The species-area relationship (SAC) is a long-term pattern in ecology and is discussed in most academic Ecology books. Its implications are relevant for many ecological, evolutionary, conservation and biogeographic purposes. Conversely, the associated volume-species relationship has been mostly ignored. According to a new study published in the journal Plant Ecology, this relationship may play a fundamental ecological role, and it is relevant for many ecological applications such as the estimation of minimum viable populations, species ranges and protected areas. In this global-scale study, Roberto Cazzolla Gatti, Ph.D., Associate Professor at the Biological Institute of the Tomsk State University (Russia) and his Italian colleagues from the Euro-Mediterranean Center on Climate Change (CMCC) in Viterbo, investigated this new perspective looking at canopy height as a proxy of ecosystem volume (“biospace”), which influences plant richness in forest ecosystems.