132 gopher tortoise nest sites and an equal number of control burrows were surveyed in longleaf pine habitat in southwestern Georgia from mid-May to mid-July 2022 and 2023. The dataset, created by Garrett Lawson, includes measurements of soil composition, canopy cover, and understory vegetation cover. It was last updated on 2026-05-12 and is shared under a CC0-1.0 license.
Use Cases
- Modeling nest-site selection probability based on canopy and understory cover measurements.
- Investigating the interaction between overstory and understory vegetation on habitat use.
- Comparing soil characteristics (e.g., percent clay) between nest and non-nest burrows.
- Informing habitat management strategies for gopher tortoise conservation in longleaf pine ecosystems.
Strengths
- Data collection is explicitly defined, covering 132 nest sites and an equal number of control burrows.
- Measurements include specific environmental variables: percent clay in soil, canopy cover, and understory vegetation cover.
- Analysis methods are described, using multiple logistic regression and model comparison with AICc.
Limitations
- Row count and specific column names are unknown, requiring inspection after download.
- The dataset is small at 20.3 KB, indicating limited scope and sample size.
- Geographic scope is limited to longleaf pine habitats in southwestern Georgia.
Provenance
- Source
- figshare
- Collection Method
- Field data collected via repeated searches at burrows, soil sampling, and vegetation cover measurements.
- Time Range
- mid-May to mid-July 2022 and 2023
- Freshness
- Last updated 2026-05-12 17:56:45; freshness should be verified.
- Geography
- Southwestern Georgia, USA (longleaf pine habitat)