Environment & Biodiversity MCQs

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Organisms that obtains hydrogen or electrons from organic substrates are known as Organotrophs. Some organotrophs such as animals and many bacteria can also be heterotrophs.

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Phenotype refers to a set of observable characteristics of an individual or group resulting from the interaction of its genotype with its environment. Gene pool refers to the stock of different genes in an interbreeding population.

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An Air Quality Index (AQI) of 301-500 is considered as hazardous to human health. It denotes the severely polluted state of air. AQI values over 300 trigger health warnings of emergency conditions. The entire population is even more likely to be affected by serious health effects.

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National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has developed a series of interactive maps and graphs to describe the global climate and how it has changed over time. They focus on 5 key climate indicators:
• carbon dioxide concentration
• global surface temperature
• Arctic sea ice
• land ice
• sea level

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Water is one of the abiotic factors that are nonliving chemical and physical parts of the environment that affect living organisms and the functioning of ecosystems. They affect living organisms in terms of growth, maintenance, and reproduction. A biotic factor is any living component that affects the population of another organism, or the environment.

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Biotic resources describe living or once living resources of a community; for example organisms, such as plants and animals wood, alkaloids, latex obtained from plant are also biotic resources. They are obtained from the biosphere and have life. The resources which are composed of non-living things are called Abiotic Resources. For example, water, minerals, metals, wind, solar energy etc.

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If the environmental lapse rate is greater than – 5.5 K/km, then there is some small amount of vertical turbulence and the atmosphere is said to be stable. It is also referred to as being sub-adiabatic.

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The Indian Wild Ass Sanctuary, located in the Little Rann of Kutch in Gujarat, is the largest wildlife sanctuary in India with a geographical spread of 4954 km2. It is known for the endangered wild ass subspecies Indian Wild Ass (Khur).

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The glorious Pin Valley National Park is located in the cold desert area of Lahaul and Spiti in Himachal Predesh and is home to more than 20 species of animals and birds, including the endangered Snow Leopard. Wildly furious but majestic Pin River flows right through it. The park is located in the desert habitat of the Spiti Valley, within the Cold Desert Biosphere Reserve, in the Himalayas region.

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The Iguaçu National Park is a World Heritage Site straddling the borders of Brazil and Argentina. This locale is famous for the panoramic Iguaçu Falls, consisting of about 275 individual falls, spanning 2,700 meters. Most importantly, the park serves as a sanctuary for numerous rare animals like jaguars, ocelots, and jaguarundis. The phenomenal waterfall isn’t only a top tourist attraction but also an important habitat for species like the great dusky swifts. Proclaimed a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1984, the park exemplifies global importance in wildlife conservation.