Aim
- to collect data from which to calculate several biodiversity
measures (species richness, Shannon’s index, Simpson’s Index)
- to plot
-
the relationship between biodiversity and measurement area
-
log-normal plots (Whittaker)
|
Method (Field)
|
- Mark a randomly located 1 x 1 m area in your prairie
plot
- divide into half, quarter, eighth, and sixteenth
- count the number of plants for each species in each
of the 5 quadrats
- cut 5 representative plants of each species at ground-level
and determine dry weight (keep each species separate)
|
 |
Calculations
- calculate the total plant density per quadrat (aggregate
quadrats to get duplicate samples).
- calculate the total plant yield per quadrat (aggregate
quadrats to get duplicate samples).
- calculate the proportion each species contributes
to yield and plant density, per quadrat.
- calculate the number of species, Shannon’s index and
Simpson’s index for each quadrat
|
Plot
- biodiversity vs area sampled
- log (biomass proportion) vs rank (compare to Whittaker 1965)
- compare your results with the other group measuring the
same treatment, and with groups on different treatments.
References
Goldsmith, F.B., C.M. Harrison and A.J. Morton. (1986) Description and Analysis
of Vegetation. Ch 9 in “Methods in Plant Ecology” pp 437-524. eds P.D. Moore
and S.B. Chapman. publ. Blackwell Scientific Publications.
Whittaker, R.H. (1965) Dominance and diversity in land plant communities. Science
147: 250-260.
Whittaker, R.H. (1975) Community Structure and Composition. Ch 3 in “Communities
and Ecosystems” (especially pages 87-95). publ. MacMillan
