Environmental Studies · Geography

Natural Vegetation and Habitats

1,633 Questions

Study the characteristics of various biomes, including tropical rainforests, savannas, and thorn forests. Questions address ecological concepts like stratification, climate factors, and regional vegetation types such as littoral forests. This topic is commonly asked in geography and environmental science papers.

Forest biomes and typesSavanna and grassland habitatsTropical rainforest characteristicsEcological stratificationThreats to natural habitats

Natural Vegetation and Habitats Questions

Multiple choice

The greatest diversity of animals and plants occurs in

  1. temperate deciduous forests

  2. tropical moist forests

  3. heavily polluted rivers

  4. desert lands
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Tropical moist forests (rainforests) harbor the greatest biodiversity of plant and animal species on Earth. The Amazon rainforest alone contains about 10% of all known species. The stable climate, abundant rainfall, and complex vertical structure create numerous ecological niches. Temperate forests, polluted rivers, and deserts have significantly lower biodiversity.

Multiple choice

Daily and annual range of temperature is maximum in the

  1. savanna grassland

  2. temperate grassland

  3. hot desert

  4. equatorial region
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Hot deserts experience the maximum daily and annual range of temperature because they have minimal cloud cover and sparse vegetation. During the day, intense solar radiation causes rapid heating, while at night, the lack of cloud cover and low humidity allow rapid heat loss through terrestrial radiation. This creates extreme diurnal and annual temperature variations.

Multiple choice

Which of the following biomes is incorrectly paired with the description of its climate?

  1. Savannah - Cool temperature and uniform precipitation during the year

  2. Tundra - extreme cold, permafrost and brief summer

  3. Chapparal - mild and wet winters, hot and dry summer

  4. Tropical - nearly constant temperature and rich varieties present here

  5. Steppe - temperate biome
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Savannahs have warm temperature year round. There are actually two very different seasons in a savannah; a very long dry season (winter) and a very wet season (summer). 

Multiple choice

Match the following:

 
Column I Column II
A. Mesothermic i. Grow in a wide range of temperature, from 0 to 55°C
B. Hekisothermic ii. Live in a narrow range of temperature, like aquatic plants
C. Eurythermic iii. Live in neither hot nor cold climates, as in tropical rain forests
D. Stenothermic iv. Mostly grow in alpine regions

  1. A – iv, B – i, C – ii, D – iii

  2. A – ii, B – iii, C – iv, D – i

  3. A – iii, B – iv, C – i, D – ii

  4. A – iii, B – i, C – iv, D – ii
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Eurythermic plants are those which grow in a wide range of temperature, from freezing to 55°C.

Multiple choice

In what kind of region does cactus majorily grow?

  1. Dry-semiarid regions

  2. Wet-marshy regions

  3. Rainy-tropical regions

  4. None of the above
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Cacti are adapted to arid and semiarid environments with minimal rainfall, using specialized water-storage tissues in their stems and reduced leaf surfaces (spines) to minimize water loss through transpiration. These adaptations allow them to survive in harsh desert conditions.

Multiple choice

Which of the following options characterize the desert forests?

  1. Broad leaves

  2. Dense leaves

  3. Pointed leaves

  4. None of these
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Desert forests are characterized by xerophytic adaptations including pointed or needle-like leaves that minimize water loss through reduced surface area and transpiration. Broad, dense leaves would lose excessive water in arid conditions and are thus unsuitable for desert environments.

Multiple choice

Which among the following is not a realm or ecozone?

  1. The Nearctic

  2. The Palearctic

  3. The Afrotropic

  4. Polar Fresh water
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Fresh water is naturally occurring water on the Earth's surface in bogs, ponds, lakes, rivers and streams, and underground as groundwater in aquifers and underground streams. Fresh water is generally characterized by having low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids.It is classified as freshwater biome.

Multiple choice

Which among the following is not a freshwater biome?

  1. Lake

  2. Antarctica

  3. Endorheic basin

  4. River Delta
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Antarctica is one of eight terrestrial ecozones. The ecosystem includes Antarctica and several island groups in the southern Atlantic and Indian Oceans.

Multiple choice

Bamboo and pine trees are generally found in which one of the following types of climates?

  1. Taiga

  2. Tropical monsoon

  3. Mediterranean

  4. Savanna
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Bamboo and pine trees are indeed characteristic of tropical monsoon climates. These evergreen forests thrive in regions with heavy seasonal rainfall. Taiga (boreal forests) has conifers but is cold; Mediterranean climates have sclerophyllous vegetation like olives; Savannas are tropical grasslands with scattered trees, not dense bamboo-pine forests.

Multiple choice

Consider the following statements:

  1. Biodiversity hotspots are located only in tropical regions.
  2. India has four biodiversity hotspots, i.e. Eastern Himalayas, Western Himalayas, Western Ghats and Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. 1 only

  2. 2 only

  3. Both 1 and 2

  4. Neither 1 nor 2
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Biodiversity hotspots are found in temperate regions only. Eastern Himalayas, Western Ghats and Andaman Islands are such hotspots.

Multiple choice

lf a tropical rainforest is removed, it does not regenerate quickly as compared to a tropical deciduous forest. This is because

  1. the soil of a rainforest is deficient in nutrients

  2. the propagules of the trees in a rainforest have poor viability

  3. the rainforest species are slow-growing

  4. exotic species invade the fertile soil of rainforest
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Sunlight is very important for the growth of a plant. The trees in a rainforest are long and do not allow the sunlight to pass through them.

Multiple choice

Which of the following is/are unique characteristic(s) of equatorial forests?

  1. Presence of tall, closely set trees with crowns forming a continuous canopy
  2. Coexistence of a large number of species
  3. Presence of numerous varieties of epiphytes

  1. 1 only

  2. 2 and 3 only

  3. 1 and 3 only

  4. 1, 2 and 3
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

The canopy is the primary layer of the forest forming a roof over the two remaining layers. The densest of the biodiversity is found here along with a large variety of epiphytes.

Multiple choice

In order to prevent the expansion of deserts, trees are planted in strips or blocks with the shortest trees on the desert side and tallest on the other side. Such plantation is called

  1. shelterbelts

  2. agro forests

  3. wind breaks

  4. social forests
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Shelterbelts are linear plantations of trees and shrubs designed to reduce wind erosion and protect soil from desiccation. The strategic arrangement with shorter trees on the desert side creates a gradual wind barrier that effectively prevents sand encroachment. Windbreaks and social forestry are related but distinct concepts.