Comparative analyses of the scaling diversity index and its applicability

  • Authors:

  • T. -X. Yue;S. -N. Ma;S. -X. Wu;J. -Y. Zhan

  • Affiliations:

  • State Key Laboratory of Resources and Environmental Information System, Institute of Geographical Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100101 Beijing, China;State Key Laboratory of Resources and Environmental Information System, Inst. of Geographical Sci. and Natural Resources Res., Ch. Acad. of Sci. and Grad. Sch. of the Ch. Acad. of Sci., 100039 Bei ...;Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 830011 Urumqi, Xinjiang, China;State Key Laboratory of Resources and Environmental Information System, Institute of Geographical Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100101 Beijing, China

  • Venue:
  • International Journal of Remote Sensing
  • Year:
  • 2007

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Abstract

As well as the newly developed scaling diversity index, there are also eleven traditional diversity indices to be found in the literature. Analyses show that these eleven traditional indices are unable to formulate the richness component of diversity. In particular, the most widely used index, the Shannon-Weiner index, cannot express the evenness component. On the contrary, the scaling diversity index is able to formulate both the richness aspect and the evenness aspect of diversity. The scaling diversity index has been applied to developing scenarios of ecological diversity at different spatial resolutions and spatial scales. A case study in Fukang in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in China shows that the scaling diversity index is sensitive to spatial resolution and is easy to understand. It is scientifically sound and could be operated at affordable cost.