Question

For frugivorous (fruit-eating) birds and mammals in the tropical forests of different continents, the slope is found to be steep. What do steeper slopes mean in this context?

Answer 1

Part 1: Species-area relationship
Alexander Von Humboldt stated a relationship between the species and the area. He stated that the more the area of an explored place the more the species diversity but only till a particular limit.

Part 2: Equation for the species-area relationship
He plotted a graph of area versus species richness and the relationship is a rectangular hyperbola.



On the log scale the relationship is a straight line given by the formula
log S= log C+Z log A
Where S= Species diversity;
C= y intercept;
Z= slope of the line and
A is area

Part 3: Steep slope
If the slope of the line is steep ( Z=1.15) then it means the species richness is higher in less area explored like for frugivorous birds and mammals in tropical forests. In the tropics the species diversity is rich because of the latitude and the intensity of the solar radiation.