Abstract
The photosynthetic pathway of plants is a fundamental trait that influences terrestrial environments from the local to global level. The distribution of different photosynthetic pathways in Australia is expected to undergo a substantial shift due to climate change and rising atmospheric CO2; however, tracking change is hindered by a lack of data on the pathways of species, as well as their distribution and relative cover within plant communities. Here we present the photosynthetic pathways for 2428 species recorded across 541 plots surveyed by Australia’s Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network (TERN) between 2011 and 2017. This dataset was created to facilitate research exploring trends in vegetation change across Australia. Species were assigned a photosynthetic pathway using published literature and stable carbon isotope analysis of bulk tissue. The photosynthetic pathway of species can be extracted from the dataset individually, or used in conjunction with vegetation surveys to study the occurrence and abundance of pathways across the continent. This dataset will be updated as TERN’s plot network expands and new information becomes available.
Highlights
Background & SummaryThe photosynthetic pathway of plants has a substantial impact on species productivity, abundance, and geographic distribution[1,2,3]
Most Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network (TERN) plots are located within the Australian rangelands (Fig. 1a)
The Australian rangelands encompass 81% of the Australian landmass, and are characterised by vast spaces with highly weathered features, old and generally infertile soils[29], highly variable rainfall, and diverse and variable plant and animal communities[30]. These areas have traditionally been underrepresented in Australian environmental monitoring programs, which typically focus on more mesic environments and areas closer to large population centres[30]
Summary
The photosynthetic pathway of plants has a substantial impact on species productivity, abundance, and geographic distribution[1,2,3]. Photosynthetic pathway assignments can be directly combined with matching species records in TERN AusPlots vegetation surveys to obtain data on plant distribution, growth form, height and cover. These records can be combined with other TERN plot data and products, including climate, soil, and landscape rasters. We expect this dataset will enable work examining patterns in plant occurrence, richness, and abundance, and ecosystem function at local to national scales
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