LAGOS-NE Shallow Lakes: a dataset of lake variables and multi-scaled ecological context variables used to predict and compare trophic status and TP:CHLa relationships between shallow and non-shallow lakes in the Upper Midwest and Northeastern United States.

We conducted a macroscale study of 2,210 shallow lakes (mean depth ≤
3m or a maximum depth ≤ 5m) in the Upper Midwestern and Northeastern
U.S. We asked: What are the patterns and drivers of shallow lake
total phosphorus (TP), chlorophyll a (CHLa),
and TP–CHLa relationships at the macroscale, how do these differ
from those for 4,360 non-shallow lakes, and do results differ by
hydrologic connectivity class? To answer this question, we assembled
the LAGOS-NE Shallow Lakes dataset described herein, a dataset
derived from existing LAGOS-NE, LAGOS-DEPTH, and LAGOS-CLIMATE
datasets. Response data variables were the median of available
summer (e.g., 15 June to 15 September) values of total phosphorus
(TP) and chlorophyll a (CHLa). Predictor variables were assembled at
two spatial scales for incorporation into hierarchical models. At
the local or lake-specific scale (including the individual lake, its
inter-lake watershed [iws] or corresponding HU12 watershed),
variables included those representing land use/cover, hydrology,
climate, morphometry, and acid deposition. At the regional scale
(e.g., HU4 watershed), variables included a smaller set of predictor
variables for hydrology and land use/cover. The dataset also
includes the unique identifier assigned by LAGOS-NE(lagoslakeid);
the latitude and longitude of the study lakes; their maximum and
mean depths along with a depth classification of Shallow or
non-Shallow; connectivity class (i.e., whether a lake was classified
as connected (with inlets and outlets) or unconnected (lacking
inlets); and the zone id for the HU4 to which each lake belongs.
Along with the database, we provide the R scripts for the
hierarchical models predicting TP or CHLa
(TPorCHL_predictive_model.R), and the TP—CHLa relationship
(TP_CHL_CSI_Model.R) for depth and connectivity subsets of the study
lakes.