The analysis of spatial pattern in plant ecology usually implies the soluti
on of some edge effect problems. We present in this paper some explicit for
mulas of edge effect correction that should enable plant ecologists to anal
yse a wider range of real field data.
We consider the local correcting factor of edge effect for Ripley's K-funct
ion, that can also be used for other statistics of spatial analysis based o
n the counting of neighbours within a given distance. For both circular and
rectangular study areas, we provide a review of explicit formulas and an e
xtension of these formulas for long and narrow plots. In the case of irregu
lar-shaped study plots, we propose a generalization of the method that comp
utes edge effect correction by excluding triangular surfaces from a simple
(rectangular or circular) initial shape.
An example in forest ecology, where the soil characteristics determine a st
udy plot of complex shape, illustrates how this edge effect correction can
be effective in avoiding misinterpretations.