Abstract:

Background & Aim: Zeta (ζ) diversity is a core metric for quantifying compositional changes in species assemblages across multiple sites, defined as the average number of species shared by a given number of sites. By systematically assessing how this metric changes as the number of shared sites increases, it constructs a complete distribution spectrum from rare to common species, providing a novel perspective for analyzing multi-scale community assembly mechanisms. The continuous expansion and integration of methodologies centered on the zeta diversity have collectively formed the zeta diversity analytical framework, which has become an important tool for understanding biodiversity’s spatial and temporal dynamics. This review aims to systematically summarize the latest advances in this framework to comprehensively reflect its developmental landscape. 

Review results: This review first traced the theoretical origins of the zeta diversity analytical framework and outlined its research status across different biological taxa and ecosystems. It then detailed the evolutionary trajectory of its core metric (zeta diversity), key derived patterns (zeta decline, zeta decay), and analytical tools (e.g., retention rate, multi-site generalized dissimilarity modelling). Furthermore, the expansion of the framework into frontier dimensions such as functional traits and species interaction networks was elaborated. Subsequently, the review summarized the framework’s concrete applications in conservation practice, including assessing conservation effectiveness, diagnosing biotic threats, and supporting spatial planning. Finally, the review discussed the current data and methodological challenges facing the framework and provides an outlook on future research directions. 

Conclusions: Our review will be helpful for a comprehensive understanding of the research progress of zeta diversity and its application within the context of biodiversity conservation research and management practice in China.

Key words: zeta diversity, species turnover, multi-site generalized dissimilarity modelling (MS-GDM), community assembly, biodiversity conservation