Cary seed production data

The Forest Response to Stress and Damage (frequently referred to as FORSTAD) and long term forest monitoring project began in 1992 to study how mixed-oak forests respond to multiple forms of environmental change. The research took place at Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in the Hudson Valley of New York. FORSTAD included several sub-projects including (1) air pollution and nutrient cycling, (2) spongy moth population dynamics, (3) small mammal dynamics and (4) vegetation dynamics. This dataset is a contribution to the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, and is part of the Long term monitoring of forest ecosystems: Cary vegetation dynamics archive.

Vegetation dynamics: To understand the impacts of anthropogenic stressors on forest trees, measurements were made of aspects of trees that had to do with the condition and survival of trees. The measurements included the size and species of trees in designated plots in the forest, the size and species of saplings in smaller subplots, the quantity of seeds produced by trees using seed traps and the predation of seeds and survival of seedlings in subplots. Canopy defoliation levels were recorded via fisheye canopy photography on the 20 vegetation monitoring plots, and on other plots used specifically for spongy moth or small mammal monitoring. The vegetation data were used for direct analysis of change in forest structure and composition, and also to parameterize a computer model of vegetation dynamics, which was used as a research and management tool. Datasets include:

• Canopy census – species composition, age & size structure of trees, reproductive status & condition of canopy

• Canopy condition & leaf area index via fisheye camera photos

• Seed production

• Seed predation

• Seedling survival and growth

• Mapping of all plots, trees, seed & seedling data collection plots

• Deer & small mammal exclosure census

• Soil moisture

The data included here are data from seed traps in Cary Forest Plots and Yellow and Red Control Grids. Note that data collection continued after the end of the FORSTAD project first under the research program of Gary Lovett, then under the research program of Rick Ostfeld. Data collection continues to be collected annually as of 2024. Note also that the archived seeds were discarded around 2017 but newly collected seeds have been archived at Cary Institute.

File list:

FORSTAD_Seed_Production_Metadata_1992_2005.pdf -contains complete project metadata, personnel, methodology, and definitions for data variables in all data files.

FORSTAD_Seed_Production_Cary_Forest_Plots_1992_2000.csv

FORSTAD_Seed_Production_Grid_Sites_1992_2005.csv

FORSTAD_Protocol_Seed_Rain_1997.pdf

FORSTAD_Protocol_Seed_Rain_1999.pdf

See Related Materials for more data from the FORSTAD vegetation sub-project.