A DATA SET is a series of observations collected by the same methodology. Each data set should have documentation sufficient for someone unfamiliar with the research to replicate the study. Data sets may be broken into subsets (data files) that are discrete in space and time, in that order. The documentation for a data set should include all spatial and temporal subdivisions of the data.

(Data, Abstract, Methods, Variables)

NOTES:

• Add rows to tables or lines to paraghaphs as you need them for entering your data.
• Contact emelendez@lternet.edu, if you have any question.

PERSON(S) COMPLETING THIS FORM: E-MAIL ADDRESS:

DATA SET IDENTIFIER: Bisley grid frog data

PROJECT TITLE: Frog Population Dynamics

PROJECT DESCRIPTION: El Verde Station, located in the tabonuco forest zone on the NW side of the Luquillo Experimental Forest (LEF), has hosted numerous scientific efforts since the 1960s. Thus, a great deal of information exists concerning anuran populations at the site over the past 30 years. Although past surveys did not use consistent techniques, they clearly document the general status of the anuran community of the area. I began working at El Verde in the 1970s and have collected data on the anuran community primarily in the 1980s and 1990s. Until recently, these surveys also lacked a consistent sampling protocol, although they clearly document declines in species richness in comparison to earlier records.

Most Puerto Rican Eleutherodactylus are terrestrial frogs that breed for prolonged periods of time in more or less continuous habitat. Because their life cycle lacks a free living larvae stage, reproductive behavior is not tied to bodies of water and they do not have the large aggregations typical of many aquatic breeders. For these reasons, assessing their population status requires examining fairly large areas of habitat. I began systematically sampling the anuran community on a 12 ha grid at the Bisley watersheds in 1989 and a second 16 ha grid at El Verde in 1993. These efforts have provided a comprehensive data set that can be used to evaluate future changes in the anuran community in this forest.

LTER CORE AREAS: (Annotate all that apply)

Population Dynamics

LEF LTER 1 RESEARCH TOPIC: (Annotate all that apply)

Spatial and Temporal Distribution of Pop

We define a data file as a component of a data set. A data set can have only one data file or more. Basically, different data files have different data structures or format.
DATA SET FILES (SUBSETS):

Data File No.	Data File Identifier	On-Line Filename	Starting Date	Periodicity of sample	End Period
1	Pre-Hugo Bisley Grid Frog Data	Bisgridfrog.txt	June 1, 1989	once	June 1, 1989

RESEARCH LOCATION: Bisley Grid points, Bisley Experimental Watersheds of the Luquillo Experimental Forest (LEF) of Puerto Rico.

INVESTIGATORS:

L.L.Woolbright

Lwoolbright@lternet.edu

CONTACT PERSONS E-MAIL address Phone Number (Include area code)

L.L.Woolbright

Lwoolbright@lternet.edu

(518)783-2451

SOURCE OF FUNDING (SPONSOR): LTER-NSF

DATA SET ABSTRACT: Population estimates from 1987 to 1995 are reported for the terrestrial anuran, Eleutherodactylus coqui, from four long-term study plots in the Luquillo Experimental Forest of northeastern Puerto Rico. The major factor influencing population size during this time was Hurricane Hugo, which deposited much of the canopy onto the forest floor in 1989. Population densities since Hurricane Hugo have been influenced by succession, with continued high densities associated with thickets of Cecropia and Heliconia. Trefalls, which are similar to hurricanes on a local scale, also were shown to influence population sizes. Years with prolonged dry periods reduced numbers of juvenile frogs, but rainfall patterns alone did not explain most population variation. Population levels of invertebrate predators were related to variation in frog numbers.

DATA SET METHODS: Data were collected in the 35 points on the grid of the Bisley watersheds plots in the tabonuco forest in the LEF . Points in the grid are 40 m distant in all directions, and an arbitrary subset of points were sampled based on accesibility.

REFERENCES:

CROSS-REFERENCES (other data sets related to this one): LTERDBAS25: Frog transect data, LTERDBAS30: Frog grid data (Bisley), LTERDBAS44: Frog population plots (El Verde + Bisley), LTERDBAS45: Frog spatial distribution data (El Verde + Bisley), LTERDBAS76: Frog abundance in fertilization plots, LTERDBAS150: Pattern morphology for frogs captured at 9 locations in northeastern Puerto Rico over a 25-year period from 1978 to 2002

SAMPLE LOCATION: N/A

STORAGE SITES (of data files): ITES - UPR, Data Mngr.'s Cabinet DM333_01, Drawer #1

INVESTIGATOR'S ASSIGNED KEYWORDS: Anura, Leptodactylidae, Eleutherodactylus, coqui, abundance, population density, disturbance

LEF LTER OFFICIAL KEYWORDS  (See table): BISLEY WATERSHEDS, TABONUCO, POPULATION DYNAMICS, AMPHIBIANS, PEER REVIEWED JOURNAL

PUBLICATIONS:
Woolbright, L.L. 1991. The impact of Hurricane Hugo on forest frogs in Puerto Rico. Biotropica23:462-467.

Woolbright, L.L. 1996. Disturbance influences long-term population patterns in the Puerto Rican frog, (1)Eleutherodactylus coqui (Anura: Leptodactylidae). 1996. Biotropica 28:493-501

Woolbright, L.L. 1997. Local extinctions of anuran amphibians in the Luquillo Experimental Forest of Northeastern Puerto Rico. Journal of Herpetology 31(4):572-576.

DISSEMINATION: UNRESTRICTED

REASONS TO RESTRICT DATA IN THIS DATA SET BEYOND ITS TWO YEAR POLICY PERIOD*:

*WILL HAVE TO BE APPROVED BY LTER PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATORS: J. ZIMMERMAN, A. LUGO , D.J. LODGE

SITES DESCRIPTIONS: See LTERDBAS #31 (Methods, Site Description)

Geographical positional system (GPS) Coordinates for each location:

location	latitude	longitude

VARIABLES (ATTRIBUTES):

FILE NAME OR #ABOVE (all in which the variable appears)	1	1	1	1	1
ABBREVIATION (as it appears on the data file)	GRIDPOINT(X)	GRIDPOINT(Y)	FROGAMOUNT	AREAOFGRID	FROGAMOUNT/AREAOFGRID
NAME OF VARIABLE	Grid X Coordinate	Grid Y Coordinate	Quantity of frogs found	Area studied	Density of frogs
DEFINITION OF VARIABLE	geographic X coordinates of plot center	geographic Y coordinates of plot center	Quantity of frogs found on the grid	Area of grid studied in m²	Calculated density of frogs in grid in # per m²
UNIT	NA	NA	NA	squareMeter	numberPerMeterSquared
PRECISION	NA	NA	NA	.01	.01
RANGE OR LIST OF VALUES	{40, 80, 120, 160, 200, 240, 280, 320, 360}	{400, 440, 480, 520, 560, 600, 640, 680, 720, 760}
DATA TYPE	integer	integer	integer	decimal	decimal
MISSING DATA CODES	none	none	none	none	none

VARIABLES (ATTRIBUTES):

COMPUTATIONAL METHODS:

Variable Name	Formula
Density of frogs	Quantity of frogs found/Area studied
Start date of observations	Assigned starting date of observations based on "Methods(1)" of Publication

FOR DATA MANAGER USE ONLY

DATE OF LAST REVIEW: March 9, 2004
DATE OF LAST ENTRY: Sep. 19, 1990.
STAGE OF DATA SET MANAGEMENT (dates):
RECEIVED ENTERED: Sep. 19, 1990.
FILED ON-LINE April 23, 2001
REVIEWED BY RESEARCHER
FILING MEDIA:
NAME OF DOCUMENTATION FILE: lterdb30.htm
NAME OF ON - LINE CATALOG: LTERDBAS
RECORD #: 30
DOCUMENT TYPE: magnetic media (paper also)
PRIORITY TO BE ENTERED: third

Rev. date of this form: 25 January 2001