Windmill Islands bryophyte communities surveyed 2000-2013 (13 years)

Here we show that vegetation in the Windmill Islands, East Antarctica is changing rapidly in response to a drying climate. This drying trend is evident across the region, demonstrated by changes in isotopic signatures measured along moss shoots, moss community composition and declining health.

FILE: AAS_4046_NCC_Robinson.xlsx This excel file provides a summary of bryophyte community data collected between 2000 and 2013. This dataset contains moss species composition, moss health, and moisture availability data for bryophyte-dominated communities in the Windmill Islands. Data was used to prepare figures in a manuscript for Nature Climate Change, including supplementary figures. 8 worksheets: 1. "Vocabulary" - provides a detailed description of methods, terms and abbreviations. 2. "Quadrat" - provides a schematic of the quadrats used in this study, providing details of the size used for photos (25 x 25 cm), sample collection (20 x 20 cm) and grid interval details. 3. "Fig2" - contains species composition data at two sites in the Windmill Islands (ASPA 135 and Robinson Ridge). 4. "Fig3" - contains moss health cover data at two sites in the Windmill Islands (ASPA 135 and Robinson Ridge). 5. "Fig4" - contains moisture availability trend data by species at six sites in the Windmill Islands (see "FigS1" sheet for map). 6. "FigS1" - contains a map of sampling locations within the Windmill Islands, East Antarctica. 7. "FigS2" - contains modelled ages for moss segments represented in "Fig4". 8. "CWC" - contains spot measures of community water content taken at the time of sampling.