3rd October 2020, Static Quiz on Environment

Correct Answer : C
Answer Justification :
Justification: Statement 1: The preferred habitat of an Indian rhinoceros is alluvial flood plains and areas containing tall grasslands
along the foothills of the Himalayas. Formerly, extensively distributed in the Gangetic plains, today the species is restricted to small habitats in Indo-Nepal terai and northern West Bengal and Assam. In India, rhinos are mainly found in Kaziranga NP, Pobitara WLS, Orang
NP, Manas NP in Assam, Jaldapara NP and Garumara NP in West Bengal and Dudhwa TR in Uttar Pradesh.
Statement 2 and 3: The Indian rhino has a single horn, which is present in both sexes. It is the largest of all the Asian rhinos. Considered to be the most amphibious of all the rhino species, the Indian rhino is an excellent swimmer. It can run at speeds of up to 55km/hr for short periods of time. Though it has an excellent sense of hearing and smell, its eyesight is relatively poor.

Correct Answer : A
Answer Justification :
Learning: They are a breed of goat inhabiting the plateaus in Tibet and neighboring areas They are best known for the pashmina wools

Correct Answer : B
Answer Justification :
Learning: The Ganges River dolphin or Susu, lives in one of the most densely populated regions of the world in the fresh water of
Ganga and Brahmaputra. One of the main threats to the species is loss of habitat due in large part to the creation of dams and irrigation projects. The presence of Susu is an indication of the health of the river. The untreated industrial and urban wastes with high amount of
chemicals are killing this species.

Correct Answer : B
Answer Justification :
Justification: Statement 1: This could have been made out because the

Naga tribes do not live in deciduous forests and instead inhabit semi-evergreen and evergreen forests. So, this option could have been eliminated easily. It was found in a forest at an altitude of 1 ,500-1,600 metres during an exploration near Tobu town of Mon district in eastern Nagaland.
Statement 2: Gleadovia konyakianorum is a holoparasite (complete parasite) plant that derives its entire nutritional requirement from the host plant, which is a Strobilanthes species. It has no chlorophyll (which helps a plant make its own food using
sunlight). Though it has no chlorophyll, the plant has a vascular system and extracts (its nutrition from the host plant with the help of a haustorium. Haustorium is specialised structure with which plant parasites attach themselves to host plants and derive nutrition.

Correct Answer : D
Answer Justification :
Learning: It was named Musa paramjitiana in honour of Paramjit Singh, director of the Botanical Survey of India (BSI). Musa paramjitiana species was discovered in North Andaman’s Krishnapuri forest, 6 kilometres from any human habitation. The fruit of Musa paramjitiana is part of diet of local tribes. Its fruits and seeds have ethno-medicinal importance. Pseudo-stem and leaves of these species are also used during religious and cultural ceremonies. Its conservation status has been declared as ‘Critically Endangered’ as it has so far been spotted in only two locations on islands, each with 6 to 18 plants in a clump.

Correct Answer : B
Answer Justification :
Justification: It has been suggested that we should plant eucalyptus trees for arresting ecological degradation.
Justification: Statement 2: Growing eucalyptus along sewage ponds absorbs all surplus wastewater. It is said that these trees are thirsty of water and guzzle a lot of water.
Statement 2: However, where water is sufficient or there is a lot of waste water, it is utilized for tree growth which then could yield fuelwood, helping in many ways.
Eucalyptus plantations are known to sequester, tolerate and accumulate high levels of various heavy metals.

Correct Answer : B
Answer Justification : Justification: The Himalayan Yew is a medicinal plant found in various parts of Himachal Pradesh and Arunachal Pradesh. A chemical compound called ‘taxol’ is extracted from the bark, needles, twigs and roots of this tree, and it has been successfully
used to treat some cancers – the drug is now the biggest selling anti- cancer drug in theworld. The species is under great threat due to over-exploitation.

Correct Answer : A
Answer Justification : Justification: Mosses are a common flowerless plant found in all cities especially in damp (humid) or shady locations. It generally absorbs water and nutrients from their immediate environments. So, according to scientists, delicate mosses found on rocks and trees in cities around the world can be used as low-cost bioindicator to monitor urban pollution and to measure the impact of atmospheric change. As a bioindicator, mosses respond to pollution or drought- stress by changing its shape, density or disappearing.This characteristic will allow scientists to calculate atmospheric alterations and air pollution.

Correct Answer: A
Answer Justification :
Justification: Statement 1: Trichomes, in the form of scales or hairs, allow bromeliads to capture water in cloud forests and help
to reflect sunlight in desert environments. Bromeliads also use crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM) photosynthesis to create sugars.
This adaptation allows bromeliads in hot or dry climates to open their stomates at night rather than during the day, which reduces
water loss through transpiration. Statement 2 and 3: Some bromeliads have also developed an adaptation known as the tank habit, which involves them forming a tightly bound structure with their leaves that helps to capture water and nutrients in the absence of a well-developed root system.

Correct Answer : B
Answer Justification :
Justification: Statement 1: It is one of the sturdiest plants that can grow in areas where the soil is highly polluted, including in areas
where mining is carried out.
Statement 2: Castor is indigenous to the southeastern Mediterranean Basin, Eastern Africa, and India.
Statement 3: It is a popular medicine as well as used in cosmetics.
Statement 4: Castor seed is the source of castor oil, which has a wide variety of uses. The seeds contain between 40% and 60% oil that is rich in triglycerides, mainly ricinolein. The acid and its derivatives, inhibits many microbes, whether viral, bacterial or fungal.
Learning: The use of castor bean oil (“eranda”) in India has been documented since 2000 BC in lamps and in local medicine as a
laxative, purgative, and cathartic in Unani, Ayurvedic, siddha and other ethnomedical systems.