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3 min read•july 11, 2024
Cody Williams
Cody Williams
The Shannon Biodiversity Index is one way to use math to compare the biodiversity 🐸 in two locations. The Shannon Biodiversity Index equation is as follows:
Want to learn more about biodiversity make sure you watch this 🎥 video on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services for more info!
This equation uses a lot of variables and looks very intimidating 😨 at first, but if you just take it step-by-step, it won't be hard 😎 . Here is what all the variables represent.
I feel the best way to explain this equation is through an example. Below is an example of a population and how we would use the Shannon Index to calculate the biodiversity or species evenness.
Example Population:
You can use this E value to compare the species evenness of this population to another. Let's say we used the same equation on another population, population 2. If their E value was .56, that would tell us that population 1 has a greater species evenness, because the species in population 1 were more equally represented.
In this equation, the higher the H value, the greater the diversity in a population. In population 1, the H value was 1.76. For example, if another population had an H value of 1.09, it would have less biodiversity in the community than our original population.
Continue to learn about biodiversity and population by reading about the impacts humans have on biodiversity!
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3 min read•july 11, 2024
Cody Williams
Cody Williams
The Shannon Biodiversity Index is one way to use math to compare the biodiversity 🐸 in two locations. The Shannon Biodiversity Index equation is as follows:
Want to learn more about biodiversity make sure you watch this 🎥 video on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services for more info!
This equation uses a lot of variables and looks very intimidating 😨 at first, but if you just take it step-by-step, it won't be hard 😎 . Here is what all the variables represent.
I feel the best way to explain this equation is through an example. Below is an example of a population and how we would use the Shannon Index to calculate the biodiversity or species evenness.
Example Population:
You can use this E value to compare the species evenness of this population to another. Let's say we used the same equation on another population, population 2. If their E value was .56, that would tell us that population 1 has a greater species evenness, because the species in population 1 were more equally represented.
In this equation, the higher the H value, the greater the diversity in a population. In population 1, the H value was 1.76. For example, if another population had an H value of 1.09, it would have less biodiversity in the community than our original population.
Continue to learn about biodiversity and population by reading about the impacts humans have on biodiversity!
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