+------------------------------------------------------------------+ | JORNADA LTER | | New Mexico State University | | Data Set Documentation Form | +------------------------------------------------------------------+ All Jornada Desert Site NSF/LTER data sets must be documented on the following form. This applies to any data set intended for permanent archiving. All raw data sets collected under the auspices of the Jornada NSF/LTER Program will be described by the following standardized form. Information that is not available at this time, must be included when available. For these fields, enter . For fields that will not have information, enter . See data manager for any questions regarding this form. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 1) Data set access (RESTRICTED or UNRESTRICTED): --------------------------------------------- UNRESTRICTED 2) Data set title: --------------- Ant nest soil water content 3) Project title: -------------- Effects of harvester ant nests on soil properties and vegetation 4) Responsible investigator(s): ---------------------------- Rodolfo R. Di Marco 5) Date data collection commenced (mm/dd/yyyy): -------------------------------------------- January 1987 6) Date data collection terminated (mm/dd/yyyy or ONGOING): -------------------------------------------------------- June 1987 7) Expected duration of study: --------------------------- 6 months 8) Frequency of measurement: ------------------------- monthly 9) Researchers: (Personnel who will be obtaining data and who would need to be contacted directly if there is a problem in the raw data): ---------------------------------------------------------------- Rodolfo R. Di Marco 10) Methods of recording (field data sheets, instrumental, etc.): ---------------------------------------------------------------- field data sheets 11) Site location (Describe in sufficient detail that the site can be relocated): ---------------------------------------------------------------- This study was conducted at three sites on the Jornada LTER during winter-spring 1987. A burrograss-tobosa swale grassland was site 1, an area dominated by the perennial grasses Scleropogon brevifolia (burrograss) and Hilaria mutica (tobosa). This area is located 3,000 ft. (1,000 m) SE of the playa bottom or playa basin (College Playa) and subject to rare sheet flooding. A playa fringe (College Playa) was site 2, an area characterized by scattered Prosopis glandulosa (mesquite) mixed with Yucca elata and Larrea tridentata (creosotebush). The upper basin slope was site 3, an area characterized by a fairly uniform cover of Xanthocephalum sarothrae (snakeweed) and a high diversity of annual forbs and grasses. The soil series described on the watershed by Wierenga et al. (1987) from site 1 to site 3 are Dalby (Typic Torrerts, fine), Headquarter (Ustollic Haplargid, fine loamy), Bucklebar (Typic Haplargid, fine-loamy), and Dona Ana (Typic Haplargid, coarse-loamy), respectively. 12) Data set description (State the hypothesis and / or objectives which collection of data set addresses): ---------------------------------------------------------------- The purpose of this investigation was to answer three general questions: 1. How does the modification of soil properties and the ratios of resources (e.g., water-N) by ants alter species assemblages of winter annual plants at the edge of the ant nests? 2. How does the "spring cleaning", clipping, predation or herbivory by ants affect success of the winter annual plants at the edge of ant nests? 3. Are there significant differences in the floristic assemblage and belowground standing crop (root biomass) between the edge of ant nest and the surrounding unaffected soils? Data set contains soil water content data measured gravimetrically at monthly intervals from January to May. Soil samples were taken from ant nest edge and from adjacent reference sites (5 m apart). 13) Attributes measured: ------------------------------------------------------------------- Variable name: blank Number of columns between fields CCCCCCCC See attribute description Format: C = character (C3: Three characters [XXX]) I = integer (I2: Integer with two places [##]) F = floating point (F4.2: Total places with decimal point = 4, with 2 decimal places. [#.##]) Variable code: * See attribute description listing See external listing of variable codes N/A = Not applicable VARIABLE MEASURED VARIABLE NAME FORMAT UNITS CODE ATTRIBUTE DESCRIPTION -------- ------ -------- -------- ------------------------- TIME I1 N/A 1 January 1987 36 February 1987 70 March 1987 98 April 1987 127 May 1987 PLACE I1 N/A 1,2,3 1=burrograss-tobosa swale 2=playa fringe 3=upper basin slope mixed grasses REP I1 N/A 1-8 When PLACE=1 1-5 When PLACE=2 1-7 When PLACE=3 TRT I1 N/A 1 Ant nest perimeter 2 Reference site MOIST F5.2 % N/A Soil water content (gravimetry method 14) Missing or questionable values (describe how these are represented in the data set): ---------------------------------------------------------------- 15) Methodology (Provide sufficient detail such that an unaware reader could repeat the described data collection procedures.) ---------------------------------------------------------------- Soil water content from ant nest edge soil and from adjacent reference sites (5 meter apart) was measured gravimetically at monthly intervals from January to May. A 35 cm3 soil core sample was randomly taken at the edge of each ant nest, and another soil core sample of the same volume was taken at the adjacent site (5 m away) for every ant nest to 11 cm depth. Because the surface of ant nests was relatively flat and gravelly, rock particles > 2.0 mm in diameter were removed with a small brush before taking the edge soil samples. The soil core hole was refilled with adjacent soil to avoid creating a disturbance site, and rock or mineral particles were replaced. 16) Key literature (Citations that describe sampling procedures, [reference of a published paper, thesis, etc.]): ---------------------------------------------------------------- 17) Keywords (keywords that describe data set; maximum of 10): ---------------------------------------------------------------- ants, soil water content, annual plants 18) Treatment of data: (List any programs used in analysis of the data): [Note: Programs should be appended and stored with this form.] ---------------------------------------------------------------- . The raw data which composes this data set was extracted from provided SAS files prior to analyses. 19) Associated computer accounts: ---------------------------------------------------------------- 20) Files associated with this data set: ---------------------------------------------------------------- A) Metadata files FILE NAME DESCRIPTION OF FILES ------------ ----------------------------------------------- ANTNESTS.PRJ Project documentation ANSWC.DSD Data set documentation ------------ ----------------------------------------------- B) Data files FILE NAME DESCRIPTION OF FILES ------------ ----------------------------------------------- ANSWC.DAT Data set file ------------ ----------------------------------------------- C) Data entry, verification, and analysis files FILE NAME DESCRIPTION OF FILES ------------ ----------------------------------------------- ------------ ----------------------------------------------- D) Other (Any other related files.) FILE NAME DESCRIPTION OF FILES ------------ ----------------------------------------------- ------------ ----------------------------------------------- 21) Comments (Include any comments here that more fully describe this data set): ---------------------------------------------------------------- No documentation was completed by the investigator. Project and data set documentation was completed by the LTER Data Manager with information obtained from Di Marco (1987) and header infor- mation from SAS files which also contained the data. 22) Data set documentation history log: ---------------------------------------------------------------- Data set title - Ant nest soil water content Data set file name - ANSWC.DSD ---------------------------------------------------------------- mm/dd/yyyy - Date of Comment Int - Initials of person making Comment JPA = John P. Anderson Changes/Updates - List any changes made to document mm/dd/yyyy Int Changes/Updates ---------- --- ----------------------------------------------- 02/04/1998 JPA Data set documentation completed. ------------------------------------------------------------------- END OF DATA SET FILE -------------------------------------------------------------------