Data and code associated with \"Seasonal differences in predation risk among seagrass epifauna species stabilize community-level predation over time\"

Predation risk varies through space and time due to changing refuge quality, predator communities, and prey traits. Despite this, ecological research is often focused on measuring average predation risk at the community level. While this can give important information about overall trophic transfer and ecological efficiency, it ignores differences in predation risk among prey species within a community, which may be important determinants of species coexistence and local diversity. We used crustaceans associated with temperate seagrass in Northern California to explore the relationship between seasonal variation in among-species and community-level predation risk for a community of morphologically distinct prey. We measured predation risk of the four most abundant and widespread prey species at six field sites every two to six weeks for one year. At the community level, sites differed significantly in their annual variation in predation risk, and these differences were correlated with t..., Methods for data collection can be found in the manuscript \"Seasonal differences in predation risk among seagrass epifauna species stabilize community-level predation over time\" by Claire Murphy & Jay Stachowicz in Ecology.
, , # Data and code associated with \"Seasonal differences in predation risk among seagrass epifauna species stabilize community-level predation over time\"

[https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.0000000d5](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.0000000d5)

## Description of the data and file structure

This data (found in the file \"MurphyStachowicz_ECY25-1455.xlsx\") represents predation risk, abundance, and habitat data for 4 common seagrass epifaunal species (*Pentidotea resecata*, *Ampithoe valida*, *Ampithoe lacertosa*, and *Caprella californica*) at 6 sites in Bodega Harbor and Tomales Bay, California, USA. 

Predation data was collected by deploying 20 tethers for each of the 4 species at each of the 6 sites 16 times across a year (April 2023 - March 2024). *Ampithoe valida* was only deployed in Tomales Bay, as it's not currently found in Bodega Harbor. Each tether was 0.5 meters apart from each other, in an order that alternated between the species. Assays were conducted at the same transects during e..., ,