On the Relation between Habitat Selection and Species Diversity

Breeding bird censuses were made in Puerto Rico, Panama, and temperate United States, and a profile of foliage density was made for each. Using information theory formulae both diversity indices and measurements of difference between censuses and difference between habitats can be made. Based on these, the following can be verified directly from the data: 1. Puerto Rico has nearly as many bird species per layer as Panama and the temperate regions, but the Puerto Rican species appear to recognize fewer layers and certainly subdivide habitats much less. Thus different habitats are likely to have quite similar species in Puerto Rico, unlike Panama and temperate United States.