep 2020View details →

Data from: Management actions shape dung beetle community structure and functional traits in restored tallgrass prairie

1. Ecosystem restoration often focuses on reestablishing species richness and diversity of native organisms, especially plants. However, effective restoration requires re-establishment of ecosystem functions and processes by all trophic levels. Functional trait descriptions of communities, including decomposer communities, may provide more comprehensive evaluations of restoration activities and management than taxonomic community metrics alone. 2. We examined species and functional trait composition of dung beetle (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae, Geotrupidae) communities across a 3-31 year chronosequence of restored prairies, in which sites varied in the presence of re-introduced bison and prescribed fire. We calculated functional diversity metrics and community-weighted mean trait values using behavioral and morphological measurements. We also performed a dung decomposition experiment to measure an ecosystem function driven by these insects. 3. Bison presence doubled beetle abundance and increased richness by 50%. Shannon diversity increased with restoration age, nearly doubling from the youngest to oldest restorations. Functional diversity was unchanged, except functional richness, which was reduced by bison and fire presence. Beetles were, on average, smaller in older restorations, although this pattern was weaker when bison were present. 4. Dung decomposition was unaffected by site characteristics but increased with community weighted mean beetle mass. Dung decomposition was better predicted by mean trait values, suggesting that supporting large-bodied species may be more important than species diversity in settings where maximizing decomposition function is a goal. 5. Restoration managers should consider dung beetle communities and their functional characteristics when making management decisions, particularly where large grazers are a component of management strategies.