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Abstract
The investigation focuses on species composition, spatial heterogeneity, diversity and interspecific associations in an early successional plant community. A total of twenty species were recorded of which five were grasses while the rest were undershrubs or perennial herbs. Out of 11 species investigated for spatial pattern using variance/ mean ratio and Morisita’s index, ten exhibited aggregated distribution pattern which was presumably caused by topographic-edaphic heterogeneity or by limited seed dispersal. Test for species richness pattern within the community showed variability in species richness which can be attributed to environmental heterogeneity. Species diversity (H´) was moderate (H´ = 2.442), equitability was also moderate (J´= 0.815) while species richness (d) was 0.575. Dominance-diversity curve approached geometric distribution. Dominance (D) was low. Ten different species association coefficients (or similarity indices) were tested and compared of which three including those proposed by Jaccard, Soenesen & Dice and Ochiai provided consistent results in terms of disclosing the degree of interspecific association. These three measures are recommended for application in ecology.

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S. Shahid Shaukat, Faisal Hussain, Hina Zafar, Toqeer A. Rao, Khalid Mahmood, Abid Raza. (2014) SPECIES COMPOSITION, SPATIAL HETEROGENEITY, INTERSPECIFIC ASSOCIATION AND DIVERSITY OF AN EARLY SUCCESSIONAL PLANT COMMUNITY: A COMPARISON OF SOME SPECIES ASSOCIATION INDICES, , Volume 11, Issue 4.
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International Journal of Biology and Biotechnology
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Volume 11
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