There is little biodiversity at the poles. It increases in temperate areas but reaches the maximum in tropical rain forests. It is because the tropical rain forest have favourable, conditions with no catastrophes. The Amazon rainforest, alternatively, the Amazon jungle or Amazonia, is a moist broadleaf tropical rainforest in the Amazon biome that covers most of the Amazon basin of South America. Answer:(b)

The Botanical Survey of India has published four volumes of Red Data Book of Indian Plants, (Eds. Jain & Rao, 1984; Nayar & Sastry 1987 – 1990) and Red List of Threatened Vascular Plant Species in India Answer : (a)

Animal or plant species which are endangered or threatened (organisms facing a very high risk of extinction in the wild in the near future), needs urgent measures to save it from extinction. Answer : (c)

In-situ conservation aims to enable biodiversity to maintain itself within the context of the ecosystem in which it is found. In-situ management approaches can either be targeted at populations of selected species (species-centred) or whole ecosystems (ecosystem-based) Wildlife and livestock conservation involve in-situ conservation. It can be used to conserve crops and their wild relatives. Examples include national parks, wildlife sanctuaries, biospheres reserve Ex-situ conservation is the conservation of components of biological diversity outside their natural habitats. Example botanical garden. Answer : (c)

There are two types of conservation strategies: 1) In-situ conservation which includes identifying hotspots, forming protected areas, national parks, sanctuaries and biosphere reserve. 2) Ex-situ conservation includes offsite collections, gene bank. Gene bank are institutes that maintain stocks of viable seeds ( seed banks), live growing plants ( orchid), tissue culture and frozen germplasm with the whole range of genetic variability. Zoological parks,botanical gardens and wildlife safari parks serve this purpose. Answer : (b)

Some extreme estimates range from 20 to 50 million, but a more conservative and scientifically sound estimate made by Robert May places the global species diversity at about 7 million. Answer : (b)

Drosera indica is the scientific name for sundew which is found mostly in the tropical countries throughout the world. It is an insectivorous plant and it is categorised as endangered flora by the IUCN. Answer : (a)

Endemic species are those plants and animals that exist only in one geographical region. Banyan is an endemic species of India. Answer:(a)

The Keoladeo national park previously known as the Bharatpur national park is located in district Bharatpur of Rajasthan. Every year, Siberian cranes are regular visitors of this park. Answer : (b)

India has also a history of religious and cultural traditions that emphasised protection of nature. In many cultures, tracts of forest were set aside, and all the trees and wildlife within were venerated and given total protection. Such sacred groves are found in Khasi and Jaintia Hills in Meghalaya, Aravalli Hills of Rajasthan, Western Ghat regions of Karnataka and Maharashtra and the Sarguja, Chanda and Bastar areas of Madhya Pradesh. In Meghalaya, the sacred groves are the last refuges for a large number of rare and threatened plants. Answer : (a)

Threatened species are any species which are vulnerable to endangerment in the near future. A rare species is a group of organisms that are very uncommon, scarce, or infrequently encountered. An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. A vulnerable species is a species which has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature that is threatened with extinction unless the circumstances that are threatening its survival and reproduction improve. Answer : (c)

Brown Antlered deer also known as the sangai deer is found in an isolated population of 260 deer in a small protected area, the Keibul Lamjao National Park, comprising of floating biomass and water body in the southern part of the Loktak Lake in Manipur. Answer : (c)

Biosphere reserves in india are: (1)Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka (2)Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve, Tamil Nadu (3) Sundarbans Biosphere Reserve, West Bengal (4) Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve, Uttarakhand (5) Nokrek Biosphere Reserve, Meghalaya (6) Pachmarhi Biosphere Reserve, Madhya Pradesh (7) Simlipal Biosphere Reserve, Odisha (8) Great Nicobar Biosphere Reserve, Andaman & Nicobar Islands (9) Achanakmar-Amarkantak Biosphere Reserve Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh (10) Agasthyamalai Biosphere Reserve, Kerala and Tamil Nadu (11) Khangchendzonga National Park, Sikkim (12)Panna Biosphere Reserve, Madhya Pradesh Answer:(b)

Tropical rainforests are increasingly disappearing from developing nations like India. The explanation is because deforestation, poaching, building, mining, etc. Assertion is true. Tropical forest have rich species diversity. A forest in a tropical region like Equador has up to 10 times as many species of vascular plants as a forest of equal area in a temperate region like the Midwest of the USA. Reason is false. Answer : (c)

Hornbill and Indian aconite is a pair of endangered species which are low in population number and are considered as the danger of becoming extinct. They have been characterized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature red list as they are likely to become extinct. Answer : (a)

Wildlife sanctuaries - greater than 50000 Biosphere reserves - 710 Natinonal park - 3044 Hot spots - 34 Answer : (a)

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List (2004) documents the extinction of 784 species (including 338 vertebrates, 359 invertebrates and 87 plants) in the last 500 years Answer : (a)

Dudhwa National Park is famous for conserving Indian one-horned rhinoceros. It is located in Uttar Pradesh. park in use for conservation purposes is known as a National park Answer : (b)

The Indian state of Assam is home to the largest population of greater-one horned rhinos, with more than 90% in Kaziranga National Park. Answer:(a)

Helianthus annuus, the common sunflower, is a large annual forb of the genus Helianthus grown as a crop for its edible oil and edible fruits. Brassica campestris is field mustard. oil is extracted from it. Oil and fiber is obtained from Cocos nucifera. Oil is used fro cooking and in cosmetic and haircare industry. Fibers from coconut is used as car seat stuffing, it act as raw material for carpeting and also used as fertilizer. Corchorus capsularis, commonly known as white jute, is a shrub species in the family Malvaceae. It is one of the sources of jute fibre, considered to be of finer quality than fibre from Corchorus olitorius, the main source of jute. Answer:(c)

The Dudhwa National Park is a national park in the Terai belt of marshy grasslands in northern Uttar Pradesh, India. It stretches over an area of 490.3 km², with a buffer zone of 190 km². It is part of the Dudhwa Tiger Reserve in the Kheri and Lakhimpur districts. Answer : (b)

Hot spots are areas that are extremely rich in species diversity, have high endemism and are under constant threat. The key criteria for determining a hot spot are a number of endemic species, and degree of threat, which is measured in terms of habitat globally with an approximate area of 1.4%. Among the 25 hot spots, 2 are found in India, ie, Western Ghat and Eastern Himalayas. These areas are particularly rich in floral wealth and endemism not only in flowering plants but also in reptiles, amphibians, swallow-tailed butterflies and some mammals. Answer : (a)

In many cultures, tracts of forest were set aside, and all the trees and wildlife within were venerated and given total protection. Such sacred groves are found in Khasi and Jaintia Hills in Meghalaya, Aravalli Hills of Rajasthan, Western Ghat regions of Karnataka and Maharashtra and the Sarguja, Chanda and Bastar areas of Madhya Pradesh. In Meghalaya, the sacred groves are the last refuges for a large number of rare and threatened plants. Answer : (a)

The Biological Diversity Act, 2002 is an Act enacted by the Parliament of India for the preservation of biological diversity in India, and provides mechanism for equitable sharing of benefits arising out of the use of traditional biological resources and knowledge. Answer : (d)

Central Wildlife Board' was established in 1951. Indian Board for Wildlife is a statutory organization constituted by the Ministry of environment, forests and wildlife, Government of India in 1952. Theoretically, the board is 'advisory' in nature. Answer : (d)

India is one of the richest countries when it comes to the diversity of plant species. Around 45,000 plant species are estimated to be present in India. Answer : (b)

Threatened species are any species which are vulnerable to endangerment in the near future. Answer : (d)

Our country’s in situ conservation efforts are reflected in its 14 biosphere reserves, 90 national parks, > 450 wildlife sanctuaries and many sacred groves. Ex situ conservation methods include protective maintenance of threatened species in zoological parks, wildlife safari park and botanical gardens, in vitro fertilisation, tissue culture propagation and cryopreservation of gametes. Answer : (c)

Amazon rain forest is so huge that it used to cover 14% of earth's land mass. Due to this massive coverage, it is called as 'lungs of the planet'. Answer : (d)

India has more than 50,000 genetically different strains of rice, and 1,000 varieties of mango Answer : (d)