uid=HFR,o=lter,dc=ecoinformatics,dc=org all public read doi:10.6073/pasta/4107874d4233c79b05929c7a93a60ca4 Brooks Mathewson Elizabeth Colburn David Foster https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1171-3762 Researcher Paul Sievert Researcher 2023 English

Throughout the twentieth century several dominant tree species suffered severe decline in the eastern United States due to non-native pests and pathogens, yet little is known of the effects these losses have on ecosystem processes or associated wildlife populations (Orwig 2002). Eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis), an important late-successional tree species, is currently threatened throughout its range by the hemlock woolly adelgid (Adelges tsugae; HWA), an invasive insect pest native to Japan (Orwig and Foster 1998). The unique structure and microenvironment of hemlock-dominated forests create critical landscape level heterogeneity, providing habitat for numerous bird and mammal species several of which are strongly associated with hemlock stands in the Northeast (Yamasaki et al. 2000). The effects of hemlock loss on associated wildlife is largely unknown, but is of particular concern for terrestrial salamanders as they are sensitive to microclimatic conditions that are likely to change as hemlocks decline. In this study, populations of eastern red-backed salamanders (Plethodon cinereus), significant contributors to the overall vertebrate biomass in northeastern forests (Burton and Likens 1975a), are compared in hemlock-dominated and mixed deciduous forest. The objectives of this study was to 1) to determine whether the relative abundance, body condition, and size class structure of P. cinereus populations differ in hemlock-dominated forests versus mixed deciduous forests in north-central Massachusetts. A difference in age-class structure in the two forest types may suggest a difference in survivorship, while differences in body condition are driven by differences in the energy expenditure required to obtain food resources and can lead to differences in reproductive success 2) to evaluate how structure and microenvironment differ and determine which variables best predict the variation in relative abundance and body condition of P. cinereus in the two forest types. Results from earlier work as well as evidence that cooler, moister habitat and higher abundance of prey is found in hemlock-dominated forest led me to hypothesize that P. cinereus relative abundance and body condition would be higher in plots in this forest type.

abundance hemlock hemlock woolly adelgid salamanders LTER controlled vocabulary populations disturbance LTER core area Harvard Forest HFR LTER USA HFR default

This dataset is released to the public under Creative Commons CC0 1.0 (No Rights Reserved). Please keep the dataset creators informed of any plans to use the dataset. Consultation with the original investigators is strongly encouraged. Publications and data products that make use of the dataset should include proper acknowledgement.

Creative Commons Zero v1.0 Universal https://spdx.org/licenses/CC0-1.0.html CC0-1.0 https://harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu/exist/apps/datasets/showData.html?id=hf131 North Central Massachusetts. Coordinates based on WGS84 datum. -72.39 -71.89 +42.68 +42.45 212 560 meter 2005 2005 genus Adelges species tsugae hemlock woolly adelgid genus Plethodon species cinereus eastern redback salamander genus Tsuga species canadensis eastern hemlock complete Information Manager Harvard Forest

324 North Main Street Petersham MA 01366 USA

(978) 724-3302 hf-im@lists.fas.harvard.edu Harvard Forest

324 North Main Street Petersham MA 01366 USA

(978) 724-3302 (978) 724-3595 https://harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu

Fifteen paired, circular, 0.33 ha plots were distributed throughout north central Massachusetts (Figure 1) on land owned by the state of Massachusetts or Harvard University. I used maps developed from aerial photography (Orwig et al. unpubl) to identify potential paired sites, less than 750 m apart, in which the basal area (m2 ha-1) of hemlock was greater than 50% in one and less than 25% in another. If field surveys confirmed that sites were likely to meet these criteria, a random center point, farther than 57.5 m from the edge of the stand, and compass heading were selected and perpendicular 50 m transects intersecting at the center point were established. ACO stations were then set up at the ends of each transect and at their intersection. At each ACO station a pair of green, rough-cut, untreated, 2-cm thick, 1 m x 0.25 m, eastern hemlock boards were installed 3m apart parallel to one another and the transect between May 11, 2005 and June 13, 2005. Each ACO was monitored every two to three weeks between June 13th, 2005 and November 4th, 2005 (n = 2380 ACO observations). Paired hemlock-dominated and adjacent mixed deciduous plots at each site were always sampled on the same day. All amphibian and reptile species observed under ACOs were recorded. Snout-vent length (SVL) (+/- 1mm) was recorded for all amphibians, and weight (+/- 0.01g), total length (TL) (+/- 1mm), and sex were also measured for all P. cinereus.

Harvard Forest

324 North Main Street Petersham MA 01366 USA

(978) 724-3302 (978) 724-3595 https://harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu https://ror.org/059cpzx98 pointOfContact The Harvard Forest Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) program examines ecological dynamics in the New England region resulting from natural disturbances, environmental change, and human impacts. National Science Foundation LTER grants: DEB-8811764, DEB-9411975, DEB-0080592, DEB-0620443, DEB-1237491, DEB-1832210. hf131-01-plot.csv plot hf131-01-plot.csv 15472 3c2fb6351cef48db8ecd83c4663b18d8 1 \r\n column , https://harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu/data/p13/hf131/hf131-01-plot.csv plot plot code plot code site site code site code ft forest type TS eastern hemlock dominated (greater than 50% basal area eastern hemlock) MD mixed deciduous (less than 25% basal area eastern hemlock) asn artificial cover object (ACO) station number artificial cover object (ACO) station number lat latitude of center point of ASN (hddd°mm.mmm') latitude of center point of ASN (hddd°mm.mmm') long longitude of center point of ASN (hddd°mm.mmm') longitude of center point of ASN (hddd°mm.mmm') datum datum for latitude and longitude coordinates datum for latitude and longitude coordinates ba average basal area as measured in a 7.5m radius subplot surrounding the ACO station meterSquaredPerHectare 0.1 real NA missing value st.ha average number of stems (DBH > 5cm) per hectare as measured in a 7.5m radius subplot surrounding the ACO station (stems / hectare) numberPerHectare 0.1 real NA missing value ts the percentage of overall basal area accounted for by eastern hemlock in a 7.5 m radius sub-plot surrounding the ACO station dimensionless 0.01 real NA missing value bearing compass heading numeric value compass heading (degree) FLAT no compass heading NA missing value aspect aspect aspect slope slope as measured by clinometers (percentage) numeric value slope as measured by clinometers (percentage) FLAT no slope NA missing value NA missing value canopy.cover percentage canopy cover above center point of ASN as measured by densitometer dimensionless 1 whole NA missing value cwd.no number of pieces of coarse woody debris (diameter greater than 2.5 cm) encountered along three 7.5m transects originating from center point of ACO station at 30°, 150°, and 270° number 1 whole NA missing value cwd.con number of pieces of coarse woody debris (diameter greater than 2.5 cm) in contact with the soil encountered along three 7.5m transects originating from center point of ACO station at 30°, 150°, and 270°. number 1 whole NA missing value vcwd all pieces of coarse woody debris (diameter greater than 2.5 cm) encountered along three 7.5m transects originating from center point of ACO station at 30°, 150°, and 270° were measured and the volume of coarse woody debris was then calculated using the formula V= 9.869* (d /8L), where L is squared (Harmon & Sexton 1996) meterCubedPerHectare 0.1 real NA missing value vcwd.con all pieces of coarse woody debris (diameter greater than 2.5 cm) in contact with the soil encountered along three 7.5m transects originating from the center point of each ACO station at 30°, 150°, and 270° were measured and the volume of coarse woody debris was then calculated using the formula V= 9.869* (d /8L), where L is transect length and d is diameter of CWD squared (Harmon & Sexton 1996) meterCubedPerHectare 0.1 real NA missing value avg.dc average decay class of coarse woody debris. Scale of 1 to 5: 1 being the least decayed. 1 solid wood, recently fallen, bark and twigs present 2 solid wood, significantly weathered, branches present 3 wood not solid, bark may be sloughing but nail still must be pounded into the wood 4 wood sloughing and/or friable, nail may be forcibly pushed into wood 5 wood friable, barely holding shape, nail may be easily pushed into wood tot.snags total number of snags within 7.5 m sub-plot around center point of ASN number 1 natural NA missing value avg.snag.ht average height of snags in 7.5 m sub-plot surrounding ACO station meter 0.1 real NA missing value avg.snag.dbh average diameter at breast height of snags in 7.5 m sub-plot surrounding ACO station centimeter 1 whole NA missing value soil.ph soil pH measured from soil sample of organic layer taken at one randomly selected point in each sub-plot (-log[H+]) dimensionless 0.001 real NA missing value 150 hf131-02-tree.csv trees hf131-02-tree.csv 97570 7355b442013327e53425d6c494b24044 1 \r\n column , https://harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu/data/p13/hf131/hf131-02-tree.csv stem.master number of stem overall number of stem overall plot plot code plot code asn artificial cover object (ACO) station number artificial cover object (ACO) station number stem.asn stem number within ASN stem number within ASN species tree species. Standard four letter tree codes (first two letters of genus and species tree species dbh diameter at breast height (all specimens with DBH greater than 5 cm were recorded centimeter 0.1 real NA missing value alive whether tree was alive or dead Y yes N no sh height of snag (only applicable with dead specimens) meter 1 real NA missing value 3206 hf131-03-cwd.csv coarse woody debris hf131-03-cwd.csv 40195 ac98c54d3e4d4ff2018c6538062f2196 1 \r\n column , https://harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu/data/p13/hf131/hf131-03-cwd.csv cwd.no number of coarse woody debris (diameter greater than 2.5 cm) number of coarse woody debris site site code site code ft forest type TS eastern hemlock dominated (greater than 50% basal area eastern hemlock) MD mixed deciduous (less than 25% basal area eastern hemlock) plot plot code plot code asn artificial cover object (ACO) station number artificial cover object (ACO) station number tr degree heading of 7.5m transect (30°, 150°, or 270°) degree 1 whole NA missing value species species of coarse woody debris observed. Standard tree species codes (1st two letters of genus and 1st two letters of species) species of coarse woody debris observed diam diameter of coarse woody debris centimeter 0.1 real NA missing value dc decay class. Scale of 1 to 5: 1 being the least decayed. 1 solid wood, recently fallen, bark and twigs present 2 solid wood, significantly weathered, branches present 3 wood not solid, bark may be sloughing but nail still must be pounded into the wood 4 wood sloughing and/or friable, nail may be forcibly pushed into wood 5 wood friable, barely holding shape, nail may be easily pushed into wood c whether the CWD is in contact with the soil Y yes N no 1103 hf131-04-aco.csv aco observations hf131-04-aco.csv 174577 2a869fb2103f7b16329341d895804bfb 1 \r\n column , https://harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu/data/p13/hf131/hf131-04-aco.csv datetime date and time YYYY-MM-DDThh:mm date date YYYY-MM-DD aco artificial cover object (ACO) number artificial cover object (ACO) number plot plot code plot code asn artificial cover object (ACO) station number artificial cover object (ACO) station number airt air temperature at the surface of the soil measured at one ACO per plot per monitoring session celsius 0.1 real NA missing value rh relative humidity (percentage) dimensionless 1 whole NA missing value soilt soil temperature at 5cm measured at one ACO per plot per monitoring session celsius 0.1 real NA missing value time time of ACO monitoring and climatic measurements hh:mm pca number of Plethodon cinereus observed under ACO number 1 whole NA missing value pcn Plethodon cinereus specimen number Plethodon cinereus specimen number em.aco ACO at which soil temperature, air temperature, and relative humidity were measured for sampled plot ACO at which soil temperature, air temperature, and relative humidity were measured for sampled plot osn specimen number of other species of herpetofauna observed specimen number of other species of herpetofauna observed other.sp species of other species of herpetofauna observed NOVI Notophthalmus viridescens viridescens THIS Thamnophis sirtalis AMMA Ambystoma maculatum RASY Rana sylvatica STOC Storeriea o. occipitomaculata EUBI Eurycea bislineata 2380 hf131-05-pc-abund.csv pc abundance hf131-05-pc-abund.csv 9796 93725f82810d30709e4584335b1e8546 1 \r\n column , https://harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu/data/p13/hf131/hf131-05-pc-abund.csv pc.no number of Plethodon cinereus observed number of Plethodon cinereus observed date date YYYY-MM-DD plot plot in which species was observed plot in which species was observed aco artificial cover object (ACO) number artificial cover object (ACO) number p phase R redback phase L leadback phase svl snout-vent length in millimeters as measured from tip of snout to behind back leg (+/- 1mm) millimeter 1 whole NA missing value tl total length in millimeters as measured from tip of snout to end of tail (+/- 1mm) millimeter 1 whole NA missing value wt weight in centigrams (+/- 0.01 g) centigram 1 whole NA missing value sex sex of adults (SVL greater than 35 mm) determined by snout shape - males square snout females - rounded snout M male F female 250 hf131-06-herps.csv other herps hf131-06-herps.csv 1874 f3bea570d138fa8fb9a7dae005da51a4 1 \r\n column , https://harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu/data/p13/hf131/hf131-06-herps.csv osn number of observation number of observation date date YYYY-MM-DD plot plot in which species was observed plot in which species was observed aco artificial cover object number artificial cover object number species species of amphibians or reptile observed NOVI Notophthalmus viridescens viridescens THIS Thamnophis sirtalis AMMA Ambystoma maculatum RASY Rana sylvatica STOC Storeriea o. occipitomaculata EUBI Eurycea bislineata svl snout-vent length in millimeters as measured from tip of snout to behind back leg (+/- 1mm) millimeter 1 whole NA missing value tl total length in millimeters as measured from tip of snout to end of tail (+/- 1mm) millimeter 1 whole NA missing value weight weight in centigrams (+/- 0.01 g) centigram 1 whole NA missing value 48 community regional short-term measurement https://harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu/exist/apps/datasets/showData.html?id=hf132 https://harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu/exist/apps/datasets/showData.html?id=hf038 https://harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu/exist/apps/datasets/showData.html?id=hf075