Describing inequality in plant size or fecundity

Lorenz curves have been used to describe inequality in plant size and fecun dity, where the total inequality is summarized by the Gini coefficient. Her e we propose a second and complementary statistic, the Lorenz asymmetry coe fficient, which characterizes an important aspect of the shape of a Lorenz curve. The statistic tells us which size classes contribute most to the pop ulation's total inequality. This may be useful when interpreting the ecolog ical significance of plant size or reproductive inequality.