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A century of statistical Ecology

Ecology

Data/code DOI: DOI

Please contact the first author for questions about the code or data: Neil A. Gilbert (neil.allen.gilbert@gmail.com)


Abstract

As data and computing power have proliferated in recent decades, statistical modeling has become an important tool for understanding ecological patterns and processes. Statistical modeling in ecology faces two major challenges: first, ecological data may not conform to traditional methods, and second, professional ecologists often do not receive extensive statistical training. In response to these challenges, the journal Ecology has published many innovative statistical ecology papers that introduce novel modeling methods and provide accessible guides to statistical best practices. In this paper, we reflect on Ecology’s history and its role in the emergence of the subdiscipline of statistical ecology, which we define as the study of ecological systems using mathematical equations, probability, and empirical data. We showcase 33 influential statistical ecology papers that have been published in Ecology and in so doing comment on the evolution of the field. As data and computing power continue to increase, we anticipate continued growth in statistical ecology to tackle complex analyses and an expanding role for Ecology to publish innovative and influential papers, pushing forward the discipline and guiding practicing ecologists.

Repository Directory

Variable name Meaning
authors Author list of paper
title Title of paper
year Year of publication
volume Volume of publication
issue Issue of publication
start_page Starting page number of publication
end_page Ending page number of publication
citations Number of citations the paper has
q75_citations The 75th percentile of number-of-publications for the journal for the given year
prop_rank Proportional rank citations, calculated as rank(citations) / max(rank(citations))
omit Each paper is coded as omit (e.g., erratum) or keep (research article)
statistical Yes/no, does the paper have a focus on statistical ecology
individual 1/0 Is the paper focused on models for individuals (only for statistical ecology papers with citations > q75_citations)
population 1/0 Is the paper focused on models for populations (only for statistical ecology papers with citations > q75_citations)
community 1/0 Is the paper focused on models for communities (only for statistical ecology papers with citations > q75_citations)
ecosystem 1/0 Is the paper focused on models for ecosystems (only for statistical ecology papers with citations > q75_citations)
spatial 1/0 Is the paper focused on models for space (only for statistical ecology papers with citations > q75_citations)
validation_selection 1/0 Is the paper focused on model validation or selection (only for statistical ecology papers with citations > q75_citations)
tools_practices 1/0 Is the paper focused on general modeling tools or best practices (only for statistical ecology papers with citations > q75_citations)
  • figure_01.png Figure 1: time series of the proportion of statistical ecology papers in Ecology
  • figure_02.png Figure 2: breakdown of the categories of the highly-cited statistical ecology papers
  • figure_03.pptx Figure 3: timeline of the showcased papers

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