title: Biodiversity patterns along ecological gradients: unifying β-diversity indices.
abstract: Ecologists have developed an abundance of conceptions and mathematical expressions to define β-diversity, the link between local (α) and regional-scale (γ) richness, in order to characterize patterns of biodiversity along ecological (i.e., spatial and environmental) gradients. These patterns are often realized by regression of β-diversity indices against one or more ecological gradients. This practice, however, is subject to two shortcomings that can undermine the validity of the biodiversity patterns. First, many β-diversity indices are constrained to range between fixed lower and upper limits. As such, regression analysis of β-diversity indices against ecological gradients can result in regression curves that extend beyond these mathematical constraints, thus creating an interpretational dilemma. Second, despite being a function of the same measured α- and γ-diversity, the resultant biodiversity pattern depends on the choice of β-diversity index. We propose a simple logistic transformation that rids beta-diversity indices of their mathematical constraints, thus eliminating the possibility of an uninterpretable regression curve. Moreover, this transformation results in identical biodiversity patterns for three commonly used classical beta-diversity indices. As a result, this transformation eliminates the difficulties of both shortcomings, while allowing the researcher to use whichever beta-diversity index deemed most appropriate. We believe this method can help unify the study of biodiversity patterns along ecological gradients.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Ecology and Earth Sciences, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia.
authors.forename: Robert C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Szava-Kovats
authors.affiliation: Institute of Ecology and Earth Sciences, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia.
authors.forename: Meelis
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pärtel
mesh_terms: D044822:Biodiversity; D004463:Ecology; D004777:Environment; D008962:Models, Theoretical