Biogeography & Ecosystems

Urban Forests use the Miyawaki method to create urban forests. Miyawaki urban forests are fascinating complex ecosystems, in balance with today's soil and climate conditions. This technique works worldwide irrespective of soil and climatic conditions. Over 2000 forests were successfully created using this method. Doctor Akira Miyawaki, botanist and professor, is the inventor of the technique since 1980. He is a recipient of the 2006 Blue Planet Prize, which is the equivalent of a Nobel Prize in ecology.

Biorock technology uses a low voltage electrical current to stimulate the growth of minerals on submerged structures. This creates a limestone-like material similar to that found in natural coral reefs. Biorock structures can provide a stable substrate for coral polyps to attach and grow, accelerating the restoration of degraded coral reefs. While Biorock can be used for other purposes, like creating artificial reefs for mariculture (fish farming) or promoting the growth of seacrete building materials, its application in coral reef restoration is a major area of interest.

Out of the listed functions of wetlands, the one that best reflects the analogy of "kidneys" is option D. Kidneys in our body function as a filtering system, removing waste products and excess fluids from the blood.
Wetlands with their dense vegetation and saturated soils, wetlands act as natural filters for water. Aquatic plants and microbes in wetlands play a crucial role in
- Phytoremediation: Aquatic plants can absorb and accumulate heavy metals and other pollutants from water.
- Nutrient cycling: Wetlands help regulate nutrient levels in water by absorbing excess nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus. This prevents them from flowing into rivers, lakes, and oceans and causing harmful algal blooms. By filtering pollutants and excess nutrients, wetlands help purify water and maintain healthy aquatic ecosystems. This aligns with the concept of kidneys filtering waste from our blood.

- Ants are well-known as cultivators of fungi. Certain ant species, particularly those in the tribe Attini, have evolved a symbiotic relationship with specific fungi. These ants cultivate the fungus within their nests, providing it with food and a controlled environment. In return, the fungus provides the ants with nutrients. This is a fascinating example of mutualism in nature. - Cockroaches are omnivores and scavengers. They do not cultivate fungi. - Crabs are primarily scavengers or predators. They are not known to cultivate fungi. - Spiders are predators and capture their prey (insects) in webs. They do not cultivate fungi.

Statement 1 is correct: The Guchhi mushroom is a species of fungus in the Morchellaceae family of the Ascomycota. It exhibits a pale yellow colouration with large pits and ridges on the surface of the cap, which is elevated on a large white stem. Statement 2 is correct: This mushroom is cultivated in the foothills of the Himalayas, specifically in regions such as Himachal Pradesh, Uttaranchal, and Jammu and Kashmir. Statement 3 is incorrect: These mushrooms cannot be cultivated on a commercial scale and instead grow naturally in conifer forests across various temperature regions. It takes months for villagers to gather sufficient quantities of these mushrooms, dry them, and transport them to the market.

Hedgehogs: Hedgehogs are small mammals have a unique defense mechanism where they roll up into a tight ball, using their sharp spines as a form of protection against predators. Marmots: Marmots do not roll up to protect themselves. Instead, they typically rely on burrows and their ability to give warning calls to avoid predators. Pangolins: Similar to hedgehogs, pangolins also roll up into a ball when threatened. They use their tough keratin scales as armor to protect their vulnerable parts.

Detritivores: These are organisms that feed on dead and decaying organic matter (detritus). Earthworms: They are classic detritivores, breaking down organic matter in soil and aiding in decomposition. Millipedes: They feed on decaying leaves and other organic debris on the forest floor. Woodlice: These small crustaceans are also detritivores, consuming decaying plant and animal matter. Jellyfish: While they might incidentally ingest some detritus while filtering water for food, they are primarily carnivores, feeding on plankton and small fish. Seahorses: These are also not detritivores. They are carnivores, feeding on small shrimp, plankton, and other invertebrates. Therefore, 1,3 and 5 are detritivores.

The Phosphorus Cycle is unique among major biogeochemical cycles because it does not involve a gaseous phase. Instead, phosphorus primarily moves through the lithosphere (rocks), hydrosphere (water), and biosphere (organisms). - Weathering of Rocks: The main source of phosphorus in this cycle comes from the weathering of phosphate-rich rocks. Over time, geological processes break down these rocks, releasing phosphate ions (PO₄³⁻) into the soil and water.
- Absorption by Plants: Plants absorb phosphorus from the soil, and it moves up the food chain as herbivores and carnivores consume plants and other organisms.
- Return to the Soil: When organisms die, decomposition releases phosphorus back into the environment, where it can re-enter the cycle. - Carbon Cycle: The main source of carbon is atmospheric CO₂, released by respiration, combustion, and volcanic activity. - Nitrogen Cycle: Nitrogen is primarily cycled through the atmosphere, with nitrogen fixation (by bacteria) being a key process. - Sulphur Cycle: Sulfur is mainly released from volcanic eruptions, decaying organic matter, and fossil fuel combustion, rather than rock weathering.

* Filter feeders are a subgroup of suspension-feeding animals that feed by straining suspended matter and food particles from water, typically by passing the water over a specialised filtering structure. * Some animals that use this method of feeding are clams, krill, sponges, baleen whales, and many fish (including some sharks). Some birds, such as flamingos and certain species of duck, are also filter feeders. Filter feeders can play an important role in clarifying water, and are therefore considered ecosystem engineers. They are also important in bioaccumulation and, as a result, as indicator organisms. * Oyster is one of the filter feeders. Pearl Farming - Pearls are the only gemstones in the world that come from a living creature. Mollusks such as oysters and mussels produce these precious jewels.
- Pearl culture practices are present in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Bihar, Odisha, Kerala, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Goa, and Tripura.

Statement 1 is incorrect: Copepods are a group of small crustaceans found in nearly every freshwater and saltwater habitat. Copepods are major secondary producers in the World Ocean. Statement 2 is correct: Diatom refers to any member of a large group comprising several genera of algae, specifically microalgae, found in the oceans, waterways and soils of the world. They are major primary producers in the food chains of oceans. Statement 3 is correct: Cyanobacteria, also known as Cyanophyta, are a phylum of Gram-negative bacteria that obtain energy via photosynthesis. They are major primary producers in the food chains of oceans. Statement 4 is incorrect: Foraminifera are single-celled organisms, members of a phylum or class of amoeboid protists characterized by streaming granular ectoplasm for catching food and other uses; and commonly an external shell of diverse forms and materials. They are the consumer.