Vertical niche usage and trait associations in Gabonese amphibians

Tropical forests are vertically complex, and offer unique niche opportunities in the form of resource, climate, and habitat-gradients from the forest floor to the canopy. Rainforest amphibians organize within this vertical space and the highest levels of vertical stratification occur in structurally complex and climatically stable tropical rainforests. Amphibians have diversified into numerous habitat and climatic niches, which has led to the development of a wide variety of morphological, behavioural, physiological, and reproductive traits. However, a lack of data regarding the vertical niche space used by amphibian species has prevented a nuanced analysis of traits and vertical height. We performed 74 ground-to-canopy surveys for amphibians at Baposso Village, Ngounie Province, Gabon, and describe the vertical stratification patterns of the assemblage in terms of richness, abundance, and species specific vertical niche usage. We analyse the relationships between amphibian traits with ..., In southern Gabon, we surveyed a Dense Moist Forest (Verhegghen et al. 2012) located around Baposso Village, Ngounie Province, which borders the Monts Birougou Ramsar site (Lat 20°85′00″ N: Lon 12°13′50″; 650 – 800 m a.s.l, Figure 1). We focussed our sampling in older growth areas with mature trees, with primary canopy tree species including Mutombo, Wapaka, Posso, and Paduc. Temperature and humidity were measured at the site using climate loggers deployed in two arrays. One array comprised three temperature loggers (HOBO Temperature Pendant); the soil (10 cm below the surface), 2 m height in the understory, and 25 m height in the canopy. The second array utilised climate loggers (HOBO U23 Pro v2) in the understory and canopy which record humidity in addition to temperature. Loggers were protected from sunlight and weather by installation within a PVC T-Joint pipe which allowed airflow.
We surveyed for frogs during the wet season of 2022 (October – November). We conducted vertical, grou..., , # Data from: Vertical niche usage and trait associations in Gabonese amphibians

This data was collected by Edmund Basham at great cost of effort and resources. If downloaded for use in publications we would appreciate a notification on its usage and would be glad to discuss potential research avenues and collaborations. Please use this email for contact : [[e-mail]](mailto:[e-mail]) 

**Surveys**

This contains data relating to each sampling occasion, consisting of a vertical transect located on a tree. Tree code and Date (UK format throughout- DD/MM/YYYY) columns can be used to link surveys to individuals. Location can be determined by the longitude (decimal degrees) and latitude (decimal degrees), and elevation (meters above sea level) which are included. The start time of the survey (24hr throughout), total height (meters) of the tree, and the max height climbed (meters) to which the tree was surveyed are also included here. 

**Individuals**

This cont...

热带森林具有复杂的垂直结构，从林床到冠层均以资源、气候与栖息地梯度的形式提供了独特的生态位机遇。雨林两栖类在这一垂直空间中形成类群，而最高程度的垂直分层现象出现在结构复杂且气候稳定的热带雨林中。两栖类已分化出众多栖息地与气候生态位，进而演化出形态、行为、生理及繁殖等多方面的多样性状。然而，由于缺乏两栖类物种所利用的垂直生态位空间相关数据，学界难以对性状与垂直高度开展精细化分析。

研究团队在加蓬恩古涅省巴波索村开展了74次从地面到冠层的两栖类调查，基于物种丰富度、个体数量以及物种特异性垂直生态位利用情况，描述了该类群的垂直分层模式，并分析了两栖类性状与……的关联。

在加蓬南部，我们对位于恩古涅省巴波索村周边的致密湿润林（Dense Moist Forest，Verhegghen等，2012）展开调查，该林区毗邻蒙比鲁古拉姆萨尔湿地（Monts Birougou Ramsar Site），坐标为北纬20°85′00″、东经12°13′50″，海拔650–800米，详见图1。我们的采样聚焦于成熟林木的老龄生长区，优势冠层树种包括Mutombo、Wapaka、Posso及Paduc。

研究团队通过两套阵列部署的气候记录仪对场地的温湿度进行监测。第一套阵列包含三台HOBO温度记录仪（HOBO Temperature Pendant），分别部署于地下10厘米处、林下2米高度以及冠层25米高度处。第二套阵列采用HOBO U23 Pro v2气候记录仪，部署于林下与冠层，可同步记录温度与湿度。为避免阳光直射与天气影响，记录仪被安装在带有通风结构的PVC T型接头管道内。

我们于2022年湿季（10月至11月）开展蛙类调查。本次调查采用垂直样线法，以单棵树木为样线开展采样……

# 数据来源：加蓬两栖类的垂直生态位利用与性状关联
本数据集由埃德蒙·巴沙姆（Edmund Basham）投入大量人力与物力资源采集。若将本数据用于出版物发表，恳请告知使用情况，我们也乐意探讨潜在的研究方向与合作机会。联系方式邮箱：[e-mail]

**调查采样信息**
本模块包含各次采样事件的相关数据，核心为单棵树木上设置的垂直样线。可通过树木编码与日期（全程采用英国格式：DD/MM/YYYY）字段将各次调查与对应个体数据关联。数据中包含经纬度（十进制度）与海拔（米，海拔基准面为海平面）以确定采样位置。此外还包含调查开始时间（全程采用24小时制）、树木总高度（米）以及本次调查所攀登的最大高度（米）。

**个体数据**
本模块包含……