Dataset of tardigrade species and environmental variables across a vehicular traffic gradient in Argentina

This dataset includes information on tardigrade communities (fauna.xlsx) and environmental variables (vars.xlsx) collected across three traffic intensity categories (high, medium, low) in Salta, Argentina. The study explores how vehicular traffic impacts tardigrade species composition and diversity, taking into account both microhabitat conditions (temperature, moisture, pH, bark thickness, light intensity, and the percentage of lichen, moss, and bare bark cover) and air pollution indicators (wind speed, noise levels, PM2.5, PM10, and vehicular traffic).The accompanying R script was used to statistically analyze these data and assess the influence of traffic-related pollution and seasonal variation on urban tardigrade diversity. Specifically, the analyses examine patterns in alpha diversity, species composition, and beta diversity partitioning, in relation to both microhabitat and air pollution variables.