Data Paper. Data Paper

File List shapefiles.zip -- a zipped directory containing every individual shapefile for each year that each quadrat was mapped allrecords_density.csv -- ASCII text, comma separated, 40837 records allrecords_cover.csv -- ASCII text, comma separated, 80233 records quad_info.csv -- ASCII text, comma separated, 26 records grazing_info.csv -- ASCII text, comma separated, 25 records quad_inventory.csv -- ASCII text, comma separated, 29 records species_list.csv -- ASCII text, comma separated, 97 records taxonomic_grouping.csv -- ASCII text, comma separated, 26 records monthly_mean_temp.csv -- ASCII text, comma separated, 83 records total_monthly_ppt.csv -- ASCII text, comma separated, 83 records total_monthly_sno.csv -- ASCII text, comma separated, 84 records annuals_counts_v3.csv -- ASCII text, comma separated, 1361 records Description This historical data set consists of 26 permanent 1-m² quadrats located on sagebrush steppe in eastern Idaho, USA. During most growing seasons from 1923 to 1957, and again in 1973, all individual plants in each quadrat were identified and mapped. This combination of a long time-series with full spatial resolution allows analyses of demographic processes and intra- and interspecific interactions among individual plants. The data provide unique opportunities to test theory about the effect of environmental variation on population and community dynamics and to describe empirical relationships between climate variables and demographic rates. We provide the following data and data formats: (1) the digitized maps in shapefile format; (2) a tabular version of the entire data set (a table with no spatial information except an <i>x,y</i> coordinate for each individual plant record); (3) a species list, containing information on plant growth forms and shapefile geometry type; (4) a record of changes to species names; (5) quadrat information; (6) grazing treatment information; (7) an inventory of the years each quadrat was sampled; (8) monthly precipitation, temperature, and snowfall records; and (9) counts of annuals in the quadrats. <i>Key words: <i>climate; demography; Geographic Information Systems (GIS); Idaho; plant community; plant population; sagebrush steppe; species interaction</i></i>.