Question

Match the following:

A. α diversity	1. The richness of different species in a habitat.
B. β diversity	2. The richness of different species along with a gradient from one habitat to another habitat within the community.
C. γ diversity	3. The richness of different species in different habitats.

(a) A-3, B-2, C-3
(b) A-1, B-3, C-2
(c) A-2, B-1, C-3
(d) A-3, B-2, C-1

Answer 1

Biodiversity is the diversity seen in organisms at every level of biological organization. Species diversity refers to the variability in number and richness of the species in any habitat. The number of species per unit area at a particular time is named species richness, which denotes the measure of species diversity.

Complete answer:
The three terms described by Whittaker for measuring biodiversity were
-α diversity
It represents the number of species in an area and the species diversity. For example, monitoring the effect of farming methods on the diversity of native birds. For this, we need to compare the species diversity of the native birds in different areas as well. We can get the total approximate number of birds in each area and know if the new farming method has any adverse effects on the species richness.
- β diversity
If there is any significant change in the species diversity between the ecosystems that were inspected first then we are measuring β diversity. In this way, we would count the unique species found in each ecosystem. For example, the beta diversity between area named x and y can be 8 which represents that 5 species were found in area x but not in area y plus the 3 species found in area y and not in area x.
- γ diversity
It repents the overall measure of diversity found in different areas or ecosystems.

Additional information:
The above can be explained through a hypothetical example

Hypothetical species	Grassland habitat	Woodland habitat	Open field habitat
A	X
B	X	X	X
C	X	X
D	X	X
E			X

Alpha diversity	4	3	2
Beta diversity	Grassland vs woodland habitat: 1	Woodland vs open field habitat: 3	Open field vs grassland habitat: 2
Gamma diversity	5

So the correct answer is ‘A-1, B-3, C-2’.

Note:
-In1972, Whittaker expressed three terms for measuring biodiversity over spatial scales which are alpha, beta, and gamma diversity.
-Ecologists discovered various kinds of diversity patterns. They observed a daily pattern during which diversity was distributed over the whole area of the earth.
-Species richness is usually used as a criterion when assessing the relative conservation values of habitats.