What do you mean by alpha diversity, Biology

Assignment Help:

Q. What do you mean by Alpha diversity?

Alpha (a) richness refers to the number of species found in small, homogenous area. Alpha diversity refers to the diversity in a particular area or ecosystem and is usually expressed by the number of species (i.e. species richness) in that ecosystem.

Alpha diversity is characterised by several widespread patterns that are characteristic of most taxa and are strongly correlated with physical environmental gradients. For example,

· Marine and terrestrial environments in tropical regions have more species of higher taxonomic groups than those in higher latitude communities.

· Richness of species in terms of most taxa is positively correlated with habitat structural complexity.

· Structurally simple habitats like open oceans, grasslands, etc. generally support fewer species than structurally complex communities such as forests and coral reefs. In the open oceans maximum richness of most groups is found at depths between 2000-4000 m. In contrast coral species richness peaks at depths between 15-30 m because corals obtain their energy from photosynthetic organisms embedded in their tissues, and are thus confined to the photic zone.

· Island communities are poor in species than comparable mainland communities.


Related Discussions:- What do you mean by alpha diversity

Benefit of the double and complete circulation, Q. How many chambers do the...

Q. How many chambers do the mammalian heart and the bird heart have? Concerning temperature maintenance what is the benefit of the double and complete circulation of these animals?

Which groups does not contain a carbonyl, Which of the following functional...

Which of the following functional groups does NOT contain a carbonyl? Select one: a. Aldehyde b. Carboxyl c. Phosphate d. Amide e. Organic ester

Show overall management of diabetes, Q. Show overall management of diabetes...

Q. Show overall management of diabetes? Diabetes as we all know is a disease with ever increasing prevalence in' our country. It can be described as a disease characterized by

Mode of nutrition , What is the mode of nutrition in fish,human,amoeba,scor...

What is the mode of nutrition in fish,human,amoeba,scorpian & toad

Bioluminescence, #question.which annelids shws bioluminescence .

#question.which annelids shws bioluminescence .

Explain radial symmetry in classification animal kingdom, Explain Radial S...

Explain Radial Symmetry in Classification of the Animal Kingdom? All of the animals besides the sponges are considered to belong to the Eumetazoa, or the "true animals" because

Which statements concerning enzymes is false, Which of the following statem...

Which of the following statements concerning enzymes is false? a. They function as catalysts b. The active site of an enzyme has a shape that is specific for its c. Many e

Cryobiology, Cryobiology : This is the study of life at low temperature. Cr...

Cryobiology : This is the study of life at low temperature. Cryobiology is that branch of biology which studies the effects of low temperatures on living things. Cryobiology scienc

Theory of embryology - pre-formation theory, PR E FORMATION THEORY - ...

PR E FORMATION THEORY - Proposed by Marcello Malpighi. Studied chick egg and proposed his work in "De ova-incubato". According this different part of embryo previousl

Define meat as a rich source of protein, Define Meat as a Rich Source of Pr...

Define Meat as a Rich Source of Protein? Skeletal or striated muscles are used for food purposes. Flesh of cattle, sheep and swine comprise most of the meat contents. Edible me

Write Your Message!

Captcha
Free Assignment Quote

Assured A++ Grade

Get guaranteed satisfaction & time on delivery in every assignment order you paid with us! We ensure premium quality solution document along with free turntin report!

All rights reserved! Copyrights ©2019-2020 ExpertsMind IT Educational Pvt Ltd