A novel alternative to F-tests for ecological studies |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Department of Chemistry and Bioscience, Aalborg University, Fredrik Bajers Vej 7H, 9220 Aalborg East, Denmark;2. Aalborg Zoo, Mølleparkvej 63, DK-9000 Aalborg, Denmark;3. Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 114, DK-8000 Aarhus C, Denmark;4. Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Faculty of Science and Technology, Aarhus University, Blichers Allé 20, DK-8830, Tjele, Denmark;5. Department of Zoology and Animal Cell Biology, University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU, C/Paseo de la Universidad 7, 01006 Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain;1. Wildlife Research Unit, Dipartimento di Agraria, Università degli Studi Federico II di Napoli, via Università 100, 80055, Portici (Na), Italy;2. Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita, Università degli Studi di Siena, Via P.A. Mattioli 4, 53100, Siena (SI), Italy;3. Museo di Storia Naturale, Università degli Studi di Firenze, via Romana 17, 50125, Firenze, Italy;4. School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK;1. Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, Globe Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark;2. Faculty of Natural Sciences at Lúrio University, Cabo Delgado, Mozambique;3. Department of Biological & Environmental Sciences, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden;4. Gothenburg Global Biodiversity Centre (GGBC), University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden;5. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, United Kingdom;6. Wuhan Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China;7. Department of Biology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom;1. School of Metallurgy and Materials Engineering, College of Engineering, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran;2. School of Chemical and Biological Engineering, College of Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul, South Korea;1. Centro de Ecología, Instituto Venezolano de Investigaciones Científicas, Km 11 Carretera Panamericana, apartado postal 21827, Caracas 1020-A, Venezuela;2. Departamento de Biología/Museo de Zoología de la Universidad de Carabobo, Facultad Experimental de Ciencias y Tecnología, Universidad de Carabobo, Valencia 2005, Venezuela;3. Colecciones del Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt, Claustro de San Agustín, Carrera 8 No. 15-08, Villa de Leyva, Colombia |
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| Abstract: | Differences or similarities in the variance of fitness traits are crucial in several biological disciplines, e.g. ecological, toxicological, developmental and evolutionary studies. For example the variance of traits can be utilized as a biomarker of differences in environmental conditions. In the absence of environmental variability, the differences of the variance of a trait can be interpreted as differences of the genetic background. Several tests and transformations are utilized when testing differences between variances. There is, however, a biological tendency for the variance to scale proportionally to the square of the mean (scaling effect) which can considerably bias the results of the tests. We propose a novel method which allows for a more precise correction of the scaling effect and proper comparisons among treatment groups and between investigations. This is relevant for all data sets of distributions with different means and suggests the reanalysis of comparisons among treatment groups. This correction will provide a more reliable method when using bioindicators. |
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| Keywords: | Taylor's power law Scaling effect Transformations |
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