Primary producer biomass and nutrient stocks in phosphorus-limited shallow freshwater ecosystems: literature review data from 1921 - 2024 and Everglades FL, USA case study, June 2021 - June 2023

This data package includes data compiled from a literature review search and Everglades, Florida (FL), USA case study in order to quantify the relationship between (1) planktonic production and water-column total phosphorus (TP), (2) benthic algal production and water-column TP, (3) benthic algal production and benthic microbial TP standing stock, and (4) macrophyte production and macrophyte TP standing stock across P-limited shallow freshwater ecosystems. Our goal was to determine if benthic macrophyte and microbial TP standing stock may better describe variation in macrophyte and microbial production in shallow freshwater ecosystems rather than water-column TP. The search took place using the Clarivate™ (Web of Science™) and Google Scholar™ search engines, and multiple searches occurred using a combination of keywords, which resulted in 425 publications containing usable data. This data package encompasses water depth, water TP, phytoplankton chlorophyll-a, benthic algal chlorophyll-a, benthic algal ash-free dry mass, macrophyte dry mass, benthic microbial TP and total nitrogen (TN) standing stock, and macrophyte TP and TN standing stock found during the literature review and from two Everglades observational studies, including the case study. Publication citation, year, author(s), title, publishers, and digital object identifier are provided to sufficiently trace each data value back to its original study. Data were separated into 23 shallow freshwater ecosystem types, four categories, and two groups. The data package includes four datasets, one of which only contains the Everglades case study data. Data collection for all datasets is complete.

FCE1294_Lit_Review_Macro includes macrophyte dry mass, macrophyte TP standing stock, and macrophyte TN standing stock data collected from 220 publications discovered during a literature review to quantify the relationship between planktonic or benthic producer (algae, cyanobacteria, and macrophyte) production and TP concentrations in water or producer biomass across P-limited shallow freshwater ecosystems. One dataset collected within the Greater Everglades, FL, USA is also included. Data publication spanned 1924 to 2026, and data collection spanned summer 1921 to May 2024.

FCE1294_Lit_Review_Benthic_Micro includes water depth, water column TP concentration, benthic algal chlorophyll-a, benthic microbial ash-free dry mass, benthic microbial TP standing stock, and benthic microbial TN standing stock data collected from 147 publications discovered during a literature review to quantify the relationship between planktonic or benthic producer (algae, cyanobacteria, and macrophyte) production and TP concentrations in water or producer biomass across P-limited shallow freshwater ecosystems. Two datasets collected within the Greater Everglades, FL, USA are also included. Data publication spanned 1966 to 2026, and data collection spanned June 1975 to October 2023.

FCE1294_Lit_Review_Phyto includes water column TP concentration and phytoplankton chlorophyll-a data collected from 58 publications discovered during a literature review to quantify the relationship between planktonic or benthic producer (algae, cyanobacteria, and macrophyte) production and TP concentrations in water or producer biomass across P-limited shallow freshwater ecosystems. Data publication spanned 1985 to 2025, and data collection spanned August 1988 to October 2023.

FCE1274_Ever_Case_Study includes water depth, benthic microbial dry mass, ash-free-dry mass, chlorophyll-a, TP and TN concentration and standing stock, total macrophyte dry mass and TP and TN concentration and standing stock, Cladium jamaicense dry mass and TP and TN concentration and standing stock, Eleocharis cellulosa dry mass and TP and TN concentration and standing stock, and total producer biomass and TP and TN concentration and standing stock found within each plot replicate sampled in ridge and slough habitats found at three Shark River Slough and three Taylor Slough/Panhandle wetland sites in Everglades National Park, FL, USA. Data collection spanned 2021-06-14 to 2023-06-27, and each plot was sampled once.

The R code and its Zenodo DOI created in association with this project and data package is available in the GitHub repository Kleindl_et_al_2026_Production_and_Enrichment_Shallow_Freshwater_Systems at https://github.com/GaiserLab/Kleindl_et_al_2026_Production_and_Enrichment_Shallow_Freshwater_Systems.git