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eik = total length (m) of edge in landscape involving patch type (class) i; includes landscape boundary and background segments involving patch type i. A = total landscape area (m2). |
| Description | ED equals the sum of the lengths (m) of all edge segments involving the corresponding patch type, divided by the total landscape area (m2), multiplied by 10,000 (to convert to hectares). If a landscape border is present, ED includes landscape boundary segments involving the corresponding patch type and representing 'true' edge only (i.e., abutting patches of different classes). If a landscape border is absent, ED includes a user-specified proportion of landscape boundary segments involving the corresponding patch type. Regardless of whether a landscape border is present or not, ED includes a user-specified proportion of internal background edge segments involving the corresponding patch type. Note, total landscape area (A) includes any internal background present. |
| Units | Meters per hectare |
| Range | ED ≥ 0, without limit. ED = 0 when there is no class edge in the landscape; that is, when the entire landscape and landscape border, if present, consists of the corresponding patch type and the user specifies that none of the landscape boundary and background edge be treated as edge. |
| Comments | Edge density at the class level has the same utility and limitations as Total Edge (see Total Edge description), except that edge density reports edge length on a per unit area basis that facilitates comparison among landscapes of varying size. |
