DOI: 10.5061/dryad.sxksn039p
title: Data from: Tree diversity across multiple scales and environmental heterogeneity promote ecosystem multifunctionality in a large temperate forest region

description: Aim: Biodiversity across different scales provides multidimensional
 insurance for ecosystem functioning. Although the effects of biodiversity
 on ecosystem multifunctionality are well recorded in local communities,
 they remain poorly understood across scales (from local to larger spatial
 scales). This study evaluates how multiple attributes of biodiversity
 maintain ecosystem multifunctionality from local to regional scales,
 across diverse environmental gradients. Location: North-eastern China.
 Time period: 2017. Major taxa studied: Woody plants. Methods: We define
 multifunctionality using both averaged and modified multiple threshold
 approaches. Multiple dimensions of biodiversity across varying spatial
 scales were measured within the framework of Hill‒Chao numbers. Using
 variance decomposition, linear mixed models, and structural equation
 modeling, we explored how multiple attributes of tree diversity at varying
 spatial scales affect multifunctionality, and how these relationships are
 modulated by environmental drivers.Results: We found that both α- and
 β-diversity are critical for regional community multifunctionality, while
 the relationships between species, functional, and phylogenetic diversity
 and multifunctionality decoupled across spatial scales and thresholds of
 ecosystem functioning. Phylogenetic β-diversity and species α-diversity
 are respectively more important for promoting high and moderate threshold
 multifunctionality (e.g., EMFT90 and EMFT50) in regional communities.
 Environmental drivers typically have stronger effects than biodiversity on
 multifunctionality. Soil and climatic conditions had either direct effects
 on multifunctionality, or indirect ones mediated by species α-diversity.
 Environmental heterogeneity is important for high threshold
 multifunctionality, exerting directly and indirectly through phylogenetic
 β-diversity. Latitude not only directly influences multifunctionality but
 also modulates it through species α-diversity and phylogenetic
 β-diversity. Main conclusions: This study underscores the positive effects
 of biodiversity on multifunctionality across multiple dimensions. Based on
 our findings, we conclude that any design of a forested landscape that is
 aimed at maximizing multifunctionality should consider maintaining high
 local diversity as well as forest community heterogeneity at varying
 scales.
description: # Data from: Tree diversity across multiple scales and environmental
 heterogeneity promote ecosystem multifunctionality in a large temperate
 forest region
 [https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.sxksn039p](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.sxksn039p) contain a .xlsx file and a .Rmd file. 1\)region: the geographical locations of forest communities (one of the eight mountain areas) 2\)TD_alpha: species α-diversity; 3\)TD_beta: species β-diversity; 4\)FD_alpha: functional α-diversity; 5\)FD_beta: functional β-diversity; 6\)PD_alpha: phylogenetic α-diversity; 7\)PD_beta: phylogenetic β-diversity; 8\)longitude; 9\)latitude; 10\)env.het: environmental heterogeneity; 11\)rEMF: average multifunctionality index of regional forest community; 12\)rEMF_T0.5: 50% threshold level multifunctionality index of regional forest communities; 13\)rEMF_T0.7: 70% threshold level multifunctionality index of regional forest communities; 14\)rEMF_T0.9: 90% threshold level multifunctionality index of regional forest communities; 15\)climate1: the first principal component (PC1) of six climate variables (annual mean temperature, annual precipitation, precipitation of driest month, precipitation seasonality, precipitation of driest quarter); 16\)soil1: the first principal component (PC1) of four soil variables (soil sand content, cation exchange capacity at pH=7, soil clay content, soil silt content).