DOI: 10.5061/dryad.30jh437
title: Data from: The potential importance of unburned islands as refugia for the persistence of wildlife species in fire-prone ecosystems

description: The persistence of wildlife species in fire-prone ecosystems is under
 increasing pressure from global change, including alterations in fire
 regimes caused by climate change. However, unburned islands might act to
 mitigate negative effects of fire on wildlife populations by providing
 habitat in which species can survive and recolonize burned areas.
 Nevertheless, the characteristics of unburned islands and their role as
 potential refugia for the post-fire population dynamics of wildlife
 species remain poorly understood. We used a newly developed unburned
 island database of the north-western United States from 1984–2014 to
 assess the post-fire response of the greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus
 urophasianus), a large gallinaceous bird inhabiting the sagebrush
 ecosystems of North America, in which wildfires are common. Specifically,
 we tested whether pre- and post-fire male attendance trends at mating
 locations (leks) differed between burned and unburned areas, and to what
 extent post-fire habitat composition at multiple scales could explain such
 trends. Using time-series of male counts at leks together with
 spatially-explicit fire history information, we modelled whether male
 attendance was negatively affected by fire events. Results revealed that
 burned leks often exhibit sustained decline in male attendance, whereas
 leks within unburned islands or &gt;1.5 km away from fire perimeters
 tend to show stable or increasing trends. Analyses of post-fire habitat
 composition further revealed that sagebrush vegetation height within 0.8
 km around leks, as well elevation within 0.8km, 6.4km, and 18 km around
 leks, had a positive effect on male attendance trends. Moreover, the
 proportion of the landscape with cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) cover
 &gt;8% had negative effects on male attendance trends within 0.8 km,
 6.4 km, and 18 km of leks, respectively. Our results indicate that
 maintaining areas of unburned vegetation within and outside fire
 perimeters may be crucial for sustaining sage-grouse populations following
 wildfire, and requires more attention in wildlife management.
description: Data tables Dryad
 potential important unburned islands paper16-06-2019. Written by
 Jasper Steenvoorden, University of Amsterdam. Metadata for the supporting
 data for the article "The potential importance of unburned islands as
 refugia for the persistence of wildlife species in fire-prone
 ecosystems", submitted to Ecology & Evolution. WinRAR file
 contains four files, three for habitat data, one for lek count data. See
 details of content below. FILE: Lek_Counts_Data.csv. This .csv (comma
 delimited) file contains information on the observed male attendance on
 all analysed leks ("Lek_Number", total of 39) between 1984 to
 2017. Additional columns include 1) "Fire_year", which indicates
 the year in which the specific lek or area around the lek was burned, and
 2) "Fire_category", which represents the category (fire
 perimeter, unburned island, small buffer and large buffer) the lek was
 located in, based on spatial location in or around a fire. "NA"
 indicates no count was performed at that lek during a specific year. FILE:
 Habitat_Covariate_Data_0p8km_Scale.csv. This .csv (comma delimited) file
 contains information on the habitat covariate values at 0.8km scale around
 leks that were retrieved for the analysis on the effect of post-fire
 habitat composition on post-fire male attendance trends. Unburned area
 around each lek is added as a variable but was not used as a predictor
 variable due to high multicollinearity with vegetation height. Columns in
 this file are: "Slope_After_Fire" - percentage growth/decline of
 male attendance per year after lek or area around lek was burned.
 "Unburned_Area" - percentage unburned area around lek after lek
 or area around lek was burned. "Vegetation_Height_Value" -
 average vegetation height around lek after lek or area around lek was
 burned. "Elevation" - mean elevation of the area around a
 specific lek at 0.8km scale around lek. "Cheatgrass_Cover_Value"
 - percentage area around lek with unsuitable cheatgrass cover (&gt;8%
 cover per pixel). FILE: Habitat_Covariate_Data_6p4km_Scale.csv. This .csv
 (comma delimited) file contains information on the habitat covariate
 values at 6.4km scale around leks that were retrieved for the analysis on
 the effect of post-fire habitat composition on post-fire male attendance
 trends. Unburned area around each lek is added as a variable but was not
 used as a predictor variable due to high multicollinearity with vegetation
 height. Columns in this file are: "Slope_After_Fire" -
 percentage growth/decline of male attendance per year after lek or area
 around lek was burned. "Unburned_Area" - percentage unburned
 area around lek after lek or area around lek was burned.
 "Vegetation_Height_Value" - average vegetation height around lek
 after lek or area around lek was burned. "Elevation" - mean
 elevation of the area around a specific lek at 6.4km scale around lek.
 "Cheatgrass_Cover_Value" - percentage area around lek with
 unsuitable cheatgrass cover (&gt;8% cover per pixel). FILE:
 Habitat_Covariate_Data_18km_Scale.csv. This .csv (comma delimited) file
 contains information on the habitat covariate values at 18km scale around
 leks that were retrieved for the analysis on the effect of post-fire
 habitat composition on post-fire male attendance trends. Unburned area
 around each lek is added as a variable but was not used as a predictor
 variable due to high multicollinearity with vegetation height. Columns in
 this file are: "Slope_After_Fire" - percentage growth/decline of
 male attendance per year after lek or area around lek was burned.
 "Unburned_Area" - percentage unburned area around lek after lek
 or area around lek was burned. "Vegetation_Height_Value" -
 average vegetation height around lek after lek or area around lek was
 burned. "Elevation" - mean elevation of the area around a
 specific lek at 18km scale around lek. "Cheatgrass_Cover_Value"
 - percentage area around lek with unsuitable cheatgrass cover (&gt;8%
 cover per pixel).Data Tables Dryad Potential
 Important Unburned Islands Paper.rar