Robust Density Estimation Through Distance Measurements

A minor modification to Morisita's method permits the definition of a robust density estimator based on nearest neighbor by sectors. In a finite population frame, these distances are used to evaluate the probability of selecting the nearest individual to a point chosen at random. In simulations of regular, Poisson, and aggregated patterns, the estimator was shown to be robust not only with regard to unbiasedness, but also to efficiency. This is of particular interest in aggregated cases.