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ausplotsR : An R package for rapid extraction and analysis of vegetation and soil data collected by Australia's Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network
Author(s) -
Munroe Samantha,
Guerin Greg,
Saleeba Tom,
MartínForés Irene,
BlancoMartin Bernardo,
Sparrow Ben,
Tokmakoff Andrew
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
journal of vegetation science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.1
H-Index - 115
eISSN - 1654-1103
pISSN - 1100-9233
DOI - 10.1111/jvs.13046
Subject(s) - tern , vegetation (pathology) , plot (graphics) , sampling (signal processing) , environmental science , ecosystem , geography , ecology , remote sensing , environmental resource management , computer science , biology , statistics , medicine , mathematics , filter (signal processing) , pathology , computer vision
The Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network (TERN), Australia's national land ecosystem monitoring programme, measures critical environmental attributes from local to continental scale and generates quality data for research and land management. Since 2011, TERN has performed standardised field surveys and sampling across a national plot network. At each plot, TERN records vegetation structure, composition and diversity, soil characteristics, and collects plant and soil samples for analysis. At the time of submission, TERN has established over 750 plots and performed over 1,000 plot surveys across Australia. Here we present ausplotsR , an R package for the R statistical computing environment that provides a user‐friendly interface to rapidly import, visualise, and analyse TERN plot data. Easy‐to‐use functions extract the data and compile data tables that can be incorporated into a variety of statistical analysis, most notably multivariate applications requiring plant community data with standardised relative abundances. ausplotsR includes functions to calculate useful vegetation metrics, such as species presence/absence, cover, and basal area. The package also provides information on TERN’s extensive soil and plant sample collection. We expect ausplotsR will help facilitate and advance ecological research and management throughout Australia and provide useful data for vegetation modellers globally.