Quantifying seed rain patterns in a remnant and a chronosequence of restored tallgrass prairies in north central Missouri

Seed rain is an influential process related to plant community diversity, composition, and regeneration. However, knowledge of seed rain patterns is limited to those observed in forests and late-assembling grasslands, which might not reflect early-assembling communities such as newly restored grasslands. Resolving this gap in our understanding provides further insight into the role of seed dispersal.
 Here, we measured seed rain in a remnant tallgrass prairie, which was the site of the foundational grassland seed rain study in 1978, and a nearby chronosequence of tallgrass prairie restorations. We sought to determine how the quantity, seed mass traits, timing, diversity, and composition of seed rain changed (1) long-term and (2) during community assembly. To do so, we deployed artificial turf grass seed traps into 2-year-old, 5-6-year-old, and 15-year-old restored prairies and the remnant prairie, replacing traps every two weeks from May to December 2019.
We captured over twice the dens..., , , # Quantifying seed rain patterns in a remnant and a chronosequence of restored tallgrass prairies in north central Missouri

[https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.xksn02vqj](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.xksn02vqj).

## Data Description

Below is a description of the datasets contained in this package. Numbers correspond with dataset names and descriptions. Bullet points below each numbered dataset further explain the variables found within that dataset. 

**1)** **Seed_Data_2019.xlsx** - contains seed rain data collected from Tucker Prairie and Prairie Fork Conservation Area in 2019.

* Plot = Site code name (PFCA 1 = 2 YO restored prairie, PFCA 2 = 5-6 YO restored prairie, PFCA 3 = 15 YO restored prairie, and TP = remnant prairie in 2019). 
* Transect = Corresponding transect number at a site (10 per site).
* Sampling Date = day that traps at a transect were collected.
* Week = Two-week interval that traps were collected ranging from 1 to 14.
* SPP6 = Six letter species code. First three let...