The FLUXNET2015 dataset provides ecosystem-scale data on CO 2 , water, and energy exchange between the biosphere and the atmosphere, and other meteorological and biological measurements, from 212 sites around the globe (over 1500 site-years, up to and including year 2014). These sites, independently managed and operated, voluntarily contributed their data to create global datasets. Data were quality controlled and processed using uniform methods, to improve consistency and intercomparability across sites. The dataset is already being used in a number of applications, including ecophysiology studies, remote sensing studies, and development of ecosystem and Earth system models. FLUXNET2015 includes derived-data products, such as gap-filled time series, ecosystem respiration and photosynthetic uptake estimates, estimation of uncertainties, and metadata about the measurements, presented for the first time in this paper. In addition, 206 of these sites are for the first time distributed under a Creative Commons (CC-BY 4.0) license. This paper details this enhanced dataset and the processing methods, now made available as open-source codes, making the dataset more accessible, transparent, and reproducible.

The management of landscapes for biological conservation and ecologically sustainable natural resource use are crucial global issues. Research for over two decades has resulted in a large literature, yet there is little consensus on the applicability or even the existence of general principles or broad considerations that could guide landscape conservation. We assess six major themes in the ecology and conservation of landscapes. We identify 13 important issues that need to be considered in developing approaches to landscape conservation. They include recognizing the importance of landscape mosaics (including the integration of terrestrial and aquatic areas), recognizing interactions between vegetation cover and vegetation configuration, using an appropriate landscape conceptual model, maintaining the capacity to recover from disturbance and managing landscapes in an adaptive framework. These considerations are influenced by landscape context, species assemblages and management goals and do not translate directly into on-the-ground management guidelines but they should be recognized by researchers and resource managers when developing guidelines for specific cases. Two crucial overarching issues are: (i) a clearly articulated vision for landscape conservation and (ii) quantifiable objectives that offer unambiguous signposts for measuring progress.

Abstract•

Effective conservation and habitat restoration strategies in human‐dominated landscapes must be based on an understanding of the ways that habitat loss and fragmentation affect native species. We studied avian foraging behavior and patterns of occurrence in the highly fragmented agricultural landscape of the Kellerberrin district of Western Australia to better understand the factors underlying species declines and losses. We conducted three surveys of 30 wandoo woodland patches that ranged in size from 1.3 to 101.3 ha. Some patches were part of larger remnants of native vegetation, ranging in size from 3.5 to 1204.8 ha and including other habitat types. We examined the extent to which patterns of species richness, the occurrence and composition of foraging guilds, and the occurrence of individual species varied with features of woodland patches, remnants, and the surrounding landscape. Using multiple regression analyses, the best model for species richness included terms for the log of remnant area, the patch diversity of each remnant, and woodland patch condition. We delineated eight foraging guilds based on similarities in the substrate/method dimension and also using multidimensional scaling analyses. The best model for the number of foraging guilds present in a patch included a single variable representing shrub density. Analyses of nestedness based on guilds and on individual species were both significant; and for the latter, 11 of 13 species made a significant contribution to the overall pattern. We derived separate models for the occurrence of each of eight species and one guild using multiple logistic regression. Significant models included, either separately or in combination, the following variables: the log of remnant area, patch area, the total area of woodland in a remnant, and the distance to other woodland patches. For four species that had sufficient records to examine shifts in foraging behavior, we observed significant differences in both foraging methods and substrates with changes in remnant size and/or the presence of other species or guilds. Our analyses indicated that remnant area was the best single variable for measures of community structure, in part because it was strongly correlated with other variables, such as total woodland area, patch area, remnant patch diversity, number of corridor connections, and measures of isolation. For foraging guilds and for individual species, variables other than remnant area assumed greater importance. The strong patterns of nestedness for foraging guilds by remnant area may reflect the diminished availability of certain prey items in small, degraded remnants. This notion is reinforced by the relatively high species and guild richness recorded in small patches that were either fenced from grazing or embedded in large remnants. The nested pattern of species within some foraging guilds, however, indicates the importance of additional aspects of their ecology. A focus on richness alone may mask the unique responses of bird species to fragmentation and may d...

The ratio of leaf intercellular to ambient CO 2 (v) is modulated by stomatal conductance (g s ). These quantities link carbon (C) assimilation with transpiration, and along with photosynthetic capacities (V cmax and J max ) are required to model terrestrial C uptake. We use optimization criteria based on the growth environment to generate predicted values of photosynthetic and water-use efficiency traits and test these against a unique dataset.Leaf gas-exchange parameters and carbon isotope discrimination were analysed in relation to local climate across a continental network of study sites. Sun-exposed leaves of 50 species at seven sites were measured in contrasting seasons.Values of v predicted from growth temperature and vapour pressure deficit were closely correlated to ratios derived from C isotope (d 13 C) measurements. Correlations were stronger in the growing season. Predicted values of photosynthetic traits, including carboxylation capacity (V cmax ), derived from d 13 C, growth temperature and solar radiation, showed meaningful agreement with inferred values derived from gas-exchange measurements. Betweensite differences in water-use efficiency were, however, only weakly linked to the plant's growth environment and did not show seasonal variation.These results support the general hypothesis that many key parameters required by Earth system models are adaptive and predictable from plants' growth environments.