Issues on Environment, Biodiversity & Climate Change (Part-IV)

Total Questions: 61

41. Consider the following fauna: [2023-1]

1. Lion-tailed Macaque

2. Malabar Civet

3. Sambar Deer

How many of the above are generally nocturnal or most active after sunset?

Correct Answer: (a) Only one
Solution:Lion-tailed macaque, also known as the wanderoo, thrives in the upper canopy of tropical evergreen rainforests and monsoon forests, at a wide range of elevations, from 330 to 6,000 ft (100-1,850 m). They are endemic to the Western Ghats. Lion-tailed macaques are diurnal and live in groups of 10 to 20 individuals. The Lion-tailed macaque (Macaca silenus) is an Old World monkey. One of the distinguishing features of this species is that males define the boundaries of their home ranges by calls. Overall, their communication system contains as many as 17 vocalizations. The magnificent Lion-tailed macaque is named due to its lion-like, long, thin, and tufted tail. In the wild, these are only native to India. It is a primate endemic to small and severely fragmented rainforests of the Western Ghats in Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

42. Which of the following organisms perform waggle dance for others of their kin to indicate the direction and the distance to a source of their food? [2023-1]

Correct Answer: (c) Honeybees
Solution:"Honeybees possess one of the most complicated examples of non human communication. They can tell each other where to find resources such as food, water, or nest sites with a physical "waggle dance."
The waggle dance of honeybees is an intricate and precise pattern of movements that a forager bee exhibits upon returning to the hive. The various aspects of the dance communicate varied information about a resource. These are described as follows:
• Location of Food Sources– The main purpose of the waggle dance is to inform other members of the hive about the location of profitable food sources, such as flower patches with abundant nectar and pollen.
• Direction– The orientation of the waggle dance indicates the direction of the food source in relation to the sun. For example, if the bee waggles while moving upward on the vertical comb, the food source is located in the direction of the sun. If it waggles while moving downward, the food source is opposite to the sun.
• Distance– The duration of the waggle phase is related to the distance of the food source. The longer the waggle runs, the farther away the food source is from the hive.
• Quality– The vigor of the waggle dance is believed to convey information about the quality of the food source. A more vigorous and energetic dance may indicate a richer or more abundant food source.
• Recruitment of Foragers– The waggle dance inspires other worker bees within the hive to venture out to the reported food source. The more energetic and detailed the dance is, the more likely it is that more bees will be convinced to go out and collect food from that place.
• Environmental Adaptation– The waggle dance allows honeybees to communicate in their dark hive environment enabling the colony to quickly and collectively exploit food resources in the surrounding environment.

43. Consider the following statements regarding the Indian squirrels: [2023-1]

1. They build nests by making burrows in the ground.

2. They store their food materials like nuts and seeds in the ground.

3. They are omnivorous.

How many of the above statements are correct?

Correct Answer: (b) Only two
Solution:St 1 wrong. Indian squirrels do not build nests by making burrows in the ground. They build nests in trees, using leaves, twigs, and other materials.

St 2 right. Indian squirrels do store their food materials like nuts and seeds in the ground. They also store food in trees and in other hidden places.

St 3 right. Indian squirrels are omnivorous. They eat a variety of things, including nuts, seeds, fruits, insects, and small animals.

Therefore, statements 2 and 3 are correct, while statement I is incorrect.

It is state animal of Puducherry.

44. Consider the following statements: [2023-1]

1. Some microorganisms can grow in environments with temperature above the boiling point of water.

2. Some microorganisms can grow in environments with temperature below the freezing point of water.

3. Some microorganisms can growin highly acidic environment with a pH below 3.

How many of the above statements are correct?

Correct Answer: (c) All three
Solution:The answer is (c). All three statements are correct.

"Thermophiles: A thermophile is an organism a type of extremophile that thrives at relatively high temperatures, between 41 and 122 °C (106 and 252 °F).

Psychrophiles or cryophiles are extremophilic organisms that are capable of growth and reproduction in low temperatures, ranging from -20 °C (-4 °F) to 20 °C (68 °F).

Acidophiles are organisms that can withstand and even thrive in acidic environments where the pH values range from 1 to 5."

45. Which one of the following makes a tool with a stick to scrape insects from a hole in a tree or a log of wood? [2023-1]

Correct Answer: (b) Orangutan
Solution:The present study examined the use and making of tools to obtain foodstuffs in artificial-mound holes by five captive, group-living Sumatran orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus abelii). Three adult orangutans frequently stripped leaves and twigs from a branch provided (tool-making), and then inserted the tool into a hole to obtain foodstuffs (tool-using).

When the orangutans were unable to insert a tool into a hole, they usually modified the tool and/or changed their tool-using technique, such as changing how they grasped the tool.

Orangutans are great apes native to the rainforests of Indonesia and Malaysia. They are now found only in parts of Borneo and Sumatra, but during the Pleistocene they ranged throughout Southeast Asia and South China.

Orangutans are among the most intelligent primates. They use a variety of sophisticated tools and construct elaborate sleeping nests each night from branches and foliage.

46. Consider the following statements: [2023-1]

1. In India, the Biodiversity Management Committees are key to the realization of the objectives of the Nagoya Protocol.

2. The Biodiversity Management Committees have important functions in determining access and benefit sharing, including the power to levy collection fees on the access of biological resources within its jurisdiction.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Correct Answer: (c) Both 1 and 2
Solution:The correct answer is (c), both 1 and 2.

The Biodiversity Management Committees (BMCs) are key to the realization of the objectives of the Nagoya Protocol, as they are responsible for promoting conservation, sustainable use and documentation of biological diversity. They also have important functions in determining access and benefit sharing. including the power to levy collection fees on the access of biological resources within its jurisdiction.

The BMCs also have the power to levy collection fees on the access of biological resources within its jurisdiction. The collection fees are used for the conservation and sustainable use of biological resources.

47. Invasive Species Specialist Group' (that develops Global Invasive Species Database) belongs to which one of the following organizations? [2023-1]

Correct Answer: (a) The International Union for Conservation of Nature
Solution:Invasive Species Specialist Group (ISSG): By increasing awareness about invasive alien species and methods to prevent.

control, or eradicate them, it seeks to reduce threats to natural ecosystems and the native species they support. The ISSG promotes and facilitates the global interchange of knowledge and information on invasive species and ensures the connection between knowledge, practice, and policy so that decisions are well-informed.

Policy and technical guidance, as well as information sharing through its online tools and resources and through networking, are the ISSG's two main focus areas.

48. Consider the following statements: [2023-1]

Once the Central Government notifies an area as a 'Community Reserve'

1. the Chief Wildlife Warden of the State becomes the governing authority of such forest

2. hunting is not allowed in such area

3. people of such area are allowed to collect non-timber forest produce

4. people of such area are allowed traditional agricultural practices

How many of the above statements are correct?

Correct Answer: (b) Only two
Solution:Community reserves in India are terms denoting protected areas of India which typically act as buffer zones to or connectors and migration corridors between established national parks, wildlife sanctuaries and reserved and protected forests of India Statement 1 is incorrect: As per the Section 36 D of the Wild Life Protection Act (WLPA): The State Government shall constitute a Community Reserve management committee, which shall be the authority responsible for conserving, maintaining and managing the community reserve. The committee shall elect a Chairman who shall also be the Honorary Wild Life Warden on the community reserve. Statement 2 is correct: After a forest has been made into a community reserve, people are not allowed to hunt there, thus hunting is prohibited in community reserves. Statement 3 is correct: People of such area are allowed to collect non-timber forest produce. Statement 4 is incorrect: After a forest has been made into a community reserve, people are not allowed to hunt there, or use it for agricultural practices such as Shifting (jhum) cultivation.

49. Consider the following statements: [2023-1]

Statement-I: Carbon markets are likely to be one of the most widespread tools in the fight against climate change.

Statement-II: Carbon markets transfer resources, from the private sector to the State.

Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

Correct Answer: (b) Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II is not the correct explanation for Statement-I
Solution:The answer is (b), both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct but Statement-II is not the correct explanation for Statement-1.

Statement-I is correct because carbon markets are a way of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by creating a financial incentive for businesses to reduce their emissions. Businesses that reduce their emissions can sell their emission reductions to other businesses that are not able to reduce their emissions as much. This creates a market for emission reductions, and the price of emission reductions is determined by supply and demand.

Statement-II is also correct because the government can use carbon markets to raise revenue. The government can sell emission allowances, and the revenue from the sale of emission allowances can be used to fund climate change mitigation and adaptation programs.

50. Consider the following statements regarding mercury pollution: [2023-1]

1. Gold mining activity is a source of mercury pollution in the world.

2. Coal-based thermal power plants cause mercury pollution.

3. There is no known safe level of exposure to mercury.

How many of the above statements are correct?

Correct Answer: (b) Only two
Solution:Statement 1 is correct: Gold mining is poisoning Amazon forests with mercury. To separate the gold, miners mix liquid mercury into the sediment, which forms a coating around the gold.

Statement 2 is correct: Fly ash generated by TPPs is one of the ways mercury is released into the environment. Fly ash is usually disposed in ash ponds in the form of ash slurry, forming an aquatic ecosystem of its own. Coal-based TPPs are the major source of mercury the ninth most toxic element found on earth-emissions into the environment.

Mercury contributed over 80 per cent of emissions released by the TPPs, according to 2016 estimates by Delhi-based think-tank Centre for Science and Environment.

Statement 3 is incorrect: While high levels of mercury exposure can be harmful, there are established safe levels of exposure to mercury for various scenarios. As per different reports currently, mercury vapours concentrations greater than 0.01 mg/m³ are considered unsafe.