UPSC Physical Geography – Chapter 20: Biomes and Biogeography (20 MCQs)

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UPSC Physical Geography – Chapter 20: Biomes and Biogeography (20 MCQs) – 20 questions, subject: Geography. Every question has the correct answer with a one-line explanation; tap "Show Answer". Free practice for TNPSC, UPSC, SSC, Bank and RRB exams – Shanmugam IAS Academy, Coimbatore.

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1.  

According to NCERT, the boundaries of biomes on land are determined mainly by:

Correct Answer: B [climate]

Explanation:

NCERT states that the boundaries of different biomes on land are determined mainly by climate.

2.  

Which of the following is NOT one of NCERT's five major biomes?

Correct Answer: B [Urban]

Explanation:

NCERT's five biomes are forest, desert, grassland, aquatic and altitudinal; 'urban' is a human land use, not a biome.

3.  

In Whittaker's biome diagram, the two variables used are:

Correct Answer: C [mean annual temperature and precipitation]

Explanation:

Whittaker plotted the world's terrestrial biomes against mean annual temperature and mean annual precipitation.

4.  

Cold regions beyond the tree line carry:

Correct Answer: C [tundra]

Explanation:

Beyond the tree line, low temperatures and permafrost allow only mosses, lichens, sedges and dwarf shrubs – the tundra.

5.  

The steppes, prairies, pampas and veld are examples of:

Correct Answer: D [temperate grasslands]

Explanation:

Steppes (Eurasia), prairies (North America), pampas (South America) and veld (South Africa) are mid-latitude temperate grasslands.

6.  

India lies mainly in which zoogeographic realm?

Correct Answer: D [Oriental]

Explanation:

Most of India lies in the Oriental (Indomalayan) realm, typified by the tiger, the Asian elephant and gibbons.

7.  

The Wallace Line runs between:

Correct Answer: B [Bali and Lombok]

Explanation:

The Wallace Line passes through the deep Lombok Strait between Bali and Lombok and continues between Borneo and Sulawesi.

8.  

Kangaroos and other marsupials are typical of the:

Correct Answer: A [Australian realm]

Explanation:

Kangaroos and other marsupials, along with monotremes, characterise the Australian realm east of the Wallace Line.

9.  

The concept of biodiversity hotspots was put forward by:

Correct Answer: A [Norman Myers]

Explanation:

The British ecologist Norman Myers introduced the biodiversity hotspot concept in 1988; Conservation International later adopted it.

10.  

Consider the following statements:

1. A hotspot must have a large number of endemic plant species.
2. A hotspot must have lost much of its original vegetation.
3. A hotspot must be an island.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Correct Answer: B [1 and 2 only]

Explanation:

A hotspot needs at least 1,500 endemic vascular plants and at least 70 per cent loss of original vegetation; it need not be an island.

11.  

Assertion (A): Islands often have a high proportion of endemic species.

Reason (R): Isolation allows island populations to evolve separately from mainland populations.

Correct Answer: A [Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A]

Explanation:

Isolation lets island populations evolve independently, so many island species occur nowhere else; R therefore explains A.

12.  

According to the theory of island biogeography, the most species are expected on:

Correct Answer: C [large islands near the mainland]

Explanation:

Large area lowers extinction and nearness to the mainland raises immigration, so large near islands hold the most species.

13.  

On a high tropical mountain, the belt just above the coniferous forest is usually:

Correct Answer: D [alpine scrub and meadows]

Explanation:

Above the coniferous belt lies the tree line, beyond which alpine scrub and meadows grow below the permanent snow.

14.  

Which of the following is NOT a biodiversity hotspot that includes Indian territory?

Correct Answer: D [Madagascar]

Explanation:

Madagascar and the Indian Ocean Islands is a hotspot, but it contains no Indian territory.

15.  

Fire and grazing are especially important in maintaining:

Correct Answer: A [savannas]

Explanation:

In savannas, periodic fires and grazing herbivores, with seasonal rainfall, stop trees from closing into forest.

16.  

Lemurs are found naturally in:

Correct Answer: C [Madagascar]

Explanation:

Lemurs are primates found naturally only in Madagascar, which lies in the Ethiopian (Afrotropical) realm.

17.  

Arrange the following in chronological order:

1. Wallace's six zoogeographic regions
2. Wallace's line described
3. Norman Myers's hotspots
4. Island biogeography theory

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

Correct Answer: C [2-1-4-3]

Explanation:

1859, 1876, 1967, 1988.

18.  

The upper limit of forest on a mountain is called the:

Correct Answer: B [tree line]

Explanation:

The tree line, or timberline, is the altitude above which cold and wind stop trees from growing on a mountain.

19.  

India's first biosphere reserve was:

Correct Answer: D [Nilgiri]

Explanation:

The Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, spanning Tamil Nadu, Keralam and Karnataka, was designated in 1986 as India's first.

20.  

The shola forests with grasslands are characteristic of the:

Correct Answer: A [high hills of the Western Ghats]

Explanation:

Sholas are stunted evergreen forests in valleys amid grasslands on the high hills of the Western Ghats, such as the Nilgiris.

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