UPSC 2024 Environment and Ecology Questions with Answers

Explanation

The organisms Cicada, Froghopper, and Pond Skater are all insects. They belong to the class Insecta within the phylum Arthropoda. Cicadas are insects belonging to the order Hemiptera. They are known for their loud, distinctive calls and long life cycles with some species spending years underground as nymphs before emerging as adults. Froghoppers are also insects in the order Hemiptera. They are known for their jumping ability and the foam-like "cuckoo spit" produced by their nymphs. Pond skaters (also called water striders) are insects in the order Hemiptera. They are known for their ability to walk on water due to surface tension and their hydrophobic legs. (a) Cicada (b) Froghopper (c) Pond skater Fig: (a) Cicada, (b) Froghopper, and (c) Pond skater

Explanation

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a large, complex group of synthetic chemicals that have been used in consumer products around the world since about the 1950s.

Statement 1 is correct: People are most likely exposed to these chemicals by consuming PFAS-contaminated water or food, using products made with PFAS, or breathing air containing PFAS. Although PFOS use has been phased out, it can still be found in drinking water, groundwater, soil, and air.

Statement 2 is correct: PFAS molecules have a chain of linked carbon and fluorine atoms. Because the carbon-fluorine bond is one of the strongest, these chemicals do not degrade easily in the environment, leading to long-term contamination.

Statement 3 is correct: PFAS can accumulate in the bodies of animals, including humans, through persistent exposure. They tend to concentrate in organs like the liver and kidneys and bio-accumulate up the food chain

Explanation

Statement I is correct: Chewing gum contributes significantly to environmental pollution due to its non-biodegrad-able nature. Most chewing gums are improperly disposed of, leading to litter on streets and microplastic pollution in water bodies.

Statement II is correct: Modern chewing gums often use synthetic polymers, such as polyethylene and polyvinyl acetate, as part of their gum base, which are essentially plastics. These materials do not biodegrade easily, causing long-lasting environmental harm. The presence of plastic in gum makes it non-biodegradable and a significant contributor to pollution when improperly disposed of. Hence, Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I

Explanation

Note: Vermin category listed in Schedule V of the Wild-life Protection Act, 1972 has been removed after the Wildlife Protection Amendment Act 2022, as now there are only 4 schedules in WPA. Hence the answer is subject to considerations made by the Commission.

Statement 1 is correct: The Indian Flying Fox is placed under the "vermin" category in the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 due to its destructive tendencies towards fruit farms.

Statement 2 is incorrect: Bats are the only flying mammals in the world, and the Indian Flying Fox is one of the largest. The species, Pteropus giganteus, also called the Great Indian Fruit Bat, eats fruits, feeding on the juice, and helps in seed dispersion and pollination, making them an integral part of the ecosystem.

Explanation

Emissions that lead to high concentrations of SO₂ generally also lead to the formation of other SOx. The largest sources of SO₂ emissions are from fossil fuel combustion at power plants and other industrial facilities. EPA’s national ambient air quality standards for SO₂ are designed to protect against exposure to the entire group of sulfur oxides (SOx). SO₂ is the component of greatest concern and is used as the indicator for the larger group of gaseous sulfur oxides (SOx). Other gaseous SOx (such as SO₃) are found in the atmosphere at concentrations much lower than SO₂.

Explanation

Statement-I is incorrect: Apples are one of the major imports from the USA. After India removed "retaliatory import duty" on US apples in September, imports of American apples have surged 40 times in three months, while traders are hopeful of regaining market share. In 2017-18, the import of US apples was a record of over 7 million boxes, which dropped to 50,000 boxes in the 2022-23. Statement-II is correct: In India, the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, prohibits import, manufacture, use or sale of GM food without FSSAI’s approval.

Explanation

Many animals are predators, parasites or parasitoids, using other animals as food. They use a great diversity of hunting strategies and behaviours to capture or feed on their prey. Invertebrate predators, parasites and parasitoids play an important role in keeping many animal populations under control. Parasitoid is an insect whose larvae feed and develop within or on the bodies of other arthropods. Each parasitoid larva develops on a single individual and eventually kills that host. Most parasitoids are wasps, but some flies and a small number of beetles (carabid beetles), moths, lacewings, and even one caddisfly species have evolved to be parasitoids. Parasitoids alone number about 68,000 named species, and most have yet to be named and described. Predator: They are organisms that capture and eat another (the prey). This act is called predation. The predatory invertebrates include scorpions, centipedes, predatory mites, predatory snails and slugs, nematodes and planarian worms. Detritivores: Termites are detritivores that eat dead and decaying organic matter like logs of wood in a forest. They form an important link in the cycling of nutrients in the forests by breaking down wood and organic residues on the ground

Explanation

The banyan fig tree Ficus microcarpa is famous for its aerial roots, which sprout from branches and eventually reach the soil. Aerial roots are roots above the ground that are found in diverse plant species like mangroves, banyan figs and orchids. The tree also has a unique relationship with a wasp that has co-evolved with it and is the only insect that can pollinate it. Figs are known to sustain at least 1,200 bird and mammal species. Fig trees were among the earliest domesticated crops and appear as sacred symbols in Hinduism, Buddhism and other spiritual traditions.

Explanation

Butterflies: Hybrid Heliconius butterflies are poisonous in nature. In nature, these butterflies are rare. Heliconius melpomene and Heliconius cydno are both highly poisonous, having evolved to produce their own cyanide, and predators have learned exactly what both of these toxic insects look like. Fish: "Venomous" fish are those that can inject their toxic venom into victims, whereas "poisonous" fish are those that cause toxic symptoms only if they are eaten. For example: Lionfish, red-bel-lied piranha etc. Frogs: Frogs are amphibians which can survive both on land and water. Some of them can be poisonous also. Poison dart frogs are small, brightly colored amphibians that live on tropical rainforest floors across Central and South America. Poison dart frogs are named for the toxins they secrete from their skin, which have traditionally been used to tips of hunters’ weapons. For example, the Embera and Noanama Indigenous people in western Colombia have used the skin of golden poison frogs (Phyllobates terribilis) to tip blowgun darts for hundreds of years.

Explanation

Pair 1 is incorrectly matched: The Indri is endemic to the island country of Madagascar, specifically inhabiting the eastern rainforests. The unique geographical features and climate of Madagascar have facilitated the evolution of numerous species found nowhere else on Earth, including the Indri.

Pair 2 is incorrectly matched: Elk is the largest and most advanced subspecies of red deer, found in North America and in the high mountains of Central Asia. It is a member of the deer family. Recent genetic studies suggest that the "red deer" may have three species:

European red deer.

Tibetan-West Chinese red deer.

Elk.

Pair 3 is incorrectly matched: Bonobos and chimpanzees look very similar and both share 98.7% of their DNA with humans--making the two species our closest living relatives. Bonobos are usually a bit smaller, leaner, and darker than chimpanzees. They are found only in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Their discontinuous range extends from the Lualaba River in the east to the Kasai/Sankuru Rivers in the south and as far as the Congo River in the west and around Lake Tumba/Lake Mai-Ndombe.