Patterns of biodiversity at large spatial scales (i.e., γ diversity) can be driven by either within-community (α) or among-community (β) components. The degree to which α or β components contribute to γ diversity may depend on the amount of environmental variation that exists in the spatial extents studied. However, few studies have assessed both spatial configuration and temporal changes in biodiversity, especially in systems that frequently experience large-scale disturbance. We analyzed long-term data on the distribution and abundance of terrestrial gastropods in the Luquillo Experimental Forest at multiple spatial scales to determine how spatial patterns of biodiversity changed over time and in response to both anthropogenic (historical land use) and natural (hurricane) disturbance. Alpha components of biodiversity generally contributed more to γ diversity than did β components. In particular, turnover among regions with different land use histories was minimal. Species richness, regardless of spatial scale, was unaffected by hurricanes, and there was no discernable trend in richness over time since disturbance by a hurricane. Measures of biodiversity that incorporated species abundances, however, decreased over time, reflecting increased dominance by the most abundant species and homogenization of species abundance distributions among plots and regions.