Our goal is to make all data from the UCSC Forest Ecology Research Plot available as quickly as possible, so that it is most useful to students and researchers from UCSC and elsewhere.

However, maintaining the plot requires raising funds, which is much easier if we can demonstrate the usefulness of the plot.
For that reason we ask that you (1) let us know how you are using the data, (2) acknowledge the source of our data (and the funding agencies that supported creating and maintaining the FERP), and (3) send us copies of any publications that are derived from UCSC-FERP data.

Access UCSC-FERP stem data: The Center for Tropical Forest Science maintains the most recent stem data (species, diameter, location, status) from the UCSC-FERP. You can request access to the data by filling out a very short form about your intended use for the data at http://ctfs.si.edu/Public/plotdataaccess/index.php. Select UCSC from the pull-down menu, and submit. Please read the Conditions for data use, and then click on the Data request form link. Fill out the required information, and submit. You will receive an email with a password for data access as soon as the PI approves your request. If you do not receive a password within 24 hours, please send an email to PI Gregory S. Gilbert (ggilbert@ucsc.edu) to prompt a response. The data are freely available, but please do not share the data with others – point them to our data access portal so that we can track where our data go!

Citing FERP data: Any publication that uses UCSC-FERP data should include the following citation: Gilbert, G.S., E. Howard, B. Ayala-Orozco, M. Bonilla-Moheno, J. Cummings, S. Langridge, I.M. Parker, J. Pasari, D. Schweizer, S. Swope. 2010. Beyond the tropics: forest structure in a temperate forest mapped plot. Journal of Vegetation Science 21: 388-405. PDF Appendices

Acknowledge our funding sources: Please acknowledge the funding that allowed the creation of the plot in any publications that arise from our data. “The UCSC Forest Ecology Research Plot was was made possible by National Science Foundation grants to Gregory S. Gilbert (DEB-0515520 and DEB-084259), by the Pepper-Giberson Chair Fund, the University of California, and the hard work of dozens of UCSC students. The plot project is part the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute ForestGEO, a global network of large-scale demographic tree plots.”

Copies of articles: Copies of articles should be sent to the UCSC-FERP Director Gregory S. Gilbert (ggilbert@ucsc.edu) prior to submission. Unless stated otherwise, the Director will not be involved as a collaborator, but reserves the right to request authorship for papers where analysis of data from the UCSC-FERP is the primary focus of the paper (see Fair use, below). Once published, any manuscript making use of the UCSC data should be sent to the ggilbert@ucsc.edu.

Fair use: If your publication derives very directly from analysis of our hard-collected data and forms a substantial amount of your manuscript, you might consider contacting us about potential co-authorship. Similarly, if your intended use of the data falls very close to analyses the Director and associates are currently working on, he may request a collaborative effort.

Questions: Please direct any questions to UCSC-FERP Director Dr. Gregory Gilbert (ggilbert@ucsc.edu).