Habitat structure: the evolution and diversification of a complex topic

Abstract

Examines the status of habitat structure both as a subject of investigation and as a component of the general body of ecological knowledge, with a review of the use of the term habitat structure in the primary literature (1955-1985). Variation in terminology, experimental technique and scale are among the factors which have inhibited generalisation. A graphical model of habitat structure is proposed which uses scale, complexity and heterogeneity as axes. A consensus on suitable designation and measurement of "structural neighbourhoods' might help clear some of the confusion that exists in the study of habitat structure. -P.J.Jarvis