journal article Mar 01, 1973

Diversity and Evenness: A Unifying Notation and Its Consequences

Ecology Vol. 54 No. 2 pp. 427-432 · Wiley

View at Publisher Save 10.2307/1934352

Abstract

Three commonly used measures of diversity, Simpson's index, Shannon's entropy, and the total number of species, are related to Renyi's definition of a generalized entropy. A unified concept of diversity is presented, according to which there is a continuum of possible diversity measures. In a sense which becomes apparent, these measures provide estimates of the effective number of species present, and differ only in their tendency to include or to ignore the relatively rarer species. The notion of the diversity of a community as opposed to that of a sample is examined, and is related to the asymptotic form of the species—abundance curve. A new and plausible definition of evenness is derived.

Topics

No keywords indexed for this article. Browse by subject →

Cited By

4,902

Influence of environmental factors on pollen- and chironomid-based Holocene temperature inferences: A multisite comparison in eastern Canada

Jonathan A. Lesven, Laurent Millet · 2026

Quaternary Science Reviews

Pathways to spatial equity: lessons from global patterns of urban infrastructure diversity

Zhixing Chen, Qihao Weng · 2026

npj Urban Sustainability

Seasonal nitrogen enrichment alters plant community stability–area relationship through decreased biodiversity, species asynchrony, and population stability

Yuqiu ZHANG, Carly J. Stevens · 2026

Functional Ecology

Decoding the spatial pattern and determinants of mixed land use in metropolitan suburban rural settlements: Insights from the socio-ecological system framework

Jing Zhang, Danjun Fei · 2026

Habitat International

Population Status of Diptera in the First Post-Fire Year in Central European Russia

Alexander B. Ruchin, Mikhail N. Esin · 2026

Forests

Towards a comprehensive evaluation and mechanistic perspective on grassland restoration

Falk-Rudhard Schreiner, Ute Hamer · 2026

Ecological Indicators

Designing a reserve system with heterogeneous sites: Extending the SLOSS debate from an economic perspective

Zijin Xie, Ayumi Onuma · 2026

Ecological Economics

Variability of ectomycorrhizal fungal community traits in mixed Nothofagus forests: insights into host plant and environmental context

Franco Daniel Floriani, Verónica Andrea El Mujtar · 2026

Plant and Soil

Integrating morphology and vitality to quantify seasonal contributions of urban functional zones to thermal environment

Lei Wang, Ruonan Li · 2025

Sustainable Cities and Society

Experimental enhancement of structural heterogeneity in forest landscapes promotes multidimensional hoverfly diversity

Clàudia Massó Estaje, Julia Rothacher · 2025

The Journal of Applied Ecology

A limiting Gaussian process in entropic perspective

Zhiyi Zhang · 2025

Theory of Probability and Mathemati...

Singularity of Pathogen Isolates: Assessment and Applications

Evsey Kosman, Robert F. Park · 2025

Plant Pathology

Microbiome metabolic capacity is buffered against phylotype losses by functional redundancy

Kayla Cross, Noelle Beckman · 2025

Applied and Environmental Microbiol...

The Sonoscape of a Rural Town in the Mediterranean Region: A Case Study of Fivizzano

Almo Farina, Timothy C. Mullet · 2025

Acoustics

Composition and Dynamics of the Sonosphere Along a Soil-Surface Ecotone at an Agricultural Site in Northern Italy: A Preliminary Approach

Almo Farina, Timothy C. Mullet · 2025

Geosciences

What do functional diversity, redundancy, rarity, and originality actually measure? A theoretical guide for ecologists and conservationists

Carlo Ricotta, Sandrine Pavoine · 2025

Ecological Complexity

Plant diversity across dimensions: Coupling biodiversity measures from the ground and the sky

Jesús N. Pinto-Ledezma, Anna K. Schweiger · 2025

Science Advances

Applying a unified framework to compare taxonomic, functional and phylogenetic diversity in Holocene pollen records

Amelia M. Penny, Anne Chao · 2025

Journal of Ecology

The convex relationship between plant cover and biomass: Implications for assessing species and community properties

Xiaobin Pan, Nathan D. Ferris · 2024

Journal of Vegetation Science

Vegetation response to climate change and human activity in southwestern China since the Last Glacial Maximum

Kai Li, Mengna Liao · 2024

Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology,...

Metrics

4,902

Citations

0

References

Details

Published: Mar 01, 1973
Vol/Issue: 54(2)
Pages: 427-432
License: View

Authors

Cite This Article

M. O. Hill (1973). Diversity and Evenness: A Unifying Notation and Its Consequences. Ecology, 54(2), 427-432. https://doi.org/10.2307/1934352

Related

You May Also Like

Measures of the Amount of Ecologic Association Between Species

Lee R. Dice · 1945

9,426 citations

TOWARD A METABOLIC THEORY OF ECOLOGY

James H. Brown, James F. Gillooly · 2004

6,401 citations

USING STABLE ISOTOPES TO ESTIMATE TROPHIC POSITION: MODELS, METHODS, AND ASSUMPTIONS

David M. Post · 2002

5,394 citations

The Problem of Pattern and Scale in Ecology: The Robert H. MacArthur Award Lecture

Simon A. Levin · 1992

5,168 citations

TOWARD AN ECOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION OF SOIL BACTERIA

Noah Fierer, Mark A. Bradford · 2007

4,323 citations