Choosing and using diversity indices: insights for ecological applications from the German Biodiversity Exploratories

E. Kathryn Morris; Tancredi Caruso; François Buscot; Markus Fischer; Christine Hancock; Tanja S. Maier; Torsten Meiners; Caroline Müller; Elisabeth Obermaier; Daniel Prati; Stephanie A. Socher; Ilja Sonnemann; Nicole Wäschke; Tesfaye Wubet; Susanne Wurst; Matthias C. Rillig

doi:10.1002/ece3.1155

journal article Open Access Aug 28, 2014

Choosing and using diversity indices: insights for ecological applications from the German Biodiversity Exploratories

E. Kathryn Morris Tancredi Caruso

François Buscot

Markus Fischer

Christine Hancock Tanja S. Maier Torsten Meiners Caroline Müller

Elisabeth Obermaier Daniel Prati Stephanie A. Socher Ilja Sonnemann Nicole Wäschke Tesfaye Wubet

Susanne Wurst Matthias C. Rillig

Ecology and Evolution Vol. 4 No. 18 pp. 3514-3524 · Wiley

View at Publisher Save 10.1002/ece3.1155

Abstract

AbstractBiodiversity, a multidimensional property of natural systems, is difficult to quantify partly because of the multitude of indices proposed for this purpose. Indices aim to describe general properties of communities that allow us to compare different regions, taxa, and trophic levels. Therefore, they are of fundamental importance for environmental monitoring and conservation, although there is no consensus about which indices are more appropriate and informative. We tested several common diversity indices in a range of simple to complex statistical analyses in order to determine whether some were better suited for certain analyses than others. We used data collected around the focal plant Plantago lanceolata on 60 temperate grassland plots embedded in an agricultural landscape to explore relationships between the common diversity indices of species richness (S), Shannon's diversity (H'), Simpson's diversity (D1), Simpson's dominance (D2), Simpson's evenness (E), and Berger–Parker dominance (BP). We calculated each of these indices for herbaceous plants, arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, aboveground arthropods, belowground insect larvae, and P. lanceolata molecular and chemical diversity. Including these trait‐based measures of diversity allowed us to test whether or not they behaved similarly to the better studied species diversity. We used path analysis to determine whether compound indices detected more relationships between diversities of different organisms and traits than more basic indices. In the path models, more paths were significant when using H', even though all models except that with E were equally reliable. This demonstrates that while common diversity indices may appear interchangeable in simple analyses, when considering complex interactions, the choice of index can profoundly alter the interpretation of results. Data mining in order to identify the index producing the most significant results should be avoided, but simultaneously considering analyses using multiple indices can provide greater insight into the interactions in a system.

Topics

No keywords indexed for this article. Browse by subject →

References

35

[1]

10.1007/s00442-006-0531-z

[2]

Diversity of Planktonic Foraminifera in Deep-Sea Sediments

Wolfgang H. Berger, Frances L. Parker

Science 10.1126/science.168.3937.1345

[3]

10.1016/j.baae.2012.04.001

[4]

10.1007/s10531-006-9137-3

[5]

10.1086/282831

[6]

10.1016/j.baae.2010.07.009

[7]

10.1007/s10886-009-9654-0

[8]

10.1207/s15328007sem1303_7

[9]

10.1046/j.1365-294x.2003.01702.x

[10]

10.1111/j.1469-8137.1994.tb03989.x

[11]

10.1007/s10980-008-9199-6

[12]

Diversity and Evenness: A Unifying Notation and Its Consequences

M. O. Hill

Ecology 10.2307/1934352

[13]

Hooper D. "Structural equation modelling: guidelines for determining model fit" Elect. J. Bus. Res. Methods (2008)

[14]

10.2307/1934145

[15]

10.1111/j.2006.0030-1299.14714.x

[16]

10.1890/06-1736.1

[17]

10.1007/978-3-642-76392-2

[18]

10.1890/10-2402.1

[19]

Magurran A. E. (2004)

[20]

10.1098/rstb.2010.0296

[21]

May R. M. (1975)

[22]

McCune B. (2002)

[23]

10.1007/s10531-013-0527-z

[24]

Opposite trends in response for the Shannon and Simpson indices of landscape diversity

Harini Nagendra

Applied Geography 10.1016/s0143-6228(02)00002-4

[25]

J. Oksanen F. G. Blanchet R. Kindt P. Legendre P. R. Minchin R. B. O'Hara 2012

[26]

10.1038/35012221

[27]

R Core Team (2013)

[28]

A Mathematical Theory of Communication

C. E. Shannon

Bell System Technical Journal 10.1002/j.1538-7305.1948.tb01338.x

[29]

Measurement of Diversity

E. H. SIMPSON

Nature 10.1038/163688a0

[30]

10.2307/3545749

[31]

10.1086/321317

[32]

10.1111/j.1469-8137.2011.03768.x

[33]

EVOLUTION AND MEASUREMENT OF SPECIES DIVERSITY

R. H. Whittaker

TAXON 10.2307/1218190

[34]

10.1890/04-0394

[35]

10.1016/j.baae.2006.09.015

Cited By

886

Ecological effect of China's 30-year National Garden City policy: Synergistic acceleration of urban greening, carbon sequestration, and biodiversity

Longqin Li, Wenbin Xu · 2026

Environmental Impact Assessment Rev...

Extropy rate: Properties and application in feature selection

Naveen Kumar, Vivek Vijay · 2026

Physica A: Statistical Mechanics an...

Divergent mechanisms governing aboveground biomass in desert plants across a drought gradient

Kaiye Yuan, Hailiang Xu · 2026

iScience

Landscape heterogeneity analysis using geospatial techniques and a priori knowledge in Sahelian agroforestry systems of Senegal

Babacar Ndao, Louise Leroux · 2021

Ecological Indicators

Plant spectral diversity as a surrogate for species, functional and phylogenetic diversity across a hyper‐diverse biogeographic region

Henry A. Frye, Matthew E. Aiello‐Lammens · 2021

Global Ecology and Biogeography

Larval species diversity, seasonal occurrence and larval habitat preference of mosquitoes transmitting Rift Valley fever and malaria in Baringo County, Kenya

Isabella M. Ondiba, Florence A. Oyieke · 2019

Parasites & Vectors

Metrics

886

Citations

35

References

Details

Published: Aug 28, 2014
Vol/Issue: 4(18)
Pages: 3514-3524
License: View

Authors

E

E. Kathryn Morris

Institute of Biology Dahlem Center of Plant Sciences Freie Universität Berlin Altensteinstr 6 Berlin 14195 Germany; Department of Biology Xavier University 3800 Victory Parkway Cincinnati Ohio 45207

T

Tancredi Caruso

School of Biological Sciences Queen's University Belfast 97 Lisburn Road Belfast BT9 7BL Northern Ireland

F

François Buscot

Department of Soil Ecology UFZ‐ Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research Theodor‐Lieser‐Strasse 4 Halle/Saale 06120 Germany; Institute of Biology University of Leipzig Johannisallee 21‐23 Leipzig 04103 Germany; German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Deutscher Platz 5e Leipzig 04103 Germany

M

Markus Fischer

Institute of Plant Sciences University of Bern Altenbergrain 21 Bern 3013 Switzerland

C

Christine Hancock

Department of Animal Ecology and Tropical Biology University of Würzburg Am Hubland Würzburg 97074 Germany

T

Tanja S. Maier

Department of Chemical Ecology Bielefeld University Universitätsstr. 25 Bielefeld 33615 Germany

T

Torsten Meiners

Institute of Biology, Applied Zoology/Animal Ecology Freie Universität Berlin Harderslebener Strasse 9 Berlin 12163 Germany

C

Caroline Müller

Department of Chemical Ecology Bielefeld University Universitätsstr. 25 Bielefeld 33615 Germany

E

Elisabeth Obermaier

Department of Animal Ecology and Tropical Biology University of Würzburg Am Hubland Würzburg 97074 Germany

D

Daniel Prati

Institute of Plant Sciences University of Bern Altenbergrain 21 Bern 3013 Switzerland

S

Stephanie A. Socher

Institute of Plant Sciences University of Bern Altenbergrain 21 Bern 3013 Switzerland

I

Ilja Sonnemann

Institute of Biology Dahlem Center of Plant Sciences Freie Universität Berlin Altensteinstr 6 Berlin 14195 Germany

N

Nicole Wäschke

Institute of Biology, Applied Zoology/Animal Ecology Freie Universität Berlin Harderslebener Strasse 9 Berlin 12163 Germany

T

Tesfaye Wubet

Department of Soil Ecology UFZ‐ Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research Theodor‐Lieser‐Strasse 4 Halle/Saale 06120 Germany; German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Deutscher Platz 5e Leipzig 04103 Germany

S

Susanne Wurst

Institute of Biology Dahlem Center of Plant Sciences Freie Universität Berlin Altensteinstr 6 Berlin 14195 Germany

M

Matthias C. Rillig

Institute of Biology Dahlem Center of Plant Sciences Freie Universität Berlin Altensteinstr 6 Berlin 14195 Germany; German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Deutscher Platz 5e Leipzig 04103 Germany; Berlin‐Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB) Altensteinstr 6 Berlin 14195 Germany

Funding

Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft Award: 1374

Cite This Article

E. Kathryn Morris, Tancredi Caruso, François Buscot, et al. (2014). Choosing and using diversity indices: insights for ecological applications from the German Biodiversity Exploratories. Ecology and Evolution, 4(18), 3514-3524. https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.1155

Choosing and using diversity indices: insights for ecological applications from the German Biodiversity Exploratories

You May Also Like