Height and canopy measurements of native shrubs in southern California

The drivers of shrubland biomass in the Mediterranean-Climate Region of southern California are not well understood. This is an issue for resource managers of shrub-dominated landscapes who need to estimate shrub recovery post-fire; track and monitor carbon storage and sequestration; and determine the tradeoff in restoration goals between prioritizing carbon storage and species richness. We collected field data from 143 field plots located in 11 fire scars (ranging from 1 to 12 years old) and used Linear Mixed Models to assess the contribution of temporal and environmental variables, along with post-fire regeneration strategies of shrub species to explain patterns of aboveground shrub biomass. We identified four key findings: (1) shrub biomass increased with time since last fire and the proportion of resprouting species, and decreased with distance to coast and solar radiation; (2) species with the ability to resprout (obligate resprouter and facultative seeders) contributed greater biomass at all post-fire time periods and locations when compared with obligate seeders; (3) we found higher average biomass contributed by both obligate seeder and obligate resprouter species in plots closer to the coast than interior plots; and (4) fourth, we found a significant positive relationship between woody shrub richness and biomass. The findings of this study can help support natural resource management decision making for shrub-dominated landscapes – including estimating biomass recovery post-fire, quantifying carbon storage, and setting goals for shrubland restoration. This Dryad submission provides the shrubland biomass field data.