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20.8: Diversity indexes

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    [under construction]

    A diversity index is a measure of how many different kinds (e.g., species) are present in a dataset. These indexes are more than a count of the different types; they also account for how common (or rare) a kinds is. Diversity indexes are examples of use of multivariate statistics: two or more predictor variables and two or more response variables.

    There are many varieties of diversity indexes, but two are well known.

    H, Shannon’s Diversity Index

    Shannon’s Index accounts for abundance and evenness of all species present in an area. Evenness refers to how close the numbers of each species are in an area.

    Simpson

    Statistical significance

    Comparing indices

    Software:

    Download and install the BiodiversityR package, a GUI for biodiversity, suitability and community ecology analysis. Utilizes vegan package.


    This page titled 20.8: Diversity indexes is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Michael R Dohm via source content that was edited to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform.

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