This data set includes data files and R markdown code to reconstruct the analyses in https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adu0703. The analyses evaluated carbon and nitrogen dynamics in naturally grazed and fenced treatments that prohibited bison grazing in Yellowstone National Park.

We used a repeated measures design to assess carbon and nitrogen dynamics across the migratory landscape. The design included two between-subject factors: habitat type (habitat) and grazing treatment (treatment); and one within-subject factor, the month of the growing season (month). We categorized habitats into three types: dry, lawn-forming, and high elevation. Lawn-forming habitats occurred in valley bottoms. Dry habitats occurred on adjacent hillsides and high elevation habitats occurred in topographically wet higher elevation areas. We monitored eight dry habitats, four lawn-forming habitats, and four high elevation habitats. The grazed treatment reflected natural herbivory by bison and other herbivores. We defined “month” as the number of 30-day intervals since snowmelt at each site, which approximated plant phenology, to compare response variables across habitats over similar stages of seasonal plant development. Our response variables were aboveground production, consumption, aboveground plant carbon and nitrogen pools, aboveground plant nutrient percentages, soil carbon and nitrogen pools, soil moisture, soil microbial C mass, ammonia oxidizing bacteria abundance, and soil inorganic N availability. We monitored 16 sites from 2015 to 2021, with each site representing a single habitat level. Sites were approximately 1 ha each. Within each site, grazed and ungrazed treatments were paired, resulting in two samples per site. Each site-treatment combination served as a sample unit, and three to six subsamples were collected and averaged. Sites were selected using stratified sampling informed by GPS collar data to identify bison use hotspots along the migration route. Plots were randomly placed within site boundaries each year. See the main paper and supplement for detailed description of methods.

Description of the data and file structure

The files reconstruct the analyses presented in https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adu0703. The data files are named based on the table or figure that they reproduce. Files are ordered below in their occurrence in the r Markdown file.

The majority of analyses and data files are based on monitoring of 16 sites. Not all sites were not monitored for each variable each year or month. 

Data_Fig2C.csv

Description: Net aboveground production g m^-2 yr^-1 measured in sites across habitats for grazed and ungrazed treatments

Table Headings:

1. id: unique identifier for repeated measures ANOVA 
2. site: study site
3. year: growing season year data were collected
4. treatment: treatment type - grazed or ungrazed (fenced exclosure)
5. nap: net aboveground production g m^-2 yr^-1
6. habitat: habitat type - dry, lawn-forming or high elevation

Data_Fig2D.csv

Description: Plant aboveground carbon: nitrogen ratio measured in sites within lawn-forming habitats

Table Headings:

1. site: study site - note there are multiple subsamples for each site and year
2. year: growing season year data were collected
3. treatment: treatment type - grazed or ungrazed (fenced exclosure)
4. julian: julian day plant sample was collected^ ^
5. ratio: carbon:nitrogen ratio of plant tissue

Data_Fig4A.csv

Description: Soil carbon Mg Carbon Ha^-1 measured in sites during the 1990s and 2010s

Table Headings:

1. location: study site 
2. habitat: habitat type - dry or wet, wet included high elevation and lawn-forming habitats in other analyses
3. soil class: USAD soil classification
4. MgC_Ha: soil carbon Mg Carbon Ha^-1 
5. period: historic for data collected during 1990s and present for data collected during 2010s 

Data_Fig4B.csv

Description: Net aboveground production g m^-2 yr^-1 measured in sites during the 1980-90s and 2010s

Table Headings:

1. site: study site 
2. year: year of study
3. nap: net aboveground production g m^-2 yr^-1
4. habitat: habitat type - dry or wet, wet included high elevation and lawn-forming habitats in other analyses
5. period: historic for data collected during 1980s-90s and present for data collected during 2010s and later

Data_FigS1.csv

Description: Relative abundance of elk, bison, pronghorn and deer using study sites measured by remote cameras

Table Headings:

1. habitat: habitat type - dry, lawn-forming or high elevation
2. species: indicator for elk, bison, pronghorn and deer
3. value: relative use identified by numbers of animals captured by photography

Data_TableS3.csv

Description: Summary by site across years of net consumption g m^-2 season^-1 and bison density estimated from gps data

Table Headings:

1. habitat: habitat type - dry, lawn-forming or high elevation
2. netcons: net consumption g m^-2 season^-1 
3. density: bison density bison km^-2 season^-1

Data_TableS4.csv

Description: Net consumption g m^-2 season^-1 measured in sites across habitats

Table Headings:

1. site: study site 
2. year: growing season year data were collected
3. habitat: habitat type - dry, lawn-forming or high elevation
4. nc: Net consumption g m^-2 season^-1

Data_TableS5.csv

Description: Daily consumption rate g m^-2 d^-1 measured in sites across habitats for 30-d intervals of the growing season

Table Headings:

1. id: unique identifier for repeated measures ANOVA 
2. month: we defined “month” as the number of 30-day intervals since snowmelt at each site, which approximated plant phenology
3. habitat: habitat type - dry, lawn-forming or high elevation
4. cr: daily consumption rate g m^-2 d^-1

Data_TableS6.csv

Description: Net consumption g m^-2 season^-1 and net aboveground production g m^-2 yr^-1 measured in sites across habitats for grazed and ungrazed treatments

Table Headings:

1. treatment: The grazed treatment reflected natural herbivory by bison and other herbivores and ungrazed reflected no grazing by large herbivores
2. site: study site
3. year: growing season year data were collected
4. nap: net aboveground production g m^-2 yr^-1
5. nc: Net consumption g m^-2 season^-1
6. habitat: 1(=dry), 2 (=lawn-forming), 3 (=high elevation) indicator variable used in plotting
7. habitatdesc: habitat - dry, lawn-forming or high elevation

Data_TableS7.csv

Description: Plant aboveground carbon pool size g m^-2 measured in sites across habitats and in grazed and ungrazed treatments during 30-d intervals of the growing season

Table Headings:

1. id: unique identifier for repeated measures ANOVA 
2. habitat: habitat type - dry, lawn-forming or high elevation
3. month: we defined “month” as the number of 30-day intervals since snowmelt at each site, which approximated plant phenology
4. treatment: The grazed treatment reflected natural herbivory by bison and other herbivores and ungrazed reflected no grazing by large herbivores
5. meanC_gm2: Plant aboveground carbon pool size g m^-2

Data_TableS8.csv

Description: Plant aboveground nitrogen pool size g m^-2 measured in sites across habitats and in grazed and ungrazed treatments during 30-d intervals of the growing season

Table Headings:

1. id: unique identifier for repeated measures ANOVA 
2. habitat: habitat type - dry, lawn-forming or high elevation
3. month: we defined “month” as the number of 30-day intervals since snowmelt at each site, which approximated plant phenology
4. treatment: The grazed treatment reflected natural herbivory by bison and other herbivores and ungrazed reflected no grazing by large herbivores
5. meanN_gm2: Plant aboveground nitrogen pool size g m^-2

Data_TableS9.csv

Description: Daily aboveground growth rate g m^-2 d^-1 measured in sites across habitats and in grazed and ungrazed treatments for 30-d intervals of the growing season

Table Headings:

1. id: unique identifier for repeated measures ANOVA 
2. month: we defined “month” as the number of 30-day intervals since snowmelt at each site, which approximated plant phenology
3. habitat: habitat type - dry, lawn-forming or high elevation
4. gr: daily growth rate g m^-2 d^-1
5. treatment: The grazed treatment reflected natural herbivory by bison and other herbivores and ungrazed reflected no grazing by large herbivores

Data_TableS10.csv

Description: Soil percent moisture measured in sites across habitats and in grazed and ungrazed treatments during 30-d intervals of the growing season

Table Headings:

1. id: unique identifier for repeated measures ANOVA 
2. habitat: habitat type - dry, lawn-forming or high elevation
3. month: we defined “month” as the number of 30-day intervals since snowmelt at each site, which approximated plant phenology
4. treatment: The grazed treatment reflected natural herbivory by bison and other herbivores and ungrazed reflected no grazing by large herbivores
5. meansoilM: percent soil moisture

Data_TableS11.csv

Description: Aboveground plant carbon: nitrogen ratio measured in sites across habitats and in grazed and ungrazed treatments during 30-d intervals of the growing season

Table Headings:

1. id: unique identifier for repeated measures ANOVA
2. month: we defined “month” as the number of 30-day intervals since snowmelt at each site, which approximated plant phenology
3. habitat: habitat type - dry, lawn-forming or high elevation
4. meanCN: carbon: nitrogen ratio
5. treatment: The grazed treatment reflected natural herbivory by bison and other herbivores and ungrazed reflected no grazing by large herbivores

Data_TableS12.csv

Description: 30 d microbial mass measured in sites across habitats and in grazed and ungrazed treatments near peak of the growing season

Table Headings:

1. id: study site
2. meanmicmass: 30 d microbial mass mg microbial C kg^-1 soil
3. treatment: The grazed treatment reflected natural herbivory by bison and other herbivores and ungrazed reflected no grazing by large herbivores
4. habitat: habitat type - dry, lawn-forming or high elevation

Data_TableS13.csv

Description: Abundance of ammonia oxidizing bacteria measured in sites across habitats and in grazed and ungrazed treatments near peak of the growing season

Table Headings:

1. id: study site 
2. month: we defined “month” as the number of 30-day intervals since snowmelt at each site, which approximated plant phenology
3. habitat: habitat type - dry, lawn-forming or high elevation
4. treatment: The grazed treatment reflected natural herbivory by bison and other herbivores and ungrazed reflected no grazing by large herbivores
5. AOB: Abundance was measured as the number of gene copies per gram of soil on the log scale of the ammonia monooxygenase (amoA) gene in Eubacteria quantified by qPCR

Data_TableS14_15.csv

Description: Mineralized N flux measured by ion exchange membranes measured during the 30 days preceding peak of the growing season and soil extractable N at the beginning and end of the 30-day interval

Table Headings:

1. id: study site 
2. month: we defined “month” as the number of 30-day intervals since snowmelt at each site, which approximated plant phenology
3. habitat: habitat type - dry, lawn-forming or high elevation
4. treatment: The grazed treatment reflected natural herbivory by bison and other herbivores and ungrazed reflected no grazing by large herbivores
5. meanNcm2d: N flux mg N cm^-2 d^-1
6. meanextrN_strt: soil extractable N at the start of the 30 day period mg kg^-1 soil
7. meanextrN_end: soil extractable N at the end of the 30 day period mg kg^-1 soil

Data_TableS16.csv

Description: Total soil N pool size measured in sites across habitats and in grazed and ungrazed treatments during 30-d intervals of the growing season

Table Headings:

1. id: unique identifier for repeated measures ANOVA 
2. habitat: habitat type - dry, lawn-forming or high elevation
3. month: we defined “month” as the number of 30-day intervals since snowmelt at each site, which approximated plant phenology
4. treatment: The grazed treatment reflected natural herbivory by bison and other herbivores and ungrazed reflected no grazing by large herbivores
5. meanMgn_ha: soil total N (organic and inorganic) pool size Mg ha^-1

Data_TableS17.csv

Description: Total soil C pool size measured in sites across habitats and in grazed and ungrazed treatments during 30-d intervals of the growing season

Table Headings:

1. id: unique identifier for repeated measures ANOVA 
2. month: we defined “month” as the number of 30-day intervals since snowmelt at each site, which approximated plant phenology
3. habitat: habitat type - dry, lawn-forming or high elevation
4. treatment: The grazed treatment reflected natural herbivory by bison and other herbivores and ungrazed reflected no grazing by large herbivores
5. meanMgc_ha: soil total C (organic and inorganic) pool size Mg ha^-1

Data_TableS18.csv

Description: Plant aboveground N pool size when reintegrating consumed N measured in sites across habitats and in grazed and ungrazed treatments during 30-d intervals of the growing season

Table Headings:

1. id: unique identifier for repeated measures ANOVA 
2. year: year of study
3. site: study site
4. habitat: habitat type - dry, lawn-forming or high elevation
5. month: we defined “month” as the number of 30-day intervals since snowmelt at each site, which approximated plant phenology
6. treatment: The grazed treatment reflected natural herbivory by bison and other herbivores and ungrazed reflected no grazing by large herbivores
7. totalN_gm2: Aboveground N pool size g m^-2when reintegrating consumed N

Data_TableS19.csv

Description: Plant aboveground C pool size when reintegrating consumed N measured in sites across habitats and in grazed and ungrazed treatments during 30-d intervals of the growing season

Table Headings:

1. id: unique identifier for repeated measures ANOVA 
2. habitat: habitat type - dry, lawn-forming or high elevation
3. month: we defined “month” as the number of 30-day intervals since snowmelt at each site, which approximated plant phenology
4. treatment: The grazed treatment reflected natural herbivory by bison and other herbivores and ungrazed reflected no grazing by large herbivores
5. totalC_gm2: Aboveground N pool size g m^-2when reintegrating consumed N

Data_TableS20.csv

Description: Plant aboveground N pool size when reintegrating consumed N measured at the peak of the growing season and comparisons to LandSat derived INDVI

Table Headings:

1. id: unique identifier 
2. habitat: habitat type - dry, lawn-forming or high elevation
3. treatment: The grazed treatment reflected natural herbivory by bison and other herbivores and ungrazed reflected no grazing by large herbivores
4. totalN_gm2: Aboveground N pool size g m^-2 ^when reintegrating consumed N
5. indvi: LandSat derived integrated INDVI. Refer to supplemental material of main paper for curve fitting 

Data_TableS21.csv

Description: Plant community diversity measures within sites for habitats measured during the 1960s and 2010s.

Table Headings:

1. site: study site 
2. habitat: habitat type - wet or dry
3. period: present represents 2010s and historic represents 1960s
4. simpson: simpson's diversity index
5. shannon: shannon's diversity index
6. richness: richness
7. pileou_evenness: Pileou's evenness 
8. distance_to_centroid: distance to centroid

Data_INDVI.tif

Description: Raster image of integrated INDVI estimated using the methods described in  https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adu0703. Raster used in R markdown file to relate INDVI to net aboveground production g m^-2 yr^-1 

Data_UD.tif

Description: Raster image of utilization distribution for bison estimated using the methods described in  https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adu0703. Raster used in R markdown file to describe bison density bison km^-2

Data_seasonalUD.tif

Description: Raster image of utilization distribution for bison estimated using the methods described in  https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adu0703. Raster used in R markdown file to describe bison density bison km^-2 during the growing season only.

Data_supp001.csv

Description: Site measured net aboveground production g m^-2 yr^-1 and INDVI from associated areas

Table Headings:

1. site: study site 
2. year: year of study
3. NAP: Site measured net aboveground production g m^-2 yr^-1
4. INDVI: Integrated NDVI measured using the methods described in  https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adu0703.

R Code.Rmd

The file R Code.Rmd is an R markdown file that calls the associated data files to reconstruct the tables and figures in https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adu0703.