,This data package was produced by researchers working on the Shortgrass Steppe Long Term Ecological Research (SGS-LTER) Project, administered at Colorado State University. Long-term datasets and background information (proposals, reports, photographs, etc.) on the SGS-LTER project are contained in a comprehensive project collection within the Digital Collections of Colorado (http://digitool.library.colostate.edu/R/?func=collections&collection_id=3429). The data table and associated metadata document, which is generated in Ecological Metadata Language, may be available through other repositories serving the ecological research community and represent components of the larger SGS-LTER project collection. Additional information and referenced materials can be found: http://hdl.handle.net/10217/83444 The importance of disturbance intensity and herbivory by cattle and white grubs, or the larvae of June beetles to recovery of shortgrass steppe ecosystems in Colorado, USA were evaluated over a 14 year time period. Disturbance intensity was defined by survival of the dominant grass species (Bouteloua gracilis) after an outbreak of root feeding activity by white grubs. 16 patches of vegetation consisting of four pairs of adjacent ungrazed-grazed by cattle locations with 2 replicates that were recently affected by white grubs were selected in 1977. Disturbance intensity was determined in 1977 by the area in each patch that contained live tillers of B. gracilis. Permanent plots were lcoated both within and outside of each patch. Plant basal cover and density by species were estimated at time of peak aboveground biomass in 6 different years on each plot. Successional dynamics on patches was similar to areas affected by other types of disturbances, however, rate of recovery was faster for patches affected by grubs. Grazing by cattle was infrequently important to plant recovery, a result similar to effects of grazing on other aspects of shortgrass steppe. Disturbance intensity was important to recovery of B. gracilis since tiller survival in 1977 was linearly related to cover in each year of sampling. For ungrazed patches, initial conditions were important to recovery of B. gracilis for as many as 14 years. For grazed patches, initial conditions decreased and grazing increased in importance through time. Changes in resource quality and more uniform distribution of roots due to grazing likely resulted in more complete mortality of plants by grubs under grazed compared to ungrazed conditions. Persistance of shortgrass steppe ecosystems in spite of disturbances with different intensities are determined at least in part by characteristics of disturbances interacting with the ability ofplants to respond, and in part by the evolutionary history of the system. Although white grubs affect shortgrass communities infrequently, they have large and important effects on plant community structure through time, and represent an important class of disturbance defined by intensity.,,

,This ongoing data set contains basal cover of perennial grasses and canopy cover of shrubs in 122 1m x 1m quadrats on the Jornada Experimental Range in the northern extent of the Chihuahuan Desert of New Mexico, USA. These quadrats were established to investigate livestock grazing effects on plant community dynamics as well as responses to variable climatic conditions over time. Vegetation monitoring is carried out by charting the basal areas of perennial grasses and canopy areas of shrubs within each quadrat. Quadrats were established at different times, with start dates from 1915 to 1932. Specific quadrat locations were selected for a variety of reasons, but the overall intent was to represent varying plant community conditions across the Jornada Experimental Range. From 1915 to 1924 charting was done by dividing the quadrat frame into a decimeter grid using straps and reproducing locations of plants on grid paper. From 1925 to 2016 charting was done using a pantograph. With few exceptions, quadrats were charted until 1947, and a portion of the quadrats were charted intermittently between 1947 and 1979. Sampling resumed again in 1995 and continues every 5-6 years. Charts are digitally scanned, georeferenced, and chart features are digitally reproduced by hand. This data set is not yet complete; charts are actively being processed by Jornada Experimental Range staff and will be updated to this data package as they become available. A companion data package of counts of perennial forbs and subshrubs for each quadrat is also available for this project (data package knb-lter-jrn.210351002).,,

,This data package was produced by researchers working on the Shortgrass Steppe Long Term Ecological Research (SGS-LTER) Project, administered at Colorado State University. Long-term datasets and background information (proposals, reports, photographs, etc.) on the SGS-LTER project are contained in a comprehensive project collection within the Digital Collections of Colorado (http://digitool.library.colostate.edu/R/?func=collections&collection_id=3429). The data table and associated metadata document, which is generated in Ecological Metadata Language, may be available through other repositories serving the ecological research community and represent components of the larger SGS-LTER project collection. Six sites approximately 6 km apart were selected at the Central Plains Experimental Range in 1997. Within each site, there was a pair of adjacent ungrazed and moderately summer grazed (40-60% removal of annual aboveground production by cattle) locations. Grazed locations had been grazed from 1939 to present and ungrazed locations had been protected from 1991 to present by the establishment of exclosures. Within grazed and ungrazed locations, all tillers and root crowns of B. gracilis were removed from two treatment plots (3 m x 3 m) with all other vegetation undisturbed. Two control plots were established adjacent to the treatment plots. Plant density was measured annually by species in a fixed 1m x 1m quadrat in the center of treatment and control plots. For clonal species, an individual plant was defined as a group of tillers connected by a crown Coffin & Lauenroth 1988, Fair et al. 1999). Seedlings were counted as separate individuals. In the same quadrat, basal cover by species, bare soil, and litter were estimated annually using a point frame. A total of 40 points were read from four locations halfway between the center point and corners of the 1m x 1m quadrat. Density was measured from 1998 to 2005 and cover from 1997 to 2006. All measurements were taken in late June/early July.,,

,This data package was produced by researchers working on the Shortgrass Steppe Long Term Ecological Research (SGS-LTER) Project, administered at Colorado State University. Long-term datasets and background information (proposals, reports, photographs, etc.) on the SGS-LTER project are contained in a comprehensive project collection within the Digital Collections of Colorado (http://digitool.library.colostate.edu/R/?func=collections&collection_id=3429). The data table and associated metadata document, which is generated in Ecological Metadata Language, may be available through other repositories serving the ecological research community and represent components of the larger SGS-LTER project collection. Six sites approximately 6 km apart were selected at the Central Plains Experimental Range in 1997. Within each site, there was a pair of adjacent ungrazed and moderately summer grazed (40-60% removal of annual aboveground production by cattle) locations. Grazed locations had been grazed from 1939 to present and ungrazed locations had been protected from 1991 to present by the establishment of exclosures. Within grazed and ungrazed locations, all tillers and root crowns of B. gracilis were removed from two treatment plots (3 m x 3 m) with all other vegetation undisturbed. Two control plots were established adjacent to the treatment plots. Plant density was measured annually by species in a fixed 1m x 1m quadrat in the center of treatment and control plots. For clonal species, an individual plant was defined as a group of tillers connected by a crown (Coffin and Lauenroth 1988, Fair et al. 1999). Seedlings were counted as separate individuals. In the same quadrat, basal cover by species, bare soil, and litter were estimated annually using a point frame. A total of 40 points were read from four locations halfway between the center point and corners of the 1m x 1m quadrat. Density was measured from 1998 to 2005 and cover from 1997 to 2006. All measurements were taken in late June/early July.,,

The data set covers a 101-year period (1915-2016) of quadrat-based plant sampling at the Jornada Experimental Range in southern New Mexico. At each sampling event, a pantograph was used to record the location and perimeter of living plants within permanent quadrats. Basal area was recorded for perennial grass species, canopy cover area was recorded for shrub species, and all other perennial species were recorded as point data. The data set includes 122 1m by 1m permanent quadrats, although not all quadrats were sampled in each year of the study and there is a gap in monitoring from 1980-1995. These data provide a unique opportunity to investigate changes in the plant community over 100 years of variation in precipitation and other environmental conditions. We provide the following data and data formats: (1) the digitized maps in shapefile format; (2) data table containing coordinates (x,y) of perennial species within quadrats, including cover area for grasses and shrubs; (3) data table of counts of annual plant individuals per quadrat; (4) species list indicating growth form and habit of recorded species; (5) table of dates when each quadrat was sampled; (6) table of the pasture each quadrat was located within (note that pasture boundaries have changed over time). Additional data to help characterize plant-scale factors related to vegetation dynamics at the quadrat locations are: (7) data table of depth to caliche layer; (8) data table of soil particle size analysis and sand fractionation; and (9) data table of local and patch topography. This data package was created to support a specific data paper. Data are also available in data packages knb-lter-jrn.210351001, knb-lter-jrn.210351002, and knb-lter-jrn.210351003. Pantograph sampling is currently conducted at 5 year intervals by USDA-ARS staff, and new data will be added to those data packages periodically.

,This data package contains soil disturbance data from plots with various levels of herbivore exclusion on the Jornada Experimental Range. Study sites were established in 1995; one in black grama grassland and the other in creosotebush shrubland to compare the impact of herbivores on ecosystem processes between these vegetation types. Parallel studies were established at the Sevilleta LTER site (New Mexico, USA) and Mapimi Biosphere Reserve (Durango, Mexico). Each study site is 1 km by 0.5 km in area. Four replicate experimental blocks were randomly located at the grassland study site to measure vegetation responses using exclusion treatments including a) all mammalian herbivores, including cattle, lagomorphs, and rodents, b) lagomorphs and cattle only, c) cattle only, and d) control accessible to all herbivores. Because grazing cattle are excluded from the entire creosote site, only three replicate experimental blocks were randomly located there including a) all mammalian herbivores, including lagomorphs, and rodents, b) lagomorphs only, and c) control accessible to all herbivores. Thirty-six sampling points were positioned at 5.8-meter intervals on a systematically located 6 by 6 point grid within each plot. A permanent one-meter by one-meter vegetation measurement quadrat is located at each of the 36 points. Each year in spring and fall from 1995-2005, various forms of disturbances (human, rabbit, cow, antelope, rodent, etc) were measured by depth . After 2005, sampling frequency changed to every 5 years. This study is ongoing.,,

We used Rangeland Condition Monitoring Assessment and Projection (RCMAP) maps of annual herbaceous fractional components (mostly invasive annual grasses) to calculate mean rate of change in invasive annual grass cover over five-year time periods. We also created a map that identifies zones of the sagebrush biome that could be prioritized for different management goals. The invasion of annual grasses has altered fire regimes and has contributed to the decline of sagebrush ecosystems. The vast expanse of annual grass invasions has required land managers to prioritize treatments in locations where they expect to be able to make a meaningful impact on invasion outcomes. Maps of invasive annual grass cover are useful in that they show the extent and severity of the invasion, but on their own, cover maps do not illustrate context such as how invasive cover is changing over time (i.e., increasing, stable, decreasing). The rate of change in invasive annual grass cover describes the trajectory of invasion. This information can be used by land managers to fine-tune priority locations and strategies for invasive species treatments in addition to other data sources (e.g., invasive annual grass cover maps).

We used Rangeland Condition Monitoring Assessment and Projection (RCMAP) maps of annual herbaceous fractional components (mostly invasive annual grasses) to calculate mean rate of change in invasive annual grass cover over five-year time periods. We also created a map that identifies zones of the sagebrush biome that could be prioritized for different management goals. The invasion of annual grasses has altered fire regimes and has contributed to the decline of sagebrush ecosystems. The vast expanse of annual grass invasions has required land managers to prioritize treatments in locations where they expect to be able to make a meaningful impact on invasion outcomes. Maps of invasive annual grass cover are useful in that they show the extent and severity of the invasion, but on their own, cover maps do not illustrate context such as how invasive cover is changing over time (i.e., increasing, stable, decreasing). The rate of change in invasive annual grass cover describes the trajectory of invasion. This information can be used by land managers to fine-tune priority locations and strategies for invasive species treatments in addition to other data sources (e.g., invasive annual grass cover maps).

To determine if invasive annual grasses increased around energy developments after the construction phase, we calculated an invasives index using Landsat TM and ETM+ imagery for a 34-year time period (1985-2018) and assessed trends for 1,755 wind turbines (from the U.S. Wind Turbine Database) installed between 1988 and 2013 in the southern California desert. The index uses the maximum normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) for early season greenness (January-June), and mean NDVI (July-October) for the later dry season. We estimated the relative cover of invasive annuals each year at turbine locations and control sites and tested for changes before and after each turbine was installed. These data were used to make final conclusions in the larger work described above. The GIS shapefile included in this USGS data release includes unique turbine IDs, as well as early season invasive (ESI) values for turbines and corresponding control sites summarized before and after the turbine installation date.