Ecologists examine several small areas, called plots, in a minnesota grassland. in each plot, they list the plant species and place each species into one of five categories. each category represents a set of ecological processes that are important in a grassland ecosystem. for example, the nitrogen-fixing category includes plants that convert nitrogen in the atmosphere into a nitrogen compound that all of the plants are able to use. the ecologists then compare ecological characteristics among the plots, noting which plot includes plants in more or fewer of these categories. genetic diversity functional diversity species diversity ecosystem diversity genetic diversity functional diversity ecosystem diversity species diversity