UPSC Civil Services Examination — Environment & Ecology (Prelims GS and Mains GS-III) · India · Union Public Service Commission
Original practice questions written to the published syllabus · not past papersWhat biodiversity is, how it is measured, why it is being lost and how it is conserved, from IUCN Red List categories and protected areas to the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.
In the exams: ICAR AICE subject 71 Unit 2 (whole unit); GATE ES Section 8 (biodiversity); UGC NET Unit 3; UPSC CSE Prelims environment (heavily asked)
How our questions for UPSC Civil Services Examination spread across the units of Biodiversity Science & Conservation. Difficulty: 18 easy, 31 medium, 11 hard.
| In-situ conservation: protected areas, biosphere reserves | 8 | |
| Invasive alien species management | 7 | |
| Convention on Biological Diversity and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework | 7 | |
| National biodiversity laws and access and benefit-sharing | 7 | |
| Drivers of biodiversity loss: land-use change, overexploitation, climate, pollution, invasive species | 6 | |
| IUCN Red List categories and criteria | 6 | |
| Levels of biodiversity: genetic, species, ecosystem | 5 | |
| Biogeographic realms and biodiversity hotspots | 5 | |
| Ex-situ conservation: zoos, botanic gardens, seed and gene banks | 5 | |
| Values of biodiversity: use, non-use, intrinsic | 4 |
Choose an answer, then open the working. Each explanation says why the right answer is right and why the others are not.
Approximately how many species have been formally described by science?
C. About 2 million
Around 2.1 million species are described; estimates of total eukaryotic species are several times higher (one estimate is about 8.7 million). 20000 and 200000 are far too low; 200 million far exceeds described species.
Further reading: Mora et al. 2011; IUCN
According to Myers and colleagues (2000), the original 25 hotspots covered what share of the land surface?
D. 1.4 %
The 25 hotspots covered 1.4 % of land yet held 44 % of vascular plants and 35 % of terrestrial vertebrates as endemics. 44 % is the plant share, not area.
Further reading: Myers et al. 2000
According to IPBES (2019), which is the largest direct driver of biodiversity loss on land globally?
B. Changes in land use
IPBES ranked land- and sea-use change first, then direct exploitation, climate change, pollution and invasive species. On land, agricultural expansion dominates.
Further reading: IPBES Global Assessment 2019
Roughly how many species did the IPBES Global Assessment (2019) estimate to be threatened with extinction?
D. About 1 million
IPBES estimated around one million animal and plant species threatened with extinction, many within decades.
Further reading: IPBES Global Assessment 2019
Which of the five past mass extinctions was the largest?
C. The end-Permian extinction
The end-Permian event (about 252 million years ago) eliminated the largest share of marine and terrestrial species. The end-Cretaceous, which ended the non-avian dinosaurs, is the most famous but not the largest.
Further reading: Primack, Essentials of Conservation Biology
Why can a species be globally Least Concern yet legally protected in India?
C. They are separate: global science versus national law
IUCN assessments are scientific and global; Wildlife (Protection) Act schedules reflect national status, trade and cultural considerations. The Red List is not law, India does not copy it into schedules, and national law can protect any species.
Further reading: IUCN; Wildlife (Protection) Act
Which IUCN category applies to a species known only to survive in cultivation, captivity or outside its natural range?
A. Extinct in the Wild
EW applies when a species survives only in captivity, cultivation or naturalised populations outside its past range. The others describe extant wild species or assessment status.
Further reading: IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria v3.1
At about what temperature are orthodox seeds stored in long-term base collections under FAO genebank standards?
D. −18 °C
Base collections of dried orthodox seed are stored at about −18 °C. −196 °C is cryopreservation in liquid nitrogen; +4 °C is used for medium-term active collections.
Further reading: FAO Genebank Standards 2014
Seeds of mango, cocoa and rubber cannot be dried and frozen. What are they called?
C. Recalcitrant seeds
Recalcitrant seeds lose viability when dried, so they are conserved in field gene banks, in vitro or by cryopreserving embryos. Orthodox seeds tolerate drying and freezing.
Further reading: FAO Genebank Standards 2014
Which patent on a traditional Indian use was revoked by the United States patent office in 1997 after a challenge by India?
D. The wound-healing use of turmeric
India's CSIR showed prior art for turmeric's wound-healing use, and the patent was revoked in 1997; a neem fungicide patent was later revoked in Europe. Basmati involved a different dispute; tea and cotton were not such cases.
Further reading: CSIR; TKDL
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