DOI: 10.5061/dryad.832rg
title: Data from: Variation in population structure and dynamics of montane forest tree species in Ethiopia guide priorities for conservation and research

description: The greatest extent of Afromontane environments in the world is found in
 Ethiopia. These areas support exceptional biodiversity, but forest cover
 and ecological integrity have declined sharply in recent decades.
 Conservation and management efforts are hampered in part by an inadequate
 understanding of the basic ecology of major tree species. We investigated
 population structure and inferred population dynamics from size frequency
 distributions of 22 forest tree species encountered in montane forests of
 Ethiopia. We collected new empirical data from four sites in the Bale
 Mountains, where some of the country’s most extensive and least disturbed
 forests remain, and conducted a systematic review and analysis of all such
 studies that reported population structure for one or more of these
 species in Ethiopia. Thirteen widespread montane tree species showed a
 reverse-J size distribution, indicating a relatively stable population
 structure. Six other species had size-frequency distributions that
 indicate episodic recruitment and/or removal of certain size classes.
 Specific causes of these patterns are uncertain: they may involve timber
 harvesting, herbivory, fire, or natural disturbances, but patterns were
 inconsistent and locality dependent. For three other tree species,
 existing data are inadequate for any interpretation of population
 structure and dynamics. A species of particular conservation concern that
 emerged from this analysis was Hagenia abyssinica, which was found in all
 areas to consist only of larger individuals with no recent recruitment.
 For management and conservation purposes, the species in most urgent need
 of new research are those with inadequate or inconsistent data, and H.
 abyssinica..
description: YoungEtAl_VarPopStruMonTreeSppEthiopia_AllDataThis document is an excel file with four separate worksheets each representing one forest location (i.e., Adelle, Demaro, Odo bulu, and Rira). Each worksheet has the basal area factor prism value used to collect the data (20) as well as the number of prism plots collected at each specific location. Each record represents an individual tree. The columns in each worksheet include Date, Plot #, Subplot, tree #, and species. Date provides the date the data were collected, Plot# list the plot name of the tree measured. Subplot is one of the five subplots associated with each plot representing C (center), N(North), W (West), S(South), and E(East). Tree # lists tree number specific to each subplot. Species lists the species name as a two letter code representing the first two letters of the scientific name (include genus and species). Finally, dhb (cm) includes the diameter at breast height for each tree species in centimetersSystematic review of montane tree species in EthiopiaSystematic review of tree species found in the current study that were conducted in Ethiopia and presented population structure information. This information includes population structure classification, study site names, study site characteristics, and disturbance types for Bale Mountain montane tree species and related studies found across Ethiopia.SystematicReviewTreeSpecies_EthMontaneForestPopStructure_DRYAD.XLSX