AusTraits, a curated plant trait database for the Australian flora

We introduce the AusTraits database - a compilation of values of plant traits for taxa in the Australian flora (hereafter AusTraits). AusTraits synthesises data on 448 traits across 28,640 taxa from field campaigns, published literature, taxonomic monographs, and individual taxon descriptions. Traits vary in scope from physiological measures of performance (e.g. photosynthetic gas exchange, water-use efficiency) to morphological attributes (e.g. leaf area, seed mass, plant height) which link to aspects of ecological variation. AusTraits contains curated and harmonised individual- and species-level measurements coupled to, where available, contextual information on site properties and experimental conditions. This article provides information on version 3.0.2 of AusTraits which contains data for 997,808 trait-by-taxon combinations. We envision AusTraits as an ongoing collaborative initiative for easily archiving and sharing trait data, which also provides a template for other national or regional initiatives globally to fill persistent gaps in trait knowledge

Variable rainfall has a greater effect than fire on the demography of the dominant tree in a semi-arid Eucalyptus savanna

Rainfall, fire and competition are emphasized as determinants of the density and basal area of woody vegetation in savanna. The semi-arid savannas of Australia have substantial multi-year rainfall deficits and insufficient grass fuel to carry annual fire in contrast to the mesic savannas in more northern regions. This study investigates the influence of rainfall deficit and excess, fire and woody competition on the population dynamics of a dominant tree in a semi-arid savanna. All individuals of Eucalyptus melanophloia were mapped and monitored in three, 1-ha plots over an 8.5year period encompassing wet and dry periods. The plots were unburnt, burnt once and burnt twice. A competition index incorporating the size and distance of neighbours to target individuals was determined. Supplementary studies examined seedling recruitment and the transition of juvenile trees into the sapling layer. Mortality of burnt seedlings was related to lignotuber area but the majority of seedlings are fire resistant within 12months of germination. Most of the juveniles (1cm dbh) of E.melanophloia either died in the dry period or persisted as juveniles throughout 8.5years of monitoring. Mortality of juveniles was positively related to woody competition and was higher in the dry period than the wet period. The transition of juveniles to a larger size class occurred at extremely low rates, and a subsidiary study along a clearing boundary suggests release from woody competition allows transition into the sapling layer. From three fires the highest proportion of saplings (1-10cm dbh) reduced to juveniles was only 5.6% suggesting rates of top-kill' of E.melanophloia as a result of fire are relatively low. Girth growth was enhanced in wet years, particularly for larger trees (>10cm dbh), but all trees regardless of size or woody competition levels are vulnerable to drought-induced mortality. Overall the results suggest that variations in rainfall, especially drought-induced mortality, have a much stronger influence on the tree demographics of E.melanophloia in a semi-arid savanna of north-eastern Australia than fire

Assessment of Mortality and Smoking Rates Before and After Reduction in Community-wide Prevention Programs in Rural Maine

Importance: It is unclear whether effective population-wide interventions that reduce risk factors and improve health result in sustained benefits to a community\u27s health. If benefits do persist after a program is ended, interventions could be brief rather than maintained long term. Objective: To measure mortality and smoking rates in a rural community over decades before, during, and after prevention program reductions. Design, Setting, and Participants: This cross-sectional study compared smoking and mortality rates in a rural Maine county with other Maine counties over time by 5-year intervals. Multiple changes occurred between 2001 and 2015 in the physiological and behavioral risk factor reduction programs offered in the county. They included reductions in leadership, staff, institutional resources, data monitoring, and the programs themselves. Data were analyzed from May 2018 to March 2019. Intervention: Previous multifaceted interventions and outcome monitoring were withdrawn or diminished in the past decade. Main Outcomes and Measures: Smoking and age-adjusted mortality rates vs household income. Results: Reduced mortality rates in Franklin County in 1986 to 2005 reverted to those predicted by household incomes, relative to other Maine counties, by 2006 to 2015 (1986-1990 T score = -2.86 [P = .01] and 2001-2005 T score = -3.00 [P = .01] to 2006 to 2010 T score = -0.43 [P = .67] and 2011-2015 T score = -0.72 [P = .48]). Analysis of County Health Rankings data from 2010 to 2018 also showed that Franklin County\u27s outcomes have reverted to no better than predicted by socioeconomic status. The county\u27s T scores increased from -3.62 (P = .003) in 2010 to -0.41 (P = .69) in 2015 to 0.13 (P = .90) in 2018. Statewide association of income with mortality by analyses of variance showed that the R2 values have increased from the decades preceding 2000 (1976-1980, R2 = 0.21; P = .08; 1986-1990, R2 = 0.32; P = .02) to 2006 to 2010 (R2 = 0.73; P \u3c .001) and 2011 to 2015 (R2 = 0.70; P \u3c .001). Conclusions and Relevance: This study suggests that gains associated with population health interventions may be lost when the interventions are reduced. Adjusting outcome measures for socioeconomic status may allow quicker and more sensitive monitoring of intervention adequacy and success. The increasing trend of age-adjusted mortality in Maine and nationally to correlate inversely with incomes may warrant further community interventions, especially for poorer populations

Community-wide cardiovascular disease prevention programs and health outcomes in a rural county, 1970-2010

IMPORTANCE: Few comprehensive cardiovascular risk reduction programs, particularly those in rural, low-income communities, have sustained community-wide interventions for more than 10 years and demonstrated the effect of risk factor improvements on reductions in morbidity and mortality. OBJECTIVE: To document health outcomes associated with an integrated, comprehensive cardiovascular risk reduction program in Franklin County, Maine, a low-income rural community. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Forty-year observational study involving residents of Franklin County, Maine, a rural, low-income population of 22,444 in 1970, that used the preceding decade as a baseline and compared Franklin County with other Maine counties and state averages. INTERVENTIONS: Community-wide programs targeting hypertension, cholesterol, and smoking, as well as diet and physical activity, sponsored by multiple community organizations, including the local hospital and clinicians. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Resident participation; hypertension and hyperlipidemia detection, treatment, and control; smoking quit rates; hospitalization rates from 1994 through 2006, adjusted for median household income; and mortality rates from 1970 through 2010, adjusted for household income and age. RESULTS: More than 150,000 individual county resident contacts occurred over 40 years. Over time, as cardiovascular risk factor programs were added, relevant health indicators improved. Hypertension control had an absolute increase of 24.7% (95% CI, 21.6%-27.7%) from 18.3% to 43.0%, from 1975 to 1978; later, elevated cholesterol control had an absolute increase of 28.5% (95% CI, 25.3%-31.6%) from 0.4% to 28.9%, from 1986 to 2010. Smoking quit rates improved from 48.5% to 69.5%, better than state averages (observed - expected [O - E], 11.3%; 95% CI, 5.5%-17.7%; P \u3c .001), 1996-2000; these differences later disappeared when Maine\u27s overall quit rate increased. Franklin County hospitalizations per capita were less than expected for the measured period, 1994-2006 (O - E, -17 discharges/1000 residents; 95% CI -20.1 to -13.9; P \u3c .001). Franklin was the only Maine county with consistently lower adjusted mortality than predicted over the time periods 1970-1989 and 1990-2010 (O - E, -60.4 deaths/100,000; 95% CI, -97.9 to -22.8; P \u3c .001, and -41.6/100,000; 95% CI, -77.3 to -5.8; P = .005, respectively). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Sustained, community-wide programs targeting cardiovascular risk factors and behavior changes to improve a Maine county\u27s population health were associated with reductions in hospitalization and mortality rates over 40 years, compared with the rest of the state. Further studies are needed to assess the generalizability of such programs to other US county populations, especially rural ones, and to other parts of the world

AusTraits, a curated plant trait database for the Australian flora

We introduce the AusTraits database - a compilation of values of plant traits for taxa in the Australian flora (hereafter AusTraits). AusTraits synthesises data on 448 traits across 28,640 taxa from field campaigns, published literature, taxonomic monographs, and individual taxon descriptions. Traits vary in scope from physiological measures of performance (e.g. photosynthetic gas exchange, water-use efficiency) to morphological attributes (e.g. leaf area, seed mass, plant height) which link to aspects of ecological variation. AusTraits contains curated and harmonised individual- and species-level measurements coupled to, where available, contextual information on site properties and experimental conditions. This article provides information on version 3.0.2 of AusTraits which contains data for 997,808 trait-by-taxon combinations. We envision AusTraits as an ongoing collaborative initiative for easily archiving and sharing trait data, which also provides a template for other national or regional initiatives globally to fill persistent gaps in trait knowledge