A subset of data in the Plant presence and percent cover data product ( DP1.10058.001) did not process correctly through the data pipeline, and were missing from published data. This issue affects all sites and all time periods.
The protocol for plant presence and percent cover involves surveys of subplots within NEON plots. If a subplot is surveyed and found to contain no additional species, beyond those already found in another subplot within the same plot, a record is entered with data field additionalSpecies=N, and no additional data are recorded for that subplot. These are the records that were missing.
We estimate up to 2% of plots surveyed each year contain at least one subplot where no additional species were found. Also note that in 2018, the 10 and 100 meter subplots were only surveyed in half of the plots, and beginning in 2019 the 10 and 100 meter subplots are surveyed at each site every other year, so in these cases certain subplot records are not expected.
As of September 30, 2020, the missing records have been restored. Please use the data portal contact form for further inquiries; please select DP1.10058.001 in the Data Product dropdown list and include the term “INC0038517“ in the body of your request