Measuring Biodiversity Using R: A Comparison of Diversity in Primary and Secondary Tropical Forests

This exercise is both a lesson in tropical forest restoration and a data analysis of metrics of biodiversity using R. The exercise contains background information, including two powerpoint presentations, using real data from the Bilsa rainforest in Ecuador on tropical bird diversity, and a guided tutorial for the use of R to analyze biodiversity metrics. The module also includes the complete R script with instructional notations as well as all necessary data files. By completing this exercise, students will: 1) distinguish some ways in which biological diversity can be quantified, 2) manipulate a real data set to quantify diversity, including the calculation of diversity indices, 3) identify and recommend conservation practices using the results, and 4) use the powerful open-source statistics program R.