Littoral habitat structure influences freshwater crayfish populations in five volcanic lakes of Aotearoa New Zealand

Littoral habitat structure influences freshwater crayfish populations in five volcanic lakes of Aotearoa New Zealand  Contents | File | Description ||------|-------------|| `Site_info.csv` | Site metadata and lake physicochemical descriptors || `Monitoring_data.csv` | Physical and habitat parameters per site visit || `Weed_data.csv` | Macrophyte and weed cover by type and species || `Fish_data.csv` | Fish and kōura catch data (net type, morphometrics, sex) || `Macroinvertebrates.csv` | Macroinvertebrate presence and abundance || `analysis.qmd` | Code of the analysis executed in R using Quarto | Study description This dataset supports monitoring of natural lake-edge habitat condition and biodiversity across five Rotorua Te Arawa New Zealand lakes, with a focus on native freshwater species including kōura (Paranephrops planifrons). Data were collected at discrete shoreline sites spanning multiple lakes; each site was visited once and characterised for physical habitat, vegetation, invertebrates, and fish fauna. A rendered version of the manuscript and analysis is available at https://olivierraven.github.io/Koura_shoreline_habitats/ File descriptions Site_info.csv One row per monitoring site. Key columns: `Site_ID`, `Lake`, `LID`, `Monitoring_ID`, `Lat`/`Lon`, `DHT` (dominant habitat type), `Date_Time`, lake physicochemical descriptors (TLI, trophic state, mean/max depth, volume, elevation), and morphometric fields. Monitoring_data.csv Long-format table of physical and habitat parameters measured at each site (`Monitoring_ID`). Each row is one parameter–value pair. Columns: `Group`, `Parameter`, `Unit`, `Value`, `Notes`. Weed_data.csv Macrophyte cover by weed type (emergent, submerged, turf) per site. Columns include species name, scientific name, native status, and percentage cover. Rows with zero cover indicate absence. Fish_data.csv Individual-level catch records from fyke and box nets. Columns include species, net type, number of nets, sex, length (mm), weight (g), soft-shelled and berried status (kōura), and native/taonga status. Macroinvertebrates.csv Macroinvertebrate catch records by site, net type, and taxon. Abundance reported as counts. analysis.qmd Code of the analysis executed in R using Quarto Methods summary Sites were selected to represent a range of habitat types (sandy and rocky substrate) around lake margins. Physical measurements were taken in situ at each visit. Fish and kōura were sampled using fyke and box nets set overnight; macroinvertebrates were sampled using box nets. All sampling was conducted under appropriate permits. Key identifiers - `Site_ID` — unique integer identifier per site- `Monitoring_ID` — site visit identifier > **Location note:** Site coordinates (Lat/Lon) are included. Species occurrence data for kōura (*Paranephrops planifrons*), a taonga species, are associated with these coordinates. Users should be aware of relevant data-sharing obligations under the New Zealand Biodiversity Recording Network and any applicable iwi agreements. Reproducibility All analyses can be reproduced from the five CSV files using the provided `analysis.qmd` Quarto document. The source Excel file (`Natural_habitat.xlsx`) is not distributed; the CSVs are the canonical data for reproducibility purposes. Required R packages are listed at the top of the Quarto file. A rendered version of the analysis document is hosted at https://olivierraven.github.io/Koura_shoreline_habitats/ — this is kept in sync with the Quarto source file provided here. Licence Data and code are released under [CC BY 4.0] (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Please cite this dataset if you use it. Funding This research was supported by the Fish Futures programme funded through a Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment grant (CAWX2101) with additional funding provided by the Bay of Plenty Regional Council under the Toihuarewa Waimāori - Bay of Plenty Regional Council Chair in Lake and Freshwater Science programme. Citation [Olivier V. Raven] (2026). Littoral habitat structure influences freshwater crayfish populations in five volcanic lakes of Aotearoa New Zealand. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19476793 Contact For questions about the data, contact Olivier Raven [e-mail]