An estimate of the amount of the quadrat covered by each species is called what?

• A. Percentage frequency
• B. Relative abundance
• C. Density
• D. Percentage cover

Answer: (D)

In quadrat sampling, you’re estimating how much of the ground inside the frame a species covers. This is expressed as the percentage of the quadrat’s area that the species covers, which is called percentage cover. It measures how much space a species occupies, reflecting its dominance and spread within the area being studied. This differs from density (how many individuals per unit area), percentage frequency (how often the species appears across quadrats), and relative abundance (how common the species is relative to others, often using counts or cover). So the term describing how much of the quadrat is covered by a species is percentage cover.