Find research datasets worth reusing

opencc-by-4.0Feb 2023View details →

Dataset for: Supplementation of seasonal natural resources with year-round anthropogenic resources by coyotes in natural fragments within a high-density urban area.

Dataset for: Supplementation of seasonal natural resources with year-round anthropogenic resources by coyotes in natural fragments within a high-density urban area.  (Pending publication in Wildlife Biology as of 02/24/2023)

openother-openMar 2023View details →

Seasonal concentrations and fluxes of dissolved, soluble, and colloidal Fe and dissolved organic matter amount and composition (DOC and PARAFAC)

These datasets accompany the following manuscript: Logozzo, L.A.*, Hosen, J.D., McArthur, J., and Raymond, P.A. Distinct drivers of two size fractions of operationally dissolved Fe in a temperate river. Limnology and Oceanography. *Corresponding Author: Laura A. Logozzo, laura.logozzo@uleth.ca Datasets: 1- Fe-DOM-EMMA-merged.xlsx: this dataset includes operationally dissolved (<0.22 µm), colloidal (0.02-0.22 µm), and soluble (<0.02 µm) DOC concentrations, total Fe concentrations, PARAFAC component scores <0.22 µm, and end-member mixing model scores <0.22 µm. Samples were collected approximately bi-weekly from the Connecticut River at Thompsonville from April 2018 to March 2020. 2- Loadest-merged.xlsx: this dataset includes LOADEST-modeled daily-average and monthly-average fluxes of operationally dissolved (<0.22 µm), colloidal (0.02-0.22 µm), and soluble (<0.02 µm) Fe, DOC <0.22 µm, and allochthonous-like DOC <0.22 µm. All methodology is described in the accompanied manuscript.

opencc-zeroDec 2022View details →

Data from: Seasonality in the equatorial tropics: Flower, fruit and leaf phenology of montane trees in the highlands of southwest Uganda

Phenology influences many forest functions and can inform forest conservation and management, yet representative phenological data for most common tropical forest tree species remain sparse or absent. Between June 2011 and December 2013, we investigated flowering, fruiting and leafing patterns in the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, a montane forest located near the equator in Uganda, drawing on 16,410 observations of 530 trees of 54 species located between 2,066 and 2,527 m in elevation. The park's climate is equatorial with two wet and dry seasons each year. Flowering and fruiting were strongly seasonal while patterns in leafing were less pronounced. Flower occurrence peaked at the beginning of the short dry season followed by a pronounced trough during the beginning and the middle of the short wet season. Fruit occurrence had a pronounced peak during high rainfall months in March through April with most fruits ripening during drier months in May through July. Fruit scarcity was observed for a 4-month period spanning September to December and most flushing of leaves noted at the end of the wet season in November and December. Our binomial generalised linear mixed models (GLMM) indicated that flowering and fruiting were negatively associated with temperature and that leafing activity was positively associated with rainfall and temperature. These findings are consistent with the insolation- and water-limitation hypotheses suggesting that the seasonally varying availability of resources such as light, water and nutrients determines these phenological patterns. Ideally, prolonged, multi-year community-level studies would be supported so as to better characterise the influence of climate and of climate variability.

opencc-zeroMar 2023View details →

Feast to famine: Sympatric predators respond differently to seasonal prey scarcity on the low-Arctic tundra

Resource fluctuation is a major driver of animal movement, influencing strategic choices such as residency vs nomadism, or social dynamics. The Arctic tundra is characterized by strong seasonality: resources are abundant during the short summers but scarce in winters. Therefore, expansion of boreal-forest species onto the tundra raises questions on how they cope with winter-resource scarcity. We examined a recent incursion by red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) onto the coastal tundra of northern Manitoba, an area historically occupied by Arctic foxes (Vulpes lagopus) that lacks access to anthropogenic foods, and compared seasonal shifts in space use of the two species. We used 4 years of telemetry data following 8 red foxes and 11 Arctic foxes to test the hypothesis that the movement tactics of both species are primarily driven by temporal variability of resources. We also predicted that the harsh tundra conditions in winter would drive red foxes to disperse more often and maintain larger home ranges year-round than Arctic foxes, which are adapted to this environment. Dispersal was the most frequent winter movement tactic in both fox species, despite its association with high mortality (winter mortality was 9.4 times higher in dispersers than residents). Red foxes consistently dispersed towards the boreal forest, whereas Arctic foxes primarily used sea ice to disperse. Home range size of red and Arctic foxes did not differ in summer, but resident red foxes substantially increased their home range size in winter, whereas home range size of resident Arctic foxes did not change seasonally. As climate changes, abiotic constraints on some species may relax, but associated declines in prey communities may lead to local extirpation of many predators, notably by favoring dispersal during resource scarcity.

opencc-zeroMar 2023View details →

Seasonal ecosystem linkages contribute to the maintenance of migratory polymorphism in a salmonid population

The influence of resource subsidies on animal growth, survival, and reproduction is well understood, but their ultimate effects on life history have been less explored. Some wild species have a partially migratory life history, wherein migration is dictated based upon threshold traits regulated in part by the seasonal availability of resources. We conducted a large-scale field manipulation experiment where we provided a terrestrial invertebrate subsidy to red-spotted masu salmon. Individuals in stream reaches that received a subsidy had, on average, a 53% increase in growth rate relative to those in control reaches. This increased growth resulted in a greater proportion of individuals reaching the threshold body size and smolting in the autumn. Consequently, 19–55% of females in subsidized reaches became migratory, whereas 0–14% became migratory in the control reaches. Our findings highlight seasonal ecosystem linkage as a key ecosystem property for maintaining migratory polymorphism in partially migratory animals.

opencc-by-4.0Feb 2023View details →

Mediterranean songbirds show pronounced seasonal variation in thermoregulatory traits

Addressing the patterns of variation in thermal traits is crucial to better predict the potential effects of climate change on organisms. Here, we assessed seasonal (winter vs summer) adjustments in key thermoregulatory traits in eight Mediterranean-resident songbirds. Overall, songbirds increased whole-animal (by 8%) and mass-adjusted (by 9%) basal metabolic rate and decreased (by 56%) thermal conductance below the thermoneutral zone during winter. The magnitude of these changes was within the lower values found in songbirds from northern temperate areas. Moreover, songbirds increased (by 11%) evaporative water loss within the thermoneutral zone during summer, while its rate of increase above the inflection point of evaporative water loss (i.e., the slope of evaporative water loss versus temperature) decreased by 35% during summer — a value well above that reported for other temperate and tropical songbirds. Finally, body mass increased by 5% during winter, a pattern similar to that found in many northern temperate species. Our findings support the idea that physiological adjustments might enhance the resilience of Mediterranean songbirds to environmental changes, with short-term benefits by saving energy and water under thermally stressful conditions. Nevertheless, not all species showed the same patterns, suggesting different strategies in their thermoregulatory adaptations to seasonal environments.

opencc-zeroMar 2023View details →

Linking trait network parameters with plant growth across light gradients and seasons

1. Reduced light availability induced by eutrophication has dramatically affected the growth of submerged macrophytes and caused their rapid decline globally in lakes. Functional traits have usually been used to predict ecological processes and explain plant adaptation. Trait networks, which are constructed from a series of nodes (traits) and edges (trait-trait correlations), can reveal complex relationships among traits. Plant traits belonging to different organs are considered relevant for overall plant performance. Therefore, variation in trait network topology at the whole-plant level can better reflect plant adaptation and response to environments than traditional methods, but the mechanisms underlying the decline of plants from a trait network perspective are not well understood. 2. In this study, based on a one-year manipulation experiment for Potamogeton maackianus cultured with four levels of light intensity, we constructed trait networks from 20 traits belonging to different organs. 3. Our results showed that trait network connectivity decreases in harsh environments, probably due to increased trait modules responding independently to stress. Network connectivity was positively related to the plant relative growth rate (RGR), as high trait connectivity and coordination should be beneficial for plants to acquire and transport resources efficiently across the whole plant. Additionally, we found that specific stem length, leaf:root mass ratios, and leaf total nonstructural carbohydrates were hub traits with high connectivity. These hub traits expressed high phenotypic plasticity, had close links with plant growth, and consistently held their higher importance within the network across light gradients or seasons. 4. We found that low phenotypic integration in stressful environments may constrain plant growth, which can provide important implications for understanding plant adaptation strategies to low-light stress and even predicting community dynamics in the context of global environmental change.

opencc-by-4.0Mar 2023View details →

The relationship between the present-day seasonal cycles of low clouds in the mid-latitudes and cloud-radiative feedback

Supporting data for "The relationship between the present-day seasonal cycles of low clouds in the mid-latitudes and cloud-radiative feedback", by K. Furtado, Y. Tsushima and P. R. Field.

opencc-by-4.0Mar 2023View details →

In situ observation dataset under the complete seasonal cycle of lake ice

This dataset contains in situ observations of lake ice under a complete seasonal cycle. The study area is Lake Hanzhang in northeast China and the observation period is from winter 2020 to spring 2021. The observations include meteorological, hydrological and optical data. The files contain the following data fields: Readme – a detailed description of data Equipment list – instrument type and accuracy Meteorological data – air temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, pressure, surface temperature Solar radiation data – incident solar radiation and reflected solar radiation Ice thickness and snow depth – ice thickness (ice bottom) and snow depth (ice surface) Ice-water temperature – ice temperature and water ice temperature Spectral irradiance - incident (air) – incident spectral irradiance from 320 - 950 nm (air) Spectral irradiance - reflectance (air) – reflectance spectral irradiance from 320 - 950 nm (air) Spectral irradiance - incident (water - 70 cm to ice surface) – incident spectral irradiance from 320 - 950 nm (water - 70 cm to ice surface) Spectral irradiance - incident (water - 110 cm to ice surface) – incident spectral irradiance from 320 - 950 nm (water - 110 cm to ice surface)

Data for: Variation in fatty acid content among benthic invertebrates in a seasonally driven system

At temperate latitudes where seasonal changing environmental conditions strongly affect the magnitude, duration and species composition of pelagic primary production, macrobenthic organisms living below the photic zone rely on the sedimentation of this organic matter as their primary energy source. The succession from nutritious spring blooms to summer cyanobacteria is assumed to reduce food quality for benthic primary consumers and their fatty acid profiles. In contrast, we find low seasonal variability in fatty acid content of five benthic macroinvertebrates spanning two trophic levels in the Baltic Sea, a system with high seasonal variation in phytoplankton species composition. However, levels of the major FA groups vary greatly between benthic species. The results suggest that benthic macroinvertebrates have evolved FA metabolism adapted to degraded sedimenting material. Moreover, our study shows that species composition of benthic macrofauna rather than seasonal changing conditions affect availability of essential nutrients to higher trophic levels.

opencc-by-4.0Jul 2022View details →

Seasonal forecasts of streamflow for Umealven

Seasonal forecasts for the Umealven catchment in northern Sweden between February 1979 and October 2016. The EHYPE model was forced with hydroGFD-v2 data  and initialized on the first of each month with a seven-month lead time. The xobc.nc file contains satellite-derived AET, PET, SWE, FSC and the ini situ measurements of streamflow. The time window covers the period 19790101-20201231 although the individual data sets have differing lengths.

Season-dependent impact of forage quality on stress in Alpine chamois

Chronically heightened stress levels in wildlife species may have detrimental effects on individual life history traits, for example through the increased likelihood of disease, parasitic infections, and overall reduced fitness. Understanding the drivers of stress may thus have great potential for informing wildlife conservation. Although the role of climate and individual status is well studied in stress ecology, the impact of related stressors such as dietary quality is of increasing interest to wildlife research and conservation. In this study, fecal cortisol metabolites (FCMs) in Alpine chamois Rupicapra r. rupicapra, used as bioindicators of stress, and their relationship with forage quality – measured as the percentage of fecal crude protein (CP) – were investigated. Data collection took place in 2011 and 2012 in the Gran Paradiso National Park (Western Italian Alps), on 22 individually marked adult males. The relationship between FCMs and CPs was analyzed through linear models and seperated between winter and summer months, accounting for the effect of potentially confounding exogenous and endogenous variables. After AICc-based model selection, we found that forage quality was negatively related to FCM levels in Alpine chamois during the summer months, meaning that higher quality forage was associated with the decreased expression of stress hormones. However, during the winter months, we did not find a significant relationship, potentially as a result of forage quality being ubiquitously poor. Although the mechanisms through which dietary variations impact FCM concentrations in wildlife populations are largely unknown, the occurrence of significant relationships between forage quality and stress levels supports potentially important implications for the long-term effect of climatic changes on the fitness of wildlife populations.

Data from: Supplementation of seasonal natural resources with year-round anthropogenic resources by coyotes in natural fragments within a high-density urban area

Coyotes (Canis latrans) in urban landscapes provide important food web functions and ecological services but can also trigger human-wildlife conflict when their diet includes anthropogenic resources or domestic pets. As adaptable omnivores, coyotes adjust their diet to their environment, routinely switching among food items to accommodate spatial and seasonal differences in availability. To evaluate coyotes' potential impacts within the food web of urban Long Beach, California where human-wildlife conflict involving coyotes may occur, we analyzed 115 scat samples collected once every two weeks from two open space fragments inside the urban matrix. We hypothesized that differences in scat composition would correlate with seasonal and site differences, with greater use of anthropogenic resources during the dry season supplementing lower prey availability, and greater consumption of wild mammal prey during the wet season when rabbits and small mammals reproduce. We found coyote diet was predominately composed of natural prey and vegetation year-round. Mammals made up more of the coyote diet in the wet season than the dry, while arthropods and vegetation occurred more in dry season scats. Coyotes relied on rabbits as their main prey year-round across all sites. Domestic cats (Felis catus) were the third most common individual prey species found in coyote scats; we did not find evidence of domestic dog (Canis lupus familiaris) consumption. The overall frequency of mammalian remains did not differ across sites but did differ across sites for other prey types. While there is a potential for human-wildlife conflict in coyote's consumption of feral or domestic cats, coyotes may also be providing an ecological service by reducing cats in natural habitat fragments.

Seasonal changes of vomeronasal responses to chemosensory cues associated with circulating estrogen in the female muskrats (Ondatra zibethicus)

In numerous animals, the vomeronasal organ (VNO) is a crucial chemosensory organ that receives chemical signals, which is involved in species-specific behaviors, including social and sexual behaviors. Muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) has a sensitive VNO system that detects specific chemicals such as pheromones and hormones and induces seasonal breeding behaviors. The purpose of this study is to investigate the distributions and expression patterns of vomeronasal receptor type-1 (V1R), vomeronasal receptor type-2 (V2R), estrogen receptors α and β (ERα and ERβ) in the female muskrats' VNO during the different periods. V1R, V2R, ERα and ERβ were found in sensory epithelial cells, non-sensory epithelial cells and lamina propria cells of the female muskrats' VNO. V2R and ERα mRNA levels in the VNO of the breeding period declined sharply, in comparison to those of the non-breeding period, while V1R and ERβ mRNA levels were detected reversely. Additionally, a transcriptomic study in the VNO identified that differentially expressed genes might be related to estrogen signals and metabolic pathways. These findings suggested that the seasonal structural and functional changes of VNO in the female muskrats within different reproductive statuses, and estrogen regulated its function through binding to ERα and ERβ in the female muskrats' VNO.

Data from: Nasty neighbours in the Neotropics: seasonal variation in physical and vocal aggressions in a montane forest songbird, the Grey-browed Brushfinch

Many territorial animals exhibit differences in their responses against intruders based on the level of threat that they pose. The dear-enemy and the nasty-neighbour effects refer to situations in which territorial aggressions are stronger against stranger and neighbour individuals, respectively. Using playback experiments during pre-breeding and post-breeding seasons in a songbird from Neotropical montane forests (Grey-browed Brushfinch, Arremon assimilis), we found that males exhibit the nasty-neighbour effect because they responded more aggressively towards neighbours than to strangers. However, territorial behaviour varied seasonally: (1) aggressions to all intrusions by neighbours were equally strong regardless of the location from which they were perceived prior to reproduction and (2) individuals were more aggressive towards neighbour males when perceived at a different border of their territory to the one they share during the post-breeding season. We conclude that territorial males respond to neighbours by assessing their threat to paternity and territoriality and thus modulate their aggressive response based on the season. In contrast, limited responses to strangers suggest that these individuals do not represent a serious threat to males of A. assimilis during the seasons we studied them. Thus, territorial aggressions against neighbours appear to be a mate-guarding mechanism in this species. Our results differ from those found in temperate zones, where strangers often elicit responses indicating they may represent a stronger threat than neighbours. Additional studies on the behavioral ecology of tropical birds are required to understand the generality of nasty-neighbour effects and the drivers of territorial behaviors.

Data from: A correlation between seasonally changing photoperiod, whole body lipid, and condition factor in juvenile spring Chinook Salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha)

The regulation of lipid stores is a central process for the physiology and ecology of fishes. Seasonal variation in lipid stores has been directly linked to survival of fishes across periods of food deprivation. We assessed whether a seasonally changing photoperiod was correlated to seasonal changes in energetic status to help better understand these important processes. Groups of first-feeding Chinook salmon fry were introduced to a seasonal photoperiod cycle, but the point of entrance into the seasonal cycle varied from near the winter solstice (December), to either side of the spring equinox (February & May). Temperature and feeding rate were similar for all treatments. Subsequently, condition factor and whole-body lipid content were assessed through a seasonal progression. Throughout most of the experiment, length and weight did not differ between the different photoperiod treatments, however whole body lipid and Fulton's condition factor did. Furthermore, changes in both whole body lipid and Fulton's condition factor in all treatment groups followed a similar seasonal pattern that was inversely related to day length (highest K and lipid levels found during days with the least light). These results suggest that regardless of age or size, there is a correlation between seasonal changes in photoperiod and changes in body composition in juvenile Chinook salmonids.

Defensive symbiosis in the wild: seasonal dynamics of parasitism risk and symbiont-conferred resistance

Parasite-mediated selection can rapidly drive up resistance levels in host populations, but fixation of resistance traits may be prevented by costs of resistance. Black bean aphids (Aphis fabae) benefit from increased resistance to parasitoids when carrying the defensive bacterial endosymbiont Hamiltonella defensa. However, due to fitness costs that come with symbiont infection, symbiont-conferred resistance may result in either a net benefit or a net cost to the aphid host, depending on parasitoid presence as well as on the general ecological context. Balancing selection may therefore explain why in natural aphid populations, H. defensa is often found at intermediate frequencies. Here we present a two-year field study where we set out to look for signatures of balancing selection in natural aphid populations. We collected temporally well-resolved data on the prevalence of H. defensa in A.f. fabae and estimated the risk imposed by parasitoids using sentinel hosts. Despite a marked and consistent early-summer peak in parasitism risk and significant changes in symbiont prevalence over time, we found just a weak correlation between parasitism risk and H. defensa frequency dynamics. H. defensa prevalence in the populations under study was, in fact, better explained by the number of heat days that previous aphid generations were exposed to. Our study grants an unprecedentedly well-resolved insight into the dynamics of endosymbiont and parasitoid communities of A.f. fabae populations, and it adds to a growing body of empirical evidence suggesting that not only parasitism risk but rather multifarious selection is shaping H. defensa prevalence in the wild.

Dataset for: Immediate and carry-over effects of late-spring frost and growing season drought on forest gross primary productivity capacity in the Northern Hemisphere

Forests are increasingly exposed to extreme global warming-induced climatic events. However, the immediate and carry-over effects of extreme events on forests are still poorly understood. Gross primary productivity (GPP) capacity is regarded as a good proxy of the ecosystem's functional stability, reflecting its physiological response to its surroundings. Using eddy covariance data from 34 forest sites in the Northern Hemisphere, we analyzed the immediate and carry-over effects of late-spring frost (LSF) and growing season drought on needle-leaf and broadleaf forests. Path analysis was applied to reveal the plausible reasons behind the varied responses of forests to extreme events. The results show that LSF had clear immediate effects on the GPP capacity of both needle-leaf and broadleaf forests. However, GPP capacity in needle-leaf forests was more sensitive to drought than in broadleaf forests. There was no interaction between LSF and drought in either needle-leaf or broadleaf forests. Drought effects were still visible when LSF and drought coexisted in needle-leaf forests. Path analysis further showed that the response of GPP capacity to drought differed between needle-leaf and broadleaf forests, mainly due to the difference in the sensitivity of canopy conductance. Moreover, LSF had a more severe and long-lasting carry-over effect on forests than drought. These results enrich our understanding of the mechanisms of forest response to extreme events across forest types.

Primary data of: Spring phenology rather than climate dominates the trends in peak of growing season in the Northern Hemisphere

Shifts in plant phenology regulate ecosystem structure and function, which feeds back to the climate system. However, drivers for the peak of growing season (POS) in seasonal dynamics of terrestrial ecosystems remain unclear. Here, spatial-temporal patterns of POS dynamics were analyzed by solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (SIF) and vegetation index in the Northern Hemisphere over the past two decades from 2001 to 2020. Overall, a slow advanced POS was observed in the Northern Hemisphere, while a delayed POS was distributed mainly in northeastern North America. Trends of POS were driven by the start of growing season (SOS) rather than pre-POS climate, both at hemisphere and biome scale. The effect of SOS on the trends in POS was the strongest in shrublands while the weakest in evergreen broad-leaved forests. These findings highlight the crucial role of biological rhythms rather than climatic factors in exploring seasonal carbon dynamics and global carbon balance.