DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.15046161
title: Dataset for leaf, flower and fruit phenology patterns and environmental relationships in a seasonal tropical forest in the Indian Eastern Himalaya with R codes for analyses

description:  

This dataset contains files and R code used in Datta et al. 2025 (https://doi.org/10.1111/btp.70030). The study looked at seasonal patterns of tree phenology for 716 trees belonging to 54 species, for which phenological data was collected as part of an ongoing long-term monitoring project. The dataset contains monthly tree phenology data for 54 tree species from Jan 2011 to February 2023 - on leafing, flowering and fruiting patterns. It also contains data on weather variables from a weather station - temperarture, solar irradiance (radiation) and rainfall. The geographical scope of the study was the lowland semi-evergreen and moist deciduous forests of Pakke Tiger Reserve, Arunachal Pradesh, India. 

Details on sampling methodology can be found in the publication referenced below: Datta, A., Banerjee, S., Naniwadekar, R., Thapa, K., Rathore, A., Thapa, K., Brah, T., Nabum, T., Mogar, N., Shukla, U., Sidhu, S. & Borawake, N. (2025). Patterns of leaf, flower, and fruit phenology and environmental relationships in a seasonal tropical forest in the Indian Eastern Himalaya. Biotropica 57(3), e70030. https://doi.org/10.1111/btp.70030

The dataset contains the following .csv files: 

1. 2011-2023_phenology_data_full.csv

This file contains the raw phenology data collected on a monthly basis between January 2011 and February 2023 in Pakke Tiger Reserve, Arunachal Pradesh. The metadata pertaining to the various columns is presented below: 

SrNo_overall: Serial number serving as the continuous index for each rowYear: Year in which phenology data was collectedMonth: The month in which phenology data was collected Sr.no: Index for phenology data for each month. Scientific.name: Binomial name for each species for which data was collectedFamily: Name of biological family to which species belongsDisp.mode: Seed dispersal mode category for each speciesFruit.type: Category to which fruits belonged for each species tree.no: Index for individual trees for each species Dead: Binary identifier for whether a particular tree was dead or not. 1:Dead, 0: Alive, NA: Tree not monitoredFlB: Binary identifier indicating whether flower buds were observed on a particular tree. 1: Flower buds observed, 0: Flower buds not observed, NA: Tree not monitored Fl: Binary identifier indicating whether mature flowers were observed on a particular tree. 1: Flower buds observed, 0: Flower buds not observed, NA: Tree not monitored Ufr: Binary identifier indicating whether unripe fruit were observed on a particular tree. 1: Unripe fruit observed, 0: Unripe fruit not observed, NA: Tree not monitoredUfr.score: Relative proportion of branches/trunk containing unripe fruit on a 0-4 scale. 0: Unripe fruit not observed, 1: approximately 0-25% of branches/trunk contain unripe fruit, 2: approximately 26-50% of branches/trunk contain unripe fruit, 3: approximately 51-75% of branches/trunk contain unripe fruit, 4: 76-100% of branches/trunk contain unripe fruitRfr: Binary identifier indicating whether ripe fruit were observed on a particular tree. 1: Ripe fruit observed, 0: Ripe fruit not observed, NA: Tree not monitoredRfr.score: Relative proportion of branches/trunk containing ripe fruit on a 0-4 scale. 0: Ripe fruit not observed, 1: approximately 0-25% of branches/trunk contain ripe fruit, 2: approximately 26-50% of branches/trunk contain ripe fruit, 3: approximately 51-75% of branches/trunk contain ripe fruit, 4: 76-100% of branches/trunk contain ripe fruitYsh: Binary identifier indicating whether young shoots/ flushed leaves were observed on a particular tree. 1: Young shoots observed, 0: Young shoots not observed, NA: Tree not monitoredLv: Binary identifier indicating whether mature leaves were observed on a particular tree. 1: Mature leaves observed, 0: Mature leaves not observed, NA: Tree not monitoredOlv: Binary identifier indicating whether old/senescent leaves were observed on a particular tree. 1: Senescent leaves observed, 0: Senescent leaves not observed, NA: Tree not monitored2. Weather_data_2011_2023_full.csvThis file contains weather data collected at the weather station set up in Seijosa, adjacent to Pakke Tiger Reserve, between April 2011 and July 2022. Data was typically logged on an hourly basis. The metadata pertaining to the various columns is presented below: 

 

SrNo.: Serial number serving as the continuous index for each rowDate: Date on which weather data was logged by the stationTime: Time at which weather data was logged by the stationSolar radiation: Solar irradiance recorded at the weather station in Watts/m2Temp: Air temperature recorded at the weather station in °CRain: Rainfall recorded at the weather station in millimeters. 

 

3. Weather_phenology_data_summary_2011_2022.csvThis file contains monthly summaries of principal climate and phenology variables, and was used for examining climate-phenology relationships using GAMLSS. The metadata for the various columns is presented below: 

SrNo.: Serial number serving as the continuous index for each rowYear: Year in which phenology data was collectedMonth: The month in which phenology data was collected mean_monthly_min: Mean minimum temperature for each month in °C mean_monthly_max: Mean maximum temperature for each month in °Ctotal_rain: Total monthly rainfall in millimetresmonthly_rainy_days: Proportion of days in each month in which rainfall occurredmean_monthly_solarRad: Mean of the daily maximum solar irradiance in Watts/m2Daylength: Mean monthly length of day in hourslog_solarRad: Log-transformed value of mean_monthly_solarRadtotrain_cm: Total monthly rainfall in centimetresn_ysh: Number of trees in leaf flush n_ysh_fail: Number of trees in which leaf flush was not observedn_trees_ysh: Number of trees monitored for leaf flush occurrenceprop_ysh: Proportion of trees in leaf flushn_flb: Number of trees in flower budn_flb_fail: Number of trees in which flower buds were not observedn_trees_flb: Number of trees monitored for flower bud occurrenceprop_ysh: Proportion of trees in flower budn_fl: Number of trees containing mature flowersn_fl_fail: Number of trees in which mature flowers were not observedn_trees_fl: Number of trees monitored for mature flower occurrenceprop_fl: Proportion of trees containing mature flowersn_rfr: Number of trees in ripe fruitn_rfr_fail: Number of trees in which ripe fruits were not observedn_trees_rfr: Number of trees monitored for ripe fruit occurrenceprop_rfr: Proportion of trees in ripe fruit

 

The dataset also contains 4 R scripts. Three of these files contain code used to obtain results pertaining to leaf flush, and can easily be adapted to obtain results for other phenophases as well. The script relating to Fourier analysis estimates the median flowering cycle length of Zanthoxylum rhetsa and can be adapted for other species.

  Brief descriptions of these files are as follows: i) LinePlots.R: Contains code used for creating data frames containing the proportion of species and trees in leaf flush, and for generating line plots highlighting how these variables changed over the course of the year.ii) CircStats.R: Contains code used for generating mean angle in degrees and radians for the monthly distribution of species in leaf flush for each year with complete phenology sampling data (i.e. 2012-14, 2016-19 and 2022). Also, contains the code used for applying the Hermans-Rasson test for uniformity. iii) Fourier_analysis_mediancycle.R: Estimates the median flowering cycle length of Zanthoxylum rhetsa, using time series data from 2011-2019. iv) GAMLSS.R: Contains code used for determining the proximate climatic cues of leaf flushing through the use of GAMLSS (Generalized Additive Modelling of Location, Scale and Shape).