This README_Su et al. 2022_dataset.txt file was generated on 2022-4-10 by Jishuai Su. This ReadMe file (README_Su et al. 2022_dataset.txt) accompanies the data for the article submitted to the Journal of Ecology. If you have queries about the data please contact Jishuai Su at Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China (sujishuai@ibcas.ac.cn). The data file is named (Dataset_stability.xlsx). The data file contains three sheets: "ReadMe", "effect size", and "short-term stability". You can see a full description of these data in sheet "ReadMe". Missing data are indicated throughout as NA.