Invertebrate biomass, vegetation cover, and environmental data from Hengill, Iceland

Sampling was carried out in July 2013 in the Hengill geothermal valley, Iceland. GPS coordinates and the temperature, moisture, and pH of the soil at each habitat patch were recorded during the field expedition. Dried soil samples were shipped to the Forest Research Centre for Ecosystems, Society, and Biosecurity (Farnham, UK), where total carbon and total nitrogen were quantified. Photographs were taken of plant community quadrats during the expedition and percentage cover of each species was enumerated later. Invertebrate samples collected from pitfall trapping during the expedition were preserved in 70 percent ethanol, shipped to Queen Mary University of London, and later identified under a microscope in the laboratory.