IAS Enviornment & Biodiversity Test - 2

ANSWER: Scientific study of the relationship of living organisms with each other and with their environment.

Explanation:
Option ‘a’ is the definition of Environmental Science. Option‘d’ is definition of Environmental Education. Environmental Education has a wider coverage than environmental science or ecology. It includes social aspects of the environment. However these three terms are often used interchangeably.

ANSWER: Only 2

Explanation:
A species is defined as a group of similar populations of organisms whose members are capable of interbreeding, and to produce fertile offspring (children). Species are generally composed of a number of distinct populations which freely interbreed even though they appear to be different in appearance. E.g. the populations of all types of dogs look different but all are capable of breeding among themselves and capable of producing fertile offspring. All types of dogs belong to same species Canis lupus. ‘Population’ is defined as a group of freely interbreeding individuals of the same species present in a specific area at a given time.

ANSWER: None of the above

Explanation:
Population of a species refers to those members of a certain species that live within a given area. Several populations make up a Community and several communities along with their abiotic components make up an ecosystem.

ANSWER: Only 1

Explanation:
A biome is different from an ecosystem. An ecosystem is the interaction of living and nonliving things in an environment. A biome is a specific geographic area notable for the species living there. A biome can be made up of many ecosystems. For example, an aquatic biome can contain ecosystems such as coral reefs and kelp forests.

ANSWER: Littoral – Limnetic – Profundal - Benthic

Explanation:
Peripheral zone (littoral zone) with shallow water and most of the vegetation. Open water beyond the littoral zone is limnetic zone. It extends down as far as sunlight penetrates to permit photosynthesis. Profundal zone is where water is quite deep and it’s too dark for photosynthesis. Bentic zone (bottom) is the floor of the lake.

ANSWER: All of the above

Explanation:
Canals are manmade wetlands. The Convention on Wetlands of International Importance, also known as the Ramsar Convention, defines wetlands as including: lakes and rivers, swamps and marshes, wet grasslands and peatlands, oases, estuaries, deltas and tidal flats, near-shore marine areas, mangroves and coral reefs, and human-made sites such as fish ponds, rice paddies, reservoirs, and salt pans.

ANSWER: All of the above

Explanation:
Ecotone is a zone of junction between two or more diverse ecosystems. E.g. the mangrove forests; they represent an ecotone between marine and terrestrial ecosystem. Some more examples of ecotone are – grassland, estuary and river bank. Ecotones also appear where one body of water meets another (e.g., estuaries and lagoons) or at the boundary between the water and the land (e.g., marshes).

ANSWER: Organisms which occur primarily or most abundantly in ecotone

Explanation:
A well developed ecotones contain some organisms which are entirely different from that of the adjoining communities. Sometimes the number of species and the population density of some of the species are much greater in this zone than either community. This is called edge effect. The organisms which occur primarily or most abundantly in this zone are known as edge species.

ANSWER: Coastal Zone

Explanation:
The coastal zone is the area of interaction between land and the ocean, but there is no clear definition of the zone. On seaward side, it is commonly taken to extend upto gently sloping, shallow edge of the continental shelf. On the landward side, we could define the limit of the zone as the high tide line or even up to the watershed. Maximum diversity of marine organisms is found in the tidal zone that is near the shore.

ANSWER: None of the above

Explanation:
Human modified ecosystems may or may not depend on solar energy e.g. in an industry energy is provided in the form of fossil fuel or electricity or both. They are highly simplified, have low species diversity and are highly unstable. Some examples of human modified ecosystems are: Agro-ecosystems, Plantation forests, Urban ecosystems, Rural ecosystems, Aquaculture, Industrial areas, Laboratory cultures, etc.

ANSWER: 2, 3 and 4

Explanation:
There enough light in the Euphotic zone for photosynthesis. Bathyal zone lacks sunlight. Abyssal zone is cold and dark zone at the bottom. Lacks sunlight yet there are producers at such depth. They are bacteria which can withstand temperatures of 200°C and they produce food through chemical reaction.

ANSWER: 1, 4 and 5

Explanation:
Detrivores are consumers that feed on fallen leaves, parts of dead trees and faecal wastes of animals. E.g. ants, termites, earthworms, crab, etc. While the terms decomposer and detritivore are often interchangeably used, however, detritivores must digest dead matter via internal processes while decomposers can break down cells of other organisms using biochemical reactions without need for internal digestion. Thus, invertebrates such as earthworms, woodlice, and sea cucumbers are detritivores, not decomposers, in the technical sense, since they must ingest nutrients and are unable to absorb them externally. Other decomposers, such as many species of bacteria, fungi and protists, are unable to ingest discrete lumps of matter, but instead live by absorbing and metabolizing on a molecular scale (saprotrophic nutrition). Scavengers are typically not thought to be detritivores, as they generally eat large quantities of organic matter. Detrivores eat smaller quantities and decomposers feed at microscopic level.

ANSWER: Only 1

Explanation:
It can be explained through Second Law of Thermodynamics. The law states that ‘No energy transfer is 100 percent efficient’.

ANSWER: 10

Explanation:
90% energy is lost to environment as unusable energy during the transfer. This energy flow explains why the earth can support more people if they eat at lower levels by eating grains, vegetables and fruits.

ANSWER: Phosphorous cycle

Explanation:
In this cycle, phosphorous moves from the land to sediments in ocean and back to land. It can remain in the sea floor for millions of years. When the sea floor/land emerges from the ocean, the phosphorous will be in the rocks again.

ANSWER: Only 1 and 2

Explanation:
Ecological pyramids are the graphic representations of trophic levels in an ecosystem.
They are pyramidal in shape and they are of three types: The producers make the base of the pyramid and the subsequent tiers of the pyramid represent herbivore, carnivore and top carnivore levels. Energy pyramids are never inverted. In most of the terrestrial ecosystems the pyramid of biomass is upright. However, in case of aquatic ecosystems the pyramid of biomass may be inverted. In some instances the pyramid of number may be inverted, i.e. herbivores are more than primary producers as you may observe that many caterpillars and insects feed on a single tree.

ANSWER: Process of formation of new species

Explanation:
Speciation is the process by which new species are formed and evolution is the mechanism by which speciation is brought about. The number of species surviving in the world today is the outcome of two processes-speciation and extinction. The most common way a population undergoes speciation is by geographic isolation.

ANSWER: Only 1

Explanation:
The process by which communities of plant and animal species in an area are replaced or changed into another over a period of time is known as ecological succession. Primary succession takes place an over a bare or unoccupied areas such as rocks outcrop, newly formed deltas and sand dunes, emerging volcano islands and lava flows as well as glacial moraines (muddy area exposed by a retreating glacier), where no community has existed previously. A secondary succession is relatively fast as the soil has the necessary nutrients as well as a large pool of seeds and other dormant stages of organisms.

ANSWER: Only 2 and 3

Explanation:
Amensalism - One species is harmed while other is unaffected; Parasitism - Beneficial to one species (Parasite) and harmful to other (host).

ANSWER: None of the above

Explanation:
Neutralism describes the relationship between two species which do interact but do not affect each other. Mutualism is a close association between two species in which both the species benefit. However, some mutualisms are so intimate that the interacting species can no longer live without each other as they depend totally on each other to survive. Such close associations are called symbiosis. Familiar example of symbiosis is seen in pollination of flowers where flowering plants are cross pollinated by the bees which benefit by getting nectar from the plants and both cannot survive without the other.

ANSWER: Transportation < Industry < Agriculture, forestry and other land use < Energy Supply

Explanation:
Transportation=14%; Agriculture, forestry and other land use = 24%; Industry = 21 %; Energy Supply = 25%

ANSWER: Only 1 and 3

Explanation:
The targets for the first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol cover emissions of the six main greenhouse gases, namely: CO2 - Carbon dioxide; CH4 – Methane; N2O - Nitrous oxide; PFCs – Perfluorocarbons; HFCs – Hydrofluorocarbons; SF6 - Sulphur hexafluoride.

ANSWER: None of the above

Explanation:
The Lima Conference (COP 20) is a conference of parties to UNFCCC i.e. climate change conference. It has decided that the new agreement will be under the UNFCCC and will reflect the principle of CBDR in the light of different national circumstances. It also addresses all elements, i.e. mitigation, adaptation, finance, technology development and transfer, capacity building, and transparency of action and support in a balanced manner.

ANSWER: All of the above

Explanation:
India’s main concern in the negotiations was to protect its long term interests and emphasize the need for growth and development space to tackle the problem of eradicating poverty, providing energy access to all and address other developmental priorities. India’s stand in the negotiations was guided by the principle of Equity and Common but Differentiated Responsibilities (CBDR).

ANSWER: Least Developed Countries Fund and Special Climate Change Fund

Explanation:
The GEF also manages two separate adaptation-focused funds under the UNFCCC— the Least Developed Countries Fund and the Special Climate Change Fund— which mobilize funding specifically earmarked for activities related to adaptation. The Green Climate Fund (GCF) is also an operating entity of the financial mechanism of the Convention set up in 2011. The GCF is expected to become the major channel of mobilizing a significant share of the US$ 100 billion climate finance from developed to developing countries in the coming years, helping the latter in their efforts to combat climate change and adjust their development pathways to a more climate-friendly one.