Data from: Large wood decay state and piece shape in river corridors

We characterize the decay and piece shape categories of downed large wood
in channels and floodplains of 7 river corridors in Colorado, Montana,
North Carolina, and Utah to evaluate how proportions of wood in these
categories varied with respect to location (channel, floodplain),
disturbance history, wood recruitment (fluvial transport, tree fall), and
biome. We hypothesized that decay state and piece shape would differ more
between floodplain and channel locations in river corridors with no recent
inundation-related large wood transport on the floodplain than in river
corridors with recent floodplain inundation. Results support our
hypothesis with respect to decay but not piece shape. Decay state differs
more between floodplain and channel locations in river corridors with no
recent disturbance. These results suggest the benefits of retaining and
reintroducing decayed wood in floodplains.