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Species Richness Formula:
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Species richness is the simplest measure of biodiversity, representing the number of different species present in a given area or community. It is a fundamental metric in ecology and conservation biology.
The calculator uses the species richness formula:
Where:
Explanation: The calculator takes a list of species (including duplicates) and counts only the unique species present.
Details: Species richness is a fundamental measure in ecology used to assess biodiversity, compare different habitats, monitor ecosystem health, and guide conservation efforts.
Tips: Enter a comma-separated list of species names. The calculator will count only the unique species, ignoring duplicates. For example: "Oak, Maple, Pine, Oak, Birch" would return a richness of 4.
Q1: How is species richness different from species diversity?
A: Species richness only counts the number of species, while diversity also considers the relative abundance of each species (evenness).
Q2: What are limitations of using only species richness?
A: Richness doesn't account for population sizes or the ecological importance of different species. Two communities can have the same richness but very different diversity.
Q3: How does sample size affect species richness calculations?
A: Larger samples typically yield higher richness estimates as they're more likely to include rare species. Researchers often use rarefaction to compare richness across differently-sized samples.
Q4: What is considered "high" species richness?
A: This varies by ecosystem type. Tropical rainforests typically have high richness (hundreds of tree species per hectare), while Arctic tundra has low richness (dozens of plant species per hectare).
Q5: How is species richness used in conservation planning?
A: Areas with high species richness are often prioritized for protection. Richness is also used to monitor ecosystem health and the impact of environmental changes.