Title:

Community composition, seedling trait and mass data for six past and contemporary native plant populations in the Great Basin

Author(s):

Shriver, Laura C.; Barga, Sarah C.; Leger, Elizabeth A.

Publication Year:

2026

How to Cite:

These data were collected using funding from the U.S. Government and can be used without additional permissions or fees. If you use these data in a publication, presentation, or other research product please use the following citation:

Shriver, Laura C.; Barga, Sarah C.; Leger, Elizabeth A. 2026. Community composition, seedling trait and mass data for six past and contemporary native plant populations in the Great Basin. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2025-0063

Abstract:

These data were compiled as part of a resurrection study assessing change over time in six native plant species in the northern Great Basin, which is a region where invasive annual grasses increase fire frequency to the detriment of native plants. The objective of our study was to assess trait change in ex situ and in situ populations, and ask if divergent fire history affected change. We measured trait shifts between past and contemporary seed collections from the same location, including sites that had experienced a wildfire between collection dates and paired, unburned sites. Past seed was obtained through the Bureau of Land Management led Seeds of Success Program and re-collections were made from the same populations 3-11 years later in 2021 and 2022. We also collected community composition data from the seed collection sites in Nevada, Oregon, and Idaho in the summer of 2021. Seeds from all collections were grown in a common greenhouse environment from 2021-2022 in Reno, Nevada through the seedling stage, and we assessed differences in seed mass, emergence (amount and timing), survival, and a variety of plant size measurements. This data publication includes five tabular data sets that summarize population information, collection site community composition data in two formats, seed mass data, and seedling trait data. We also include an R script with code for all statistical analyses.

Keywords:

biota; environment; Ecology, Ecosystems, & Environment; Ecology; Plant ecology; Environment and People; Impact of people on environment; Fire; Fire ecology; Fire effects on environment; Natural Resource Management & Use; Conservation; Restoration; native plants; rapid evolution; resurrection study; Great Basin; Nevada; Oregon; Idaho; North America; Western North America; United States; Western United States; intermountain west; Great Basin Desert; Snake River Plains

Related publications:

• Shriver, Laura C.; Barga, Sarah C.; Leger, Elizabeth A. 2026. Seeds of change: trait shifts over time in wild plant populations revealed using ex situ Seeds of Success collections. AoB Plants. [In press].

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