UPSC 2013 › Environment & Ecology

Consider the following:

1. Star tortoise
2. Monitor lizard
3. Pygmy hog
4. Spider monkey

Which of the above are naturally found in India?

Which of the following can be found as pollutants in the drinking water in some parts of India?

1. Arsenic
2. Sorbitol
3. Fluoride
4. Formaldehyde
5. Uranium

Select the correct answer using the codes given below.

Consider the following animals:

1. Sea cow
2. Sea horse
3. Sea lion

Which of the above is/are mammal/mammals?

Consider the following pairs:

1. Nokrek Biosphere Reserve : Garo Hills
2. Loktak Lake : Barail Range
3. Namdapha National Park : Dafla Hills

Which of the above pairs is/are correctly matched?

In the grasslands, trees do not replace the grasses as a part of an ecological succession because of

Which one of the following is the correct sequence of ecosystems in the order of decreasing productivity?

Due to improper/indiscriminate disposal of old and used computers or their parts, which of the following are released into the environment as e-waste?

1. Beryllium
2. Cadmium
3. Chromium
4. Heptachlor
5. Mercury
6. Lead
7. Plutonium

Select the correct answer using the codes given below:

Acid rain is caused by the pollution of environment by

With reference to food chains in ecosystems, consider the following statements:

1. A food chain illustrates the order in which a chain of organisms feed upon each other.
2. Food chains are found within the populations of a species.
3. A food chain illustrates the numbers of each organism which are eaten by others.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Consider the following pairs: National Park : River flowing through the Park

1. Corbett National Park : Ganga
2. Kaziranga National Park : Manas
3. Silent Valley National Park : Kaveri

Which of the above pairs is/are correctly matched?

Consider the following organisms:

1. Agaricus
2. Nostoc
3. Spirogyra

Which of the above is/are used as biofertilizer/biofertilizers?

Which of the following adds/add nitrogen to the soil?

1. Excretion of urea by animals
2. Burning of coal by man
3. Death of vegetation

Select the correct answer using the codes given below.

In which of the following States is lion-tailed macaque found in its natural habitat?

1. Tamil Nadu
2. Kerala
3. Karnataka
4. Andhra Pradesh

Select the correct answer using the codes given below.

Which one of the following terms describes not only the physical space occupied by an organism, but also its functional role in the community of organisms?

Photochemical smog is a resultant of the reaction among

With reference to the food chains in ecosystems, which of the following kinds of organism is/are known as decomposer organism/organisms?

1. Virus
2. Fungi
3. Bacteria

Select the correct answer using the codes given below.

Which of the following is/are unique characteristic/characteristics of equatorial forests?

1. Presence of tall, closely set trees with crowns forming a continuous canopy
2. Coexistence of a large number of species
3. Presence of numerous varieties of epiphytes

Select the correct answer using the codes given below.

Consider the following fauna of India:

1. Gharial
2. Leatherback turtle
3. Swamp deer

Which of the above is/are endangered?

Which of the following leaf modifications occurs/occur in desert areas to inhibit water loss?

1. Hard and waxy leaves
2. Tiny leaves or no leaves
3. Thorns instead of leaves

Select the correct answer using the codes given below.

Mycorrhizal biotechnology has been used in rehabilitating degraded sites because mycorrhiza enables the plants to

1. Resist drought and increase absorptive area
2. Tolerate extremes of pH
3. Resist disease infestation

Select the correct answer using the codes given below: