DOI: 10.5061/dryad.4q1s881
title: Data from: Low-productivity boreal forests have high conservation value for lichens

description: 1. Land set aside for preservation of biodiversity often has low
 productivity. As biodiversity generally increases with productivity, due
 to higher or more diverse availability of resources, this implies that
 some of the biodiversity may be left unprotected. Due to a lack of
 knowledge on the species diversity and conservation value of
 low-productivity habitats, the consequences of the biased allocation of
 low-productivity land for set-asides are unknown. 2. We examined the
 conservation value of boreal low-productivity forests (potential tree
 growth &lt; 1 m3 ha-1 year-1) by comparing assemblages of tree- and
 deadwood-dwelling lichens and forest stand structure between productive
 and low-productivity forest stands. We surveyed 84 Scots pine-dominated
 stands in three regions in Sweden, each including four stand types: two
 productive (managed and unmanaged) and two low-productivity stands (on
 mires and on thin, rocky soils). 3. Lichen species richness was highest in
 low-productivity stands on thin soil, which had similar amounts and
 diversity of resources (living trees and dead wood) to productive
 unmanaged stands. Stands in low-productivity mires, which had low
 abundance of living trees and dead wood, hosted the lowest lichen
 richness. Lichen species composition differed among stand types, but none
 of them hosted unique species. The differences in both species richness
 and composition were more pronounced in northern than in southern Sweden,
 likely due to shorter history of intensive forestry. 4. Synthesis and
 applications: Boreal low-productivity forests can have as high
 conservation value as productive forests, which should be reflected in
 conservation strategies. However, their value is far from uniform, and
 conservation planning should acknowledge this variation and not treat all
 low-productivity forests as a uniform group. Some types of
 low-productivity forest (e.g. on thin soil) are more valuable than others
 (e.g. on mires), and should thus be prioritized in conservation. It is
 also important to consider the landscape context: low-productivity forests
 may have higher value in landscapes where high-productivity forests are
 highly influenced by forestry. Finally, although low-productivity forests
 can be valuable for some taxa, productive forests may still be important
 for other taxa.
description: Lichens on dead
 woodOccurrence of lichens on
 dead wood, given as presence-absence on the surveyed dead wood items. The
 studied stands are arranged in blocked design, with “blockID” referring to
 the number of the block and “standID” to the number of the stand within
 this block. In each stand, dead wood was surveyed in eight study plots.
 “plotID” refers to the number of the plot and “treeID” on the number of
 the dead wood item within the plot.data.deadwood.hamalainen.et.al.xlsxLichens on living treesOccurrence of lichens on living Scots pines, given as presence-absence on the surveyed trees. The studied stands are arranged in blocked design, with “blockID” referring to the number of the block and “standID” to the number of the stand within this block. In each stand, living trees were surveyed in five study plots. “plotID” refers to the number of the plot and “treeID” on the number of the dead wood item within the plot. One tree per study plot was cored to measure tree age and growth rate; these measures are given for the cored trees.data.living.trees.hamalainen.et.al.xlsx