Precipitation, tree biomass, and the diversity and functional composition of tropical rainforest cricket assemblages

This dataset comprises environmental, taxonomic, and trait data describing
tropical rainforest cricket assemblages in north-eastern Australia. Data
were collected from 38 20 x 20 m plots spanning a range of elevations,
disturbance histories, and vine densities in the Wet Tropics bioregion.
Environmental data include tree, liana, and rattan stem density and basal
area, tree aboveground biomass, vine-to-tree ratio (VTR), coarse woody
debris (CWD), litter depth, leaf area index (LAI), slope, mean annual
precipitation (MAP), and plot coordinates. Trees and climbing plants ≥1 cm
DBH were measured using standardised forest inventory protocols, with
biomass estimated via pan-tropical allometric equations. Climatic
variables were extracted from WorldClim v2.1 rasters. Cricket assemblage
data include species-level abundances obtained from pitfall traps, along
with categorical traits describing diet, mobility, behavior, and
microhabitat use. Diversity metrics (Hill numbers q0, q1, q2) were
calculated for each plot to standardise comparisons of richness and
diversity. The dataset is structured in multiple tables, linking species
abundances, trait matrices, and environmental measurements by plot. Data
collection adhered to relevant permits and ethical standards for field
sampling of invertebrates.