Abstract: The warm temperate deciduous broad-leaf forest is a zonal vegetation type in warm temperate regions. The natural secondary forests of this forest type are well-preserved in Dongling mountain area. Species composition and community characteristics are the basis for studying the structural and functional dynamics of forest ecosystems and have significant impacts on biodiversity conservation and ecosystem services functions, and thus being recognized as vital indicators for long-term fixed-point observation of biological elements in terrestrial ecosystems. According to the unified observation specifications of the Chinese Ecosystem Research Network (CERN), community surveys were conducted in 2007, 2010, and 2015 in the comprehensive observation field of the warm-temperate deciduous broad-leaf forest at the Beijing Forest Ecosystem Research Station of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Information such as the scientific names, numbers of individuals (clumps), mean DBH (diameters at breast height for trees) or mean BD (basal diameters for shrubs), mean heights, and life forms of trees (with a diameter at breast height ≥1 cm) , shrubs and herbaceous plants were recorded. Through the collation, quality control, and statistical analysis of the plot data, a dataset including dominant species and their heights, the number of species, density, canopy closure (for trees), total coverage (for shrubs and herbaceous plants) was obtained. The dataset contains detailed information of a total of 56 plant species ( belonging to 44 genera and 25 families), through which the community characteristics of the warm-temperate deciduous broad-leaf forests and the development trend towards mature forests were well reflected. The establishment and sharing of this dataset provide important support for understanding the structural and functional dynamics, as well as the mechanisms of biodiversity maintenance of warm-temperate forest ecosystems under global climate change.

Key words: Dongling mountain, warm temperate deciduous broad-leaf forest, plant species composition, community characteristics, long-term observation