Environmental Studies

A Dictionary of Plant Sciences A Dictionary of Ecology Further reading

minimal area

A Dictionary of Plant Sciences | 1998 | | Copyright

minimal area The smallest area that can contain the species representative of a particular plant community. When the number of species recorded in increasingly larger sample units is plotted graphically (to give a species-area curve), the minimal area is the point at which the curve becomes horizontal. In practice, the curve rarely becomes truly horizontal because of natural heterogeneity, and some subjective assessment of the minimal area is made, based on the species-area curve. Alternatively, the ‘minimum quadrat number’ may be defined as the ‘equivalence point’, i.e. the point at which the number of species and the number of quadrats are equal.

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MICHAEL ALLABY. "minimal area." A Dictionary of Plant Sciences. 1998. Encyclopedia.com. 1 Jun. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

MICHAEL ALLABY. "minimal area." A Dictionary of Plant Sciences. 1998. Encyclopedia.com. (June 1, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O7-minimalarea.html

MICHAEL ALLABY. "minimal area." A Dictionary of Plant Sciences. 1998. Retrieved June 01, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O7-minimalarea.html

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minimal area

A Dictionary of Ecology | 2004 | | Copyright

minimal area The smallest area that contains the species representative of a particular plant community. When the number of species recorded in increasingly larger sample units is plotted graphically (to give a species–area curve) the minimal area is the point at which the curve becomes horizontal. In practice, the curve rarely becomes truly horizontal because of natural heterogeneity, and some subjective assessment of the minimal area is made from the curve. Alternatively, the ‘minimum quadrat number’ may be defined as the ‘equivalence point’ (i.e. the point at which the number of species and the number of quadrats are equal).

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Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

MLA
Chicago
APA

MICHAEL ALLABY. "minimal area." A Dictionary of Ecology. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 1 Jun. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

MICHAEL ALLABY. "minimal area." A Dictionary of Ecology. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (June 1, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O14-minimalarea.html

MICHAEL ALLABY. "minimal area." A Dictionary of Ecology. 2004. Retrieved June 01, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O14-minimalarea.html

Learn more about citation styles

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