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AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds.
Joseph A Tobias1,2, Catherine Sheard2,3, Alex L Pigot2,4
1Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Ascot, UK.
Ecology Letters
|February 24, 2022
Summary
The AVONET dataset provides comprehensive functional trait data for all bird species, enabling new insights into biodiversity. This resource aids evolutionary biology and ecology research by detailing traits and distributions.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary Biology
- Ecology
- Ecosystem Science
Background:
- Functional traits are crucial for understanding biodiversity, but species-level data completeness limits theoretical advances.
- Existing datasets often lack comprehensive trait information, hindering global change modeling.
Discussion:
- The AVONET dataset compiles extensive functional trait data for all extant bird species.
- It includes ecological variables, morphological traits, range size, and location information for over 11,000 species.
- Data are available as raw measurements and species averages, facilitating integration with other biodiversity databases.
Key Insights:
- AVONET offers the most detailed picture of continuous trait variation for any major organism group.
- It enables global-scale testing of hypotheses related to biodiversity patterns and processes.
- The dataset supports research into the evolutionary origins and functioning of biodiversity.
Outlook:
- AVONET provides a global template for future research in evolutionary biology and ecology.
- It will refine models of global change and enhance our understanding of biodiversity.
- Facilitates integration with global phylogenies, range maps, and citizen science data for broader applications.
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