Abstract
Accounting for the spatial distribution of individuals is an important issue in ecology and applied biology. The exponent, b, in the established empirical relationship1, s2 = amb, between s2, the spatial sample variance and m, the mean population density, conveys information about the spatial distribution of individuals of a particular species. When randomness occurs, variance and mean are equal. Usually b > 1 and, for given a, individuals randomly dispersed at some low density become more aggregated as density increases at a rate associated positively with the species' b value. The frequent recurrence of the same b value in field samples of a particular species has facilitated efficient sampling programmes2 for pests and wildlife. But Downing3 claimed that the index b does not differ between species, is inconsistent within species, and is statistically biased, depending substantially and systematically on sample attributes. We report here technical deficiencies in his analyses and examine more substantial data that support none of these claims.
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Taylor, L., Perry, J., Woiwod, I. et al. Specificity of the spatial power-law exponent in ecology and agriculture. Nature 332, 721–722 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1038/332721a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/332721a0
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