Integrating intraspecific functional trait data for 67 coastal plant species in central-northern Italy: the Priorcoast dataset

Trait-based approaches are becoming pivotal in predicting vegetation changes and linking ecosystem structures to functions at varying geographical scales. Moreover, spatially explicit plant functional trait measurements for scarcely sampled species including infraspecific variation could be instrumental to better understand how plant functional traits mediate species’ responses to changing environmental conditions. Here we present a dataset of four functional traits measured at the individual level for 67 plant species native to coastal habitats of Tuscany and Liguria (central-northern Italy) including fore- and back dunes, dune slacks, saltmarshes, rocky cliffs, and anthropized coastal environments. We followed standard protocols to make a total of 698 measurements. For each species, we measured traits including leaf area (LA), specific leaf area (SLA), leaf dry matter content (LDMC), and plant vegetative height (H) from multiple individuals to capture local intraspecific variability. This dataset adds to the valuable resources for studying plant strategies in Mediterranean coastal systems, assessing trait-environment relationships, and modeling plant community dynamics under environmental change. The data set is openly available for non-commercial purposes.