How would you calculate a species' richness?

1 Answer
Feb 18, 2017

Species richness actually doesn't refer to the richness of a singular species. Species richness is the number of species within a community or area.

Explanation:

Species richness actually doesn't refer to the richness of a singular species. Species richness is the number of species within a community or area.

Thus, you would calculate species richness by determining the number of species present within your area of interest. This is done in a number of ways, including using transects through the landscape and identifying and counting species (usually this is done over an extended period of time), using camera traps, using actual traps, environmental DNA , and other methods. To learn more, see this related question.