DOI: 10.5061/dryad.5c4d6
title: Data from: Dynamic species co-occurrence networks require dynamic biodiversity surrogates

description: In conservation it is inevitable that surrogates be selected to represent
 the occurrence of hard–to–find species and find priority locations for
 management. However, species co–occurrence can vary over time. Here we
 demonstrate how temporal dynamics in species co–occurrence influence the
 ability of managers to choose the best surrogate species. We develop an
 efficient optimisation formulation that selects the optimal set of
 complementary surrogate species from any co–occurrence network. We apply
 it to two Australian datasets on successional bird responses to
 disturbances of revegetation and fire. We discover that a surprisingly
 small number of species are required to represent the majority of species
 co–occurrences at any one time. Because co–occurrence patterns are
 temporally dynamic, the optimal set of surrogates, and the number of
 surrogates required to achieve a desired surrogacy power, depend on
 sampling effort and the successional state of a system. Overlap in optimal
 sets of surrogates for representing 70% of co–occurring species ranges
 from zero to 57% depending on when the surrogacy decision is made.
 Surrogate sets representing early successional communities over–estimate
 the power of surrogacy decisions at later times. Our results show that in
 dynamic systems, optimal surrogates might be selected in different ways:
 (1) use short–term monitoring to choose a larger number of static
 less–informative surrogates; (2) use long–term monitoring to choose a
 smaller number of static high–power surrogates that may poorly represent
 early successional co–occurrence; (3) develop adaptive surrogate selection
 frameworks with high short–term and long–term surrogacy power that update
 surrogate sets and capture temporal dynamics in species co–occurrence. Our
 results suggest vigilance is needed when selecting surrogates for other
 co–occurring species in dynamic landscapes, as selected surrogates from
 one time may have reduced effectiveness at a different time. Ultimately,
 decisions that fail to acknowledge dynamic species co–occurrence will lead
 to uninformative or redundant surrogates.
description: Species_listsThis file contains the lists of bird species detected over 11 years of long-term repeated scientific monitoring in each of 2 Australian co-occurrence case studies: the South West Slopes (habitat restoration in Box Gum Grassy Woodland) and Booderee National Park heathland recovering after fire.Booderee_heath_birdsurveysPA_2003to2013This file contains the results of long-term repeated scientific monitoring of birds in Booderee National Park heathland (New South Wales, Australia) recovering after fire, by the Australian National University, between 2003 and 2013.Booderee_heath_birdsurveysPA_2003to3013.xlsxSWslopes_plantings_birdsurveysPA_2002to2013This file contains the results of long-term repeated scientific monitoring of birds in the South West Slopes (habitat restoration in Box Gum Grassy Woodland) by the Australian National University, between 2003 and 2013.Booderee National Park Matrices zip fileThis zip file contains 8 species co-occurrence matrices for the Booderee National Park heathland case studyBNP_Matrices.zipSouthwest Slopes Matrices zip fileThis zip file contains 10 species co-occurrence matrices for the Southwest Slopes restoration case studySWS_Matrices.zip