Imperfect detection biases β diversity estimates based on whether species are shared between sites

However, it is less well known how imperfect detection affects estimates of beta (β) diversity, the variation in species composition among sites, especially when incorporating species traits and evolutionary histories.

Here we simulated the processes of imperfect detection based on two distinct species compositional statuses (i.e., shared species between two assemblages, or unique species only belonging to one assemblage), and then used a 10-year avian monitoring dataset collected on 36 subtropical reservoir islands to examine how imperfect detection affects β diversity estimates as a function of island area and isolation.