Species diversity

Forest Research have developed a method of measuring forest tree species diversity to support forest managers with decision making.

What we are providing

• Introduction to forest tree species diversity
• An overview of how to calculate species diversity
• Step by step instructions for measuring forest tree species diversity

Why we are providing this resource

Increasing forest tree species diversity is an important aspect of increasing our resilience to climate change and to reduce the risk from pests or pathogens.

This method allows us to:

• identify forests with low/high species diversity
• compare the potential diversity of different management approaches
• track the change in diversity over time.

Related research

ClimateXChange
Climate Change Adaptation
Tree Species and Provenance

Contact

Kate Beauchamp

Additional Resources

• Beauchamp, K (2016) How diverse is your forest? The Chartered Forester Institute of Chartered Foresters September 2016
• ClimateXChange (2015) CXC Indicator Indicators and trends – NF5: Planted forest tree species diversity index