title: Two centuries of masting data for European beech and Norway spruce across the European continent.
abstract: Tree masting is one of the most intensively studied ecological processes. It affects nutrient fluxes of trees, regeneration dynamics in forests, animal population densities, and ultimately influences ecosystem services. Despite a large volume of research focused on masting, its evolutionary ecology, spatial and temporal variability, and environmental drivers are still matter of debate. Understanding the proximate and ultimate causes of masting at broad spatial and temporal scales will enable us to predict tree reproductive strategies and their response to changing environment. Here we provide broad spatial (distribution range-wide) and temporal (century) masting data for the two main masting tree species in Europe, European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) and Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) H. Karst.). We collected masting data from a total of 359 sources through an extensive literature review and from unpublished surveys. The data set has a total of 1,747 series and 18,348 yearly observations from 28 countries and covering a time span of years 1677-2016 and 1791-2016 for beech and spruce, respectively. For each record, the following information is available: identification code; species; year of observation; proxy of masting (flower, pollen, fruit, seed, dendrochronological reconstructions); statistical data type (ordinal, continuous); data value; unit of measurement (only in case of continuous data); geographical location (country, Nomenclature of Units for Territorial Statistics NUTS-1 level, municipality, coordinates); first and last record year and related length; type of data source (field survey, peer reviewed scientific literature, gray literature, personal observation); source identification code; date when data were added to the database; comments. To provide a ready-to-use masting index we harmonized ordinal data into five classes. Furthermore, we computed an additional field where continuous series with length >4 yr where converted into a five classes ordinal index. To our knowledge, this is the most comprehensive published database on species-specific masting behavior. It is useful to study spatial and temporal patterns of masting and its proximate and ultimate causes, to refine studies based on tree-ring chronologies, to understand dynamics of animal species and pests vectored by these animals affecting human health, and it may serve as calibration-validation data for dynamic forest models.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Agraria, University of Naples Federico II, via Università 100, 80055, Portici, Napoli, Italy.
authors.forename: Davide
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ascoli
authors.affiliation: Institute for Landscape Planning and Ecology, University of Stuttgart, Keplerstrasse 11, 70174, Stuttgart, Germany.|Insubric Research Group, Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL, a Ramèl 18, 6593, Cadenazzo, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Janet
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Maringer
authors.affiliation: Fitzwilliam College, Storeys Way, Cambridge, United Kingdom.|St Catherine's College, Manor Road, Oxford, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Andy
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hacket-Pain
authors.affiliation: Insubric Research Group, Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL, a Ramèl 18, 6593, Cadenazzo, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Conedera
authors.affiliation: Southern Swedish Forest Research Centre, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, P.O. Box 49, 230 53, Alnarp, Sweden.|Chaire Industrielle CRSNG-UQAT-UQAM en Aménagement Forestier Durable, Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT), 445 boulevard de l'Université, Rouyn-Noranda, Québec, J9X 5E4, Canada.
authors.forename: Igor
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Drobyshev
authors.affiliation: Department of Agriculture, Forest and Food Sciences, University of Turin, Largo Braccini 2, 10095, Grugliasco, Italy.
authors.forename: Renzo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Motta
authors.affiliation: Department of Agriculture, Forest and Food Sciences, University of Turin, Largo Braccini 2, 10095, Grugliasco, Italy.
authors.forename: Mara
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cirolli
authors.affiliation: Department of Silviculture and Genetics of Forest Trees, Forest Research Institute, Sekocin Stary, Poland.
authors.forename: Władysław
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Kantorowicz
authors.affiliation: TUM School of Life Sciences Weihenstephan, Technische Universität München, Freising, Germany.
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Zang
authors.affiliation: Department of Forest Genetics, Federal Research and Training Centre for Forests, Natural Hazards and Landscapes (BFW), Seckendorff-Gudent-Weg 8, 1131, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Silvio
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Schueler
authors.affiliation: Département Recherche-Développement-Innovation, RENECOFOR, Office National des Forêts, Boulevard de Constance, 77300, Fontainebleau, France.
authors.forename: Luc
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Croisé
authors.affiliation: University of Firenze, Italy.
authors.forename: Pietro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Piussi
authors.affiliation: Department of Agriculture, Forest and Food Sciences, University of Turin, Largo Braccini 2, 10095, Grugliasco, Italy.
authors.forename: Roberta
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Berretti
authors.affiliation: Forestry Faculty, Applied Ecology Lab, Stefan cel Mare University of Suceava, Universitatii Street 13, Suceava, 720229, Romania.
authors.forename: Ciprian
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2496-2135
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Palaghianu
authors.affiliation: Slovenian Forestry Institute, Ljubljana, Slovenija.
authors.forename: Marjana
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Westergren
authors.affiliation: Division of Geography and Environmental Management, Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Jonathan G A
authors.initials: JGA
authors.lastname: Lageard
authors.affiliation: Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL, Disturbance Ecology, Züricherstrasse 111, 8903, Birmensdorf, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Anton
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Burkart
authors.affiliation: Federal Department of Home Affairs FDHA, Federal Office of Meteorology and Climatology MeteoSwiss, Zurich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Regula
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Gehrig Bichsel
authors.affiliation: School of Life Sciences, Keele University, Newcastle under Lyme, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Peter A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Thomas
authors.affiliation: Nationalparkverwaltung Bayerischer Wald, Sachgebiet Naturschutz und Forschung, Freyunger Strasse 2, D-94481, Grafenau, Germany.
authors.forename: Burkhard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Beudert
authors.affiliation: Southern Swedish Forest Research Centre, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, P.O. Box 49, 230 53, Alnarp, Sweden.
authors.forename: Rolf
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Övergaard
authors.affiliation: Department of Agriculture, Forest and Food Sciences, University of Turin, Largo Braccini 2, 10095, Grugliasco, Italy.
authors.forename: Giorgio
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Vacchiano
mesh_terms: D005060:Europe; D029964:Fagus / Q000502:physiology*; D065928:Forests; D009664:Norway; D028222:Picea / Q000502:physiology*; D014197:Trees
keywords: fructification; mast fruiting; mast seeding; pollen; reproduction; synchrony; tree regeneration