Data and original code for: A generalized approach to characterise optical properties of natural objects

To understand the diversity of ways in which natural materials interact with light, it is important to consider how their reflectance changes with the angle of illumination or viewing and to consider wavelengths beyond the visible. We chose a set of existing measurements and parameters that are generalisable to any wavelength range and spectral shape and we highlight which subsets of measures are relevant to different biological questions. As a case study, we applied these measures to 30 species of Christmas beetles. Here we provide the raw spectral data of angle integrated and angle-dependent reflection by the beetle elytra. We also provide the original code used for our analysis and figures.