Environment & Biodiversity Current Affairs MCQs

Notes:
Bannerghatta Biological Park (BBP) is set to become India’s first fully solar-powered zoo. The zoo will run entirely on renewable energy generated within the park. A 1 MW captive solar plant has been set up to meet BBP’s power needs. Bannerghatta Biological Park (BBP) is part of Bannerghatta National Park, which spans 731.8 hectares. The park includes an animal rescue centre, butterfly park, safari zone, and the zoo. This initiative marks a first-of-its-kind move towards sustainability in Indian zoos.

Notes:
Six new species of dragonflies and damselflies were recently discovered in Silent Valley National Park during an odonate survey. The park is located in the southwest corner of the Nilgiris, Kerala. It is one of India’s last undisturbed tropical rainforests and a core part of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve. It is nourished by the Kunthipuzha River and is called “silent” due to the absence of cicadas. The forest hosts four vegetation types, over 1000 flowering plant species, and rare medicinal plants.

Notes:
Birdwatchers recently made the first-ever sighting of the Indian Scops Owl near the Daroji Sloth Bear Sanctuary in Karnataka. The Indian Scops Owl is a small woodland owl native to southern Asia. It is found in India, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Iran. It lives in forests, scrublands, and agricultural areas and is non-migratory. The owl measures 17–20 cm in height with a wingspan of about 45 cm. It has large bright yellow eyes, a round head, and brown-grey feathers with fine patterns. It hunts at night, mainly feeding on insects. It is listed as Least Concern under the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List.

Notes:
The Union Government has restored and conserved about 22,560 hectares of mangroves in the last two years under the Mangrove Initiative for Shoreline Habitats & Tangible Incomes (MISHTI) scheme. MISHTI aims to increase mangrove cover along coastlines and salt pan lands. It was launched in 2023 by the Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change. The initiative followed India’s joining of the Mangrove Alliance for Climate at COP27 (Conference of Parties 27) to the UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) in 2022. It focuses mainly on the Sundarbans delta, Hooghly Estuary, and other coastal regions.

Notes:
Recently, paleontologists in China discovered a new species of the coelacanth genus Whiteia from two fossilized specimens. The Coelacanth is a prehistoric, lobe-finned fish belonging to the order Coelacanthiformes. It was believed extinct for 66 million years until rediscovered alive in 1938 off the coast of South Africa. It is known as a “living fossil.” Coelacanth fossils date back to the Devonian period, around 420 million years ago. Once, about 90 species existed globally in both marine and freshwater habitats. Today, only two living species exist — the West Indian Ocean coelacanth and the Indonesian coelacanth.

Notes:
Scientists from the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) have recently discovered a new species of slender gecko named Hemiphyllodactylus venkatadri. It was found in the Tirumala hill ranges within the Seshachalam Biosphere Reserve in Andhra Pradesh. The species is named after the sacred Venkatadri Hills. It belongs to the genus Hemiphyllodactylus and is the second slender gecko species recorded from Andhra Pradesh, after Hemiphyllodactylus arakuensis. The Venkatadri slender gecko is small, growing just over 2 inches long. It has short limbs and distinctive “spurs” at the base of its tail.

Notes:
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) recently rated Khangchendzonga National Park in Sikkim as “good” in its global review of natural World Heritage sites. It is located in Sikkim. The park is part of the Khangchendzonga Biosphere Reserve (KBR), India’s first “mixed” UNESCO World Heritage Site, recognized in 2016 for natural and cultural significance. It has 18 glaciers, the largest being Zemu Glacier, one of Asia’s largest.

Notes:
Researchers recently discovered a new aquatic insect species called Jaechanax kuranganiensis, a type of water-penny beetle. It was found in the fast-flowing Kurangani stream of the Bodi Hills, Western Ghats, Tamil Nadu. This is the first record of the Jaechanax genus in Tamil Nadu. The genus was earlier known only from three species found in other Asian countries.

Notes:
A first-of-its-kind study in eastern India tracked a bar-headed goose using a GSM–GPS transmitter, revealing its migration route and flight pattern. The bar-headed goose is a migratory bird known as one of the highest-flying birds in the world. It can fly at altitudes of up to 25,000 feet while crossing the Himalayas, surviving extremely low oxygen levels and freezing temperatures. The species is native to Central Asia, where it breeds, and is found across India, Pakistan, Nepal, Kazakhstan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Japan, and nearby regions. In India, its distribution extends from the northeastern region to southern parts of the country. It prefers high-altitude lakes during breeding and freshwater lakes, rivers, and streams during wintering.

Notes:
Community-led conservation initiatives at Chakrashila Wildlife Sanctuary have recently succeeded in restoring wild honey bee colonies, leading to improved pollination, healthier forests, and revival of associated wildlife. These efforts highlight the role of local community participation in strengthening ecosystem services and biodiversity conservation within protected areas. Chakrashila Wildlife Sanctuary is located in the Kokrajhar and Dhubri districts of Assam. The sanctuary is renowned as the second protected habitat of the endangered golden langur, supporting a population of over 600 individuals, making it ecologically significant at the national level.