ReadMe file for Vancouver Island White-tailed Ptarmigan (VIWTP) climate change dataset THE VIWTP CLIMATE CHANGE DATASET ACCOMPANIES: Jackson, M.M., Gergel, S.E., and Martin, K. Effects of climate change on habitat availability and configuration for an endemic coastal alpine bird. PLoS ONE, In Review. The VIWTP dataset consists of this ReadMe file and XX data files described below. Please contact Michelle Jackson (michellegooch@gmail.com) with any questions. ************************************************************************ File Descriptions: VARIABLE NAMES AND DESCRIPTIONS FOR presabs_both_IndYears_allvars_final.csv presabs_both_IndYears_allvars_final.csv is the final presence-absence dataset for Vancouver Island White-tailed Ptarmigan used in the model. It contains pseudo-absences that were generated using the methods described in the manuscript. It contains topographic and biogeoclimatic zone data from as described in the manuscript and climate variables that were obtained from ClimateBC version 5.03 (http://cfcg.forestry.ubc.ca/projects/climate-data/climatebcwna/#ClimateBC). Description and data format for each variable (column header) is described in the same order as they appear in the presabs_both_IndYears_allvars_final.csv file. (Also see Table 1 in the manuscript for variable descriptions.) [1] FNETID. Unique ID for each observation. [2] pres. Whether the observation is a presence (1) or a pseudo-absence (0). [3] Year. The year the observation was collected. For pseudo-absences, years were assigned randomly based on the prevalence of years in the presence dataset. [4] datatype. Dataset from which the observation originated. PUB = public observation, FS = field survey, NA = pseudo-absence. [5] BCAlbX. BC Environment Albers X coordinate. [6] BCAlbY. BC Environment Albers Y coordinate. [7] BEC. Biogeoclimatic Zone. MH = Mountain Hemlock, AT = Alpine Tundra, CWH = Coastal Western Hemlock. [8] Elevation. Elevation in meters. [9] Aspect. Aspect reclassified according to solar incidence. We transformed aspect as x = -1*cos[Ø(π/180)], where Ø is the aspect measured in degrees. Values ranged from -1 where the angle of solar incidence was lower (north-facing slopes) to 1 where it was higher (south-facing slopes). The importance of aspect depends on slope, so we assigned aspects with slopes of <5° a neutral value of 0. [10] Slope. Slope in degrees. [11] CTI. Compound Topographic Index, a function of the slope and the upstream contributing area. [12] Rugg9. Vector Ruggedness Measure, a measurement of terrain ruggedness as the variation in three-dimensional orientation of grid cells within a 9-cell neighborhood. [13] Tave_sm. Summer mean temperature (degrees C). [14] MSP. Mean annual summer (May – Sept.) precipitation (mm). [15] PAS. Precipitation as snow from August in previous year to July of current year (mm). RF_BOTH.RData is the Random Forest model that was generated for predicting VIWTP habitat suitability. allVI_fewvars_1980_2010.csv.zip is a compressed grid created for Vancouver Island at 100-m resolution with topographic variables and climate variables downloaded from ClimateBC version 5.03 (http://cfcg.forestry.ubc.ca/projects/climate-data/climatebcwna/#ClimateBC). This file was used to project the Random Forest model for VIWTP habitat suitability across the entire study area of Vancouver Island. The variables are the same as those described for the presabs_both_IndYears_allvars_final.csv file. allVI_futureclimates.zip is a compressed file including future climate variables (mean summer precipitation, precipitation as snow, and average summer temperature) covering all of Vancouver Island at 100-m resolution (each point corresponds to a point in the allVI_fewvars_1980_2010.csv.zip file). Each file represents future climate variables for one of three general circulation models (Can, CCSM, or GFDL), one of two IPCC emissions scenarios from the AR5 report (RCP 4.5 or RCP 8.5) and one of three future time periods (2020's, 2050's, or 2080's).