NPP Grassland: Canas, Costa Rica Biomass and Climate Data

Cañas, Costa Rica, is the location for this dataset on above-ground biomass and productivity in a derived savanna. It contains two ASCII text files providing monthly biomass, productivity, and bioelement concentration data from July 1969 to June 1970, alongside climate data from 1951-1960, 1963, and 1969-1970. The site, deforested in 1947, is dominated by the introduced grass Hyparrhenia rufa and is subject to annual burning and light grazing.

Use Cases

• Modeling carbon stocks based on reported above-ground net primary productivity (ANPP) estimates of 968 and 1,387 g/m2/year.
• Analyzing climate-vegetation interactions using the provided multi-decadal climate data from the La Pacifica weather station.
• Studying the ecological impact of introduced species using data from the site dominated by Hyparrhenia rufa.
• Assessing land-use change effects by comparing productivity data from a site converted from forest to savanna 22.5 years prior.

Strengths

• Provides specific, peer-reviewed productivity figures, including ANPP estimates of 968 and 1,387 g/m2/year.
• Contains long-term climate data spanning three distinct periods from 1951 to 1970.
• Features detailed site history, including deforestation date (January 1947) and dominant species (Hyparrhenia rufa).

Limitations

• Column names and exact data structure are unknown, limiting immediate analysis.
• Conflicting metadata exists for 'last updated' date (1970 vs. 2026), creating provenance uncertainty.
• Data is limited to a single site and a primary study period of one year (1969-1970).

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Monthly harvest procedures within an exclosure to restrict grazing.

Time Range

1951-1970

Freshness

2026-04-09 23:38:25.457253

Geography

Cañas, Costa Rica (10.4 N, 85.1 W, Elevation 45 m)