Biodiversity ws

.pdf

School

University of Phoenix *

*We aren’t endorsed by this school

Course

1106

Subject

Biology

Date

Dec 6, 2023

Type

pdf

Pages

2

Uploaded by SuperAtomFrog35

Measuring Biodiversity Background: Healthy ecosystems, such as a salt marsh, temperate forest, and tropical rainforests, are complex webs of living and nonliving elements. An important measure of an ecosystem’s health is its biodiversity . The term " biodiversity " includes the variety of life that occurs within an ecosystem, the variety of life on earth, and genetic variety among species. Two simple methods for describing the biodiversity are richness and abundance (evenness). Richness is a measure of the number of different kinds of organisms present in a particular area. It takes no account of the number of individuals of each species present. For example, one daisy has as much influence on the richness of an area as 100 tulips. Evenness is a measure of the relative abundance of the different species making up the richness of an area. It is the number of individuals present in each population. To quantify the biodiversity of a habitat, the Simpson Diversity Index is used. It takes into account the number of species present as well as the abundance of each species. D = 1- Σ , where N is total number of organisms of all species and 𝑛 𝑁 ( ) 2 n is the total number of organisms of a particular species Activity 1: Calculate the species richness and abundance using the following illustrations. Record your data in the table below: Community A: 3 (richness) and abundance: 3 triangle 3 square 3 circles Community B: 3 (richness) and abundance: 1 triangle 6 square 1 circle Activity 2: Calculate the Simpson Diversity Index of the vegetation of a particular forest area using the data below. Table 1. Species richness and relative abundance from a single woodland quadrant sample Species Number (n) 𝑛 𝑁 𝑛 𝑁 ( ) 2 Woodrush 2 2/15= 0.13 (2/15) 2 = 0.00032 Holly (seedlings) 8 8/15= 0.53 (8/15) 2 = 0.081 Bramble 1 1/15= 0.067 (1/15) 2 = 0.000020 Yorkshire Fog 1 1/15= 0.067 (1/15) 2 = 0.000020 Sedge 3 3/15= 0.2 (3/15) 2 = 0.04 Total ( N ) 15 Σ = 79/225 = 0.35 𝑛 𝑁 ( ) 2 D = 1- Σ = 146/225 = 0.65 𝑛 𝑁 ( ) 2 Activity 3
Two different fields of wildflowers were sampled. The sample from the first field consists of 300 daisies, 335 dandelions and 365 buttercups. The sample from the second field comprises 20 daisies, 49 dandelions and 931 buttercups. Complete the table below and calculate the Diversity Index for the two fields to determine which field has greater diversity. Flower Species Field 1 “n” Field 1 𝑛 𝑁 Field 1 𝑛 𝑁 ( ) 2 Field 2 “n” Field 2 𝑛 𝑁 Field 2 𝑛 𝑁 ( ) 2 Daisy 300 300/1000= 0.3 (300/1000) 2 = 0.09 20 20/1000= 0.02 (20/1000) 2 = 0.0004 Dandelion 335 335/1000= 0.335 (335/1000) 2 = 0.11 49 49/1000= 0.049 (49/1000) 2 = 0.0024 Buttercup 365 365/1000= 0.365 (365/1000) 2 = 0.13 931 931/1000= .931 (931/1000) 2 = 0.87 TOTAL (N) 1000 1000 Field 1: Σ = 0.33 Field 1: D = 1- Σ = 0.67 𝑛 𝑁 ( ) 2 𝑛 𝑁 ( ) 2 Field 2: Σ = 0.87 Field 2: D = 1- Σ = 0.13 𝑛 𝑁 ( ) 2 𝑛 𝑁 ( ) 2 1. Which field shows more richness? Explain Richness is simply the number of different kinds of organisms present. Both fields show the same amount of richness because both fields have 3 different types of wildflowers. 2. Which field shows more evenness? Explain Evenness is a measure of the relative abundance of the different species making up the richness of an area. So field 1 has more evenness because the amount of each type of wildflower is more evenly distributed in field one whereas in field 2 there is a huge disparity between the buttercup flowers and the other two flowers. 3. Which of these two fields is more diverse? Explain Field 1 is more diverse because it has a diversity index of 0.67 while field two has a diversity index of 0.13. Field 1 and 2 have the same richness, but field one has greater evenness which contributes to its greater diversity. Activity 4 The following calculations are based on sampling conducted in Honduras. Site N D Species Richness Cerro Montecristo 2996 0.7753 61 El Pital 2050 m 233 0.8732 22 El Pital 2650 m 5411 0.5602 46 Cerro Puca 311 0.8016 27 Santa Barbara 839 0.9211 44 1. Which site has the highest species richness? Cerro Montecristo has the highest richness at 61. 2. Which site is the most diverse according to the Simpson’s Index? Santa Barbara is the most diverse with 0.9211. 3. Do any sites have both a high Simpson’s Index and high species richness? Which one (s)? Cerro Montecristo has both a high Simpson’s Index and high species richness.
Your preview ends here
Eager to read complete document? Join bartleby learn and gain access to the full version
  • Access to all documents
  • Unlimited textbook solutions
  • 24/7 expert homework help