Network science and other coordinated research activities are expanding the scope and breadth of ecological data collected across the globe. Aggregating data from such diverse initiatives into combined resources provides opportunities to further expand our understanding of ecological processes. Here we present a framework and set of open source tools (SoDaH) designed to facilitate aggregating soil organic matter (SOM) data from disparate networks into a common structure and format to support synthetic analyses of factors controlling the persistence and vulnerability of SOM. Specifically, we used SoDaH to harmonize and aggregate SOM data from the Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) network, Critical Zone Observatory (CZO), National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON), Detritus Input and Removal Treatments (DIRT) network, and Nutrient Network (NutNet). The perspectives and historical legacies of each network afford distinct insights into understanding aspects of SOM dynamics. Combined, data from these networks make possible unprecedented, holistic analyses of SOM dynamics than data from any single network or study.
Results/Conclusions
SoDaH features a suite of R- and web-based tools to describe, aggregate, and visualize SOM data. An R package that is available on GitHub includes tools to read and harmonize user-provided raw data that are mapped to a template with a standardized structure, controlled vocabulary, and common units. Additional features include tools to aid quality assurance and quality control of data, expand the database as new data are included, and sample scripts to access aggregated data. Finally, SoDaH includes a web-based tool for filtering, viewing, and downloading aggregated data. While improved programmatic and web tools for data analysis, and greater access to data greatly aid such efforts, there remain many challenges to harmonizing disparate data. We present SoDaH as an early model to facilitate a wider aggregation of existing and future studies of SOM that would benefit the soil science community broadly.