Evidence map›Paper›PMID 30937221›Full record

ArticleApplications in plant sciences2019

Patterns and biases in an Arctic herbarium specimen collection: Implications for phenological research.

Zoe A Panchen, Jennifer Doubt, Heather M Kharouba, Mark O Johnston

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Applications in plant sciences, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 22 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
22citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

22 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Article
  3. Review
  4. Article
  5. Herbarium specimens reveal a constrained seasonal climate niche despite diverged annual climates across a wildflower clade.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2025
    Article
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Article
  11. Article
  12. Herbarium specimens reveal links betweenbioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2024
    Article
  13. Interactive effects of changes in UV radiation and climate on terrestrial ecosystems, biogeochemical cycles, and feedbacks to the climate system.Photochemical & photobiological sciences : Official journal of the European Photochemistry Association and the European Society for Photobiology · 2023
    Article
  14. Article
  15. Article
  16. Article
  17. Article
  18. Article
  19. Article
  20. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Zoe A PanchenDepartment of Geography University of British Columbia Vancouver British Columbia Canada.
Jennifer DoubtCentre for Arctic Knowledge and Exploration Canadian Museum of Nature Ottawa Ontario Canada.
Heather M KharoubaDepartment of Biology University of Ottawa Ottawa Ontario Canada.
Mark O JohnstonDepartment of Biology Dalhousie University Halifax Nova Scotia Canada.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

premise of the studyHerbarium specimens are increasingly used in phenological studies. However, natural history collections can have biases that influence the analysis of phenological events. Arctic environments, where remoteness and cold climate govern collection logistics, may give rise to unique or pronounced biases.

methodsWe assessed the presence of biases in time, space, phenological events, collectors, taxonomy, and plant traits across Nunavut using herbarium specimens accessioned at the National Herbarium of Canada (CAN).

resultsWe found periods of high and low collection that corresponded to societal and institutional events; greater collection density close to common points of air and sea access; and preferences to collect plants at the flowering phase and in peak flower, and to collect particular taxa, flower colours, growth forms, and plant heights. One-quarter of collectors contributed 90% of the collection. DISCUSSION: Collections influenced by temporal and spatial biases have the potential to misrepresent phenology across space and time, whereas those shaped by the interests of collectors or the tendency to favour particular phenological stages, taxa, and plant traits could give rise to imbalanced phenological comparisons. Underlying collection patterns may vary among regions and institutions. To guide phenological analyses, we recommend routine assessment of any herbarium data set prior to its use.

Indexed as

Arcticcollection biasescollection preferencesherbarium specimenNunavutphenology

Identifiers

PMID30937221
PMCPMC6426279

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.