Question

What two components contribute to species diversity? Explain how two communities with the same number of species can differ in species diversity.

Short answer

Species richness and relative abundance are two factors that contribute to species diversity. Two communities with the same number of species might exhibit species diversity due to the odd and even proportions in the species.

Step-by-step solution

Species diversity

A community involves a variety of species in it, and such variation is called species diversity. The communities of ecology are characterized based on the diversity of species and their interaction with one another. The genetic difference is the primary cause of species divergence.

The components that contribute to species diversity

Species richness is one of the components of species diversity. It includes a variety of organisms in a community.

Relative abundance is the second component that involves the various prorations represented by each individual in a community. In other words, relative abundance is the composition of the species in a population.

Difference between two communities with the same number of species

Two communities that have the same number of species differ due to the difference in the composition of the species.For example, a community with a high proportion of only one type of species shows less divergence than a community with a high proportion of different kinds of species.

Species richness is less in a community with only one type of species. Therefore, the richness present in a community by species and their relative abundance contribute to the diversity in an ecological community.