The term gamma diversity (γ-diversity) was introduced by R. H. Whittaker together with the terms alpha diversity (α-diversity) and beta diversity (β-diversity). Whittaker's idea was that the total species diversity in a landscape (γ) is determined by two different things, the mean species diversity in sites or habitats at a more local scale (α) and the differentiation among those habitats (β). According to this reasoning, alpha diversity and beta diversity constitute independent components of gamma diversity:
Read more about Gamma Diversity: Scale Considerations, Different Gamma Diversity Concepts, Calculating Gamma Diversity
Famous quotes containing the word diversity:
“... city areas with flourishing diversity sprout strange and unpredictable uses and peculiar scenes. But this is not a drawback of diversity. This is the point ... of it.”
—Jane Jacobs (b. 1916)