DOI: 10.71615/bexis.32232
title: Processed arthropod data from 150 grassland plots, 2008-2018 used in "Arthropod species loss underpins biomass declines", Nature Ecology Evolution

description: Building on BExIS dataset 32231, the components of community (dis-)assembly for arthropod samples from grasslands in three German regions (Schwäbische Alb, Hainich-Dün, Schorfheide-Chorin) in the years 2008-2018 were calculated using the Price equation: biomass change associated with species richness loss/gain, species identity loss/gain, abundance change of persisting species. With these components, we disentangled whether biomass declines are associated with species loss per se, or with changes in community composition (species identity and abundance change).
description: Important Notes: Using this dataset, the temporal change of Price components within plots was modelled (R code provided at https://github.com/BWildermuth/Model_every_species_counts, specifically Wildermuth2025_Cleaned_code_Explos_final.R). | Study design: From dataset 21969: Sweep-net transects per plot, 150 m, comprising 3 of the 50 m long plot borders; 60 double sweeps in total per plot and month. One repetition in June and one in August. | Sampling design: From dataset 21969: All arthropods of the herb layer were sampled twice per year in June and August to represent different phenological windows within the peak season of adult arthropod activity. Based on monthly samplings at the beginning of the study, we identified these two months to represent the best trade-off between reducing sampling effort and covering most species. Sweep netting was only conducted on days without rain, low wind speed and after morning dew had dried. | Data preparation: LUI values based on the combined intensities of mowing, fertilization and grazing (Blüthgen et al. 2012) per plot per year were assigned using the LUI calculator (Ostrowski et al. 2019, Vogt et al. 2019), with LUI values based on the sampling year and the two years before the sampling date.&lt;br&gt;Price components of biomass change were calculated in pairwise comparisons. Find the R code for the calculation of Price components and subsequent analyses at https://github.com/BWildermuth/Model_every_species_counts, specifically Wildermuth2025_Cleaned_code_Explos_final.R | Literature references: Blüthgen, N., Dormann, C. F., Prati, D., Klaus, V. H., Kleinebecker, T., Hölzel, N., Alt, F., Boch, S., Gockel, S., Hemp, A., Müller, J., Nieschulze, J., Renner, S. C., Schöning, I., Schumacher, U., Socher, S. A., Wells, K., Birkhofer, K., Buscot, F., … Weisser, W. W. (2012). A quantitative index of land-use intensity in grasslands: Integrating mowing, grazing and fertilization. Basic and Applied Ecology, 13(3), 207–220. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.baae.2012.04.001&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Ostrowski, A., Lorenzen, K., Petzold, E., & Schindler, S. (2020). Land use intensity index (LUI) calculation tool of the Biodiversity Exploratories project for grassland survey data from three different regions in Germany since 2006, BEXIS 2 module (Version v2.0.0) [Computer software]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3865579&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Vogt, J., Klaus, V. H., Both, S., Fürstenau, C., Gockel, S., Gossner, M. M., Heinze, J., Hemp, A., Hölzel, N., Jung, K., Kleinebecker, T., Lauterbach, R., Lorenzen, K., Ostrowski, A., Otto, N., Prati, D., Renner, S., Schumacher, U., Seibold, S., … Weisser, W. W. (2019). Eleven years’ data of grassland management in Germany. Biodiversity Data Journal, 7, e36387. https://doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.7.e36387&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Wildermuth, B., Bröcher, M., Ladouceur, E., Meyer, S.T., Schielzeth, H., Staab, M., Achury, R., Blüthgen, N., Hertzog, L., Hines, J., Roscher, C., Schweiger, O., Weisser, W.W., Ebeling, A. (2025) Arthropod species loss underpins biomass declines. Nature Ecology & Evolution 10, 83-94. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-025-02909-y