Environment previous year Questions UPSC /IAS 2013

1. Consider the following (UPSC / IAS 2013)

1. Star tortoise
2. Monitor lizard
3. Pygmy hog
4. Spider monkey

Which of the above is found in India?

2.

Which of the following can be found as pollutants in the drinking water in some parts of India? (UPSC / IAS 2013)

1. Arsenic

2. Sorbitol

3. Fluoride

4. Formaldehyde

5. Uranium

Select the correct answer using the codes given below.

3.

Consider the following animals: (UPSC / IAS 2013)

1. Sea cow

2. Sea horse

3. Sea lion

Which of the above is/are mammal/mammals?

4.

On the planet earth, most of the freshwater exists as ice caps and glaciers. Out of the remaining

freshwater, the largest proportion (UPSC / IAS 2013)

5.

In the grasslands, trees do not replace the grasses as a part of an ecological succession because

of (UPSC / IAS 2013)

6.

Which one of the following is the correct sequence of ecosystems in the order of decreasing

productivity? (UPSC / IAS 2013)

7. Acid rain is caused by the pollution of environment by (UPSC / IAS 2013)

8.

With reference to food chains in ecosystems, consider the following statements : (UPSC / IAS 2013)

1. A food chain illustrates the order in which a chain of organisms feed upon each other

2. Food chains are found within the populations of a species

3. A food chain illustrates the numbers of each organism which are eaten by others

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

9.

Consider the following organisms (UPSC / IAS 2013)

1. Agaricus

2. Nostoc

3. Spirogyra

Which of the above is/are used as biofertilizer/biofertilizers

10.

Which of the following adds/add nitrogen to the soil? (UPSC / IAS 2013)

1. Excretion of urea by animals

2. Burning of coal by man

3. Death of vegetation

Select the correct answer using the codes given below.

11.

In which of the following States is lion-tailed macaque found in its natural habitat? (UPSC / IAS 2013)

1. Tamil Nadu

2. Kerala

3. Karnataka

4. Andhra Pradesh

Select the correct answer using the codes given below.

12. Which one of the following terms describes not only the physical space occupied by an

organism but also its functional role in the community of organisms? (UPSC / IAS 2013)

13.

With reference to the food chains in ecosystems, which of the following kinds of organisms

is/are known as decomposer organism/organisms? (UPSC / IAS 2013)

1. Virus

2. Fungi

3. Bacteria

Select the correct answer using the codes given below.

14.

During a thunderstorm, the thunder in the skies is produced by the (UPSC / IAS 2013)

1. meeting of cumulonimbus clouds in the sky

2. lightning that separates the nimbus clouds

3. violent upward movement of air and water particles

Select the correct answer using the codes given below.

15. Fruits stored in a cold chamber exhibit longer storage life because (UPSC / IAS 2013)

16.

Consider the following fauna of India: (UPSC / IAS 2013)

1. Gharial

2. Leatherback turtle

3. Swamp deer

Which of the above is/are endangered?