Biodiversity and species: previous-year questions
73 real UPSC Prelims questions (2011–2026) with the official answer and a clear explanation. 26 of them came in the last five papers.
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Questions per year, counted from the official papers.
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Consider the following statements :
- Statement-I : Marsupials are not naturally found in India.
- Statement-II : Marsupials can thrive only in montane grasslands with no predators.
Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?
Answer (c) & explanation
Statement I is correct but Statement II is wrong (c). Statement I is right: marsupials, pouched mammals such as kangaroos, live naturally only in Australia, New Guinea and the Americas, so none are native to India. Statement II is wrong: marsupials live in deserts, forests, wetlands and grasslands, often with predators; the opossum thrives in American towns. Their absence from India is a matter of history: Australia broke away from Gondwana early, and its marsupials evolved in isolation, while placental mammals came to dominate elsewhere.
Notice the term endemism: species found in only one region because of past isolation. India's own endemics, such as the lion-tailed macaque, are concentrated in the Western Ghats, a biodiversity hotspot.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
With reference to “Gucchi” sometimes mentioned in the news, consider the following statements :
- 1. It is a fungus.
- 2. It grows in some Himalayan forest areas.
- 3. It is commercially cultivated in the Himalayan foothills of north-eastern India.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?
Answer (c) & explanation
Statements 1 and 2 are correct (c). Statement 1 is right: gucchi is the morel mushroom, a fungus with a honeycomb-like cap. Statement 2 is right: it grows wild in the Himalayan forests of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, usually in spring after snowmelt. Statement 3 is wrong: it is gathered from the wild, not commercially farmed in the north-eastern foothills. That scarcity is why it sells for ₹20,000–30,000 a kilogram or more.
Notice other high-value Himalayan forest products: keeda jadi (Cordyceps, the caterpillar fungus) and kutki. Notice too the GI tag culture: J&K's saffron and Himachal's Kala Zeera. Morels are part of the minor forest produce that supports hill communities.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Which of the following is not a bird ?
Answer (a) & explanation
The golden mahseer is not a bird (a). The golden mahseer (Tor putitora) is a large freshwater fish of fast-flowing Himalayan rivers, called the "tiger of the water" by anglers. It is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, hit by dams, sand mining and overfishing. The Indian nightjar (b) is a night bird known for its call. The spoonbill (c) is a wading bird with a flat, spoon-shaped bill. The white ibis (d) is a wading bird with a long, curved bill.
Notice that the golden mahseer is the state fish of Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and J&K. UPSC often mixes fish into bird lists. Spoonbills and ibises gather at Bharatpur (Keoladeo National Park).
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
“Biorock technology” is talked about in which one of the following situations ?
Answer (a) & explanation
Biorock is used to restore damaged coral reefs (a). Biorock, or mineral accretion, passes a weak, safe electric current through a steel frame placed under the sea. Minerals dissolved in sea water, mainly calcium carbonate, build up on the frame like limestone. Coral pieces fixed to it grow fast and resist stress better. Option (b) describes bio-based building materials. Option (c) describes shale gas survey. Option (d) describes salt licks for wildlife.
Notice that India's Zoological Survey of India, with the Gujarat Forest Department, tried biorock in the Gulf of Kachchh in 2017. Coral reefs face bleaching from warming seas; the world saw its fourth global bleaching event in 2023–24.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Certain species of which one of the following organisms are well known as cultivators of fungi ?
Answer (a) & explanation
Ants are well-known fungus farmers (a). Leafcutter ants of Central and South America cut pieces of leaves and carry them home. They do not eat the leaves; they use them to grow a fungus in underground gardens, and the fungus is their food. They even weed the garden and use bacteria that make antifungal chemicals to protect it. This is one of nature's oldest forms of agriculture, about 50 million years old. Cockroaches (b), crabs (c) and spiders (d) do not farm fungi.
Notice that some termites and ambrosia beetles also farm fungi, but neither is offered here. UPSC likes such symbiosis facts, like the fig and fig wasp, lichens (fungus plus alga) and mycorrhiza (fungus plus plant roots).
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following statements :
DNA Barcoding can be a tool to:
- 1. assess the age of a plant or animal.
- 2. distinguish among species that look alike.
- 3. identify undesirable animal or plant materials in processed foods.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?
Answer (d) & explanation
Statements 2 and 3 are correct (d). DNA barcoding reads a short, standard stretch of a gene that differs between species, much like a barcode at a shop. In animals this is usually the COI gene of mitochondria. Statement 2 is right: it can tell apart look-alike species, such as cryptic insects or fish fillets. Statement 3 is right: it can find hidden or undesirable plant or animal material in processed foods, such as pork in a "beef" product, or adulteration in herbal medicines. Statement 1 is wrong: the barcode tells you which species something is, not its age.
Notice its use in wildlife crime: barcoding helps identify seized animal parts, such as pangolin scales, and protects food safety and trade.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Which one of the following is used in preparing a natural mosquito repellent?
Answer (c) & explanation
Lemongrass is used in natural mosquito repellent (c). Lemongrass oil contains citronella-like compounds such as citral, which keep mosquitoes away, and it is used in creams, sprays and candles. Option (a) is wrong: Congress grass (Parthenium) is a harmful, invasive weed that causes allergies and skin problems. Option (b) is wrong: elephant grass is a tall grass grown as fodder and habitat for animals like rhinos. Option (d) is wrong: nut grass is a common weed of farms.
Notice that India is a major producer of lemongrass oil, and the CSIR Aroma Mission promotes it, especially in dry and degraded lands. Other natural repellents include neem and citronella oil.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following animals :
- 1. Hedgehog
- 2. Marmot
- 3. Pangolin
To reduce the chance of being captured by predators, which of the above organisms rolls up/roll up and protects/protect its/their vulnerable parts?
Answer (d) & explanation
The hedgehog and pangolin roll up (d). Item 1 is right: a hedgehog curls into a tight ball of spines when threatened, hiding its soft belly and face. Item 3 is right: a pangolin rolls into a ball of hard, overlapping scales made of keratin, which even lions find hard to break. Item 2 is wrong: a marmot is a large ground squirrel of mountains; it gives a loud whistle to warn others and runs into its burrow.
Notice that the pangolin is the world's most trafficked mammal, hunted for its scales and meat. India has the Indian pangolin and the Chinese pangolin, both in Schedule I. The Himalayan marmot lives in Ladakh and Sikkim.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following statements :
- 1. Moringa (drumstick tree) is a leguminous evergreen tree.
- 2. Tamarind tree is endemic to South Asia.
- 3. In India, most of the tamarind is collected as minor forest produce.
- 4. India exports tamarind and seeds of moringa.
- 5. Seeds of moringa and tamarind can be used in the production of biofuels.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
Answer (b) & explanation
Statements 3, 4 and 5 are correct (b). Statement 1 is wrong: moringa (drumstick) belongs to its own family, Moringaceae, not the legumes, and it is deciduous, shedding its leaves in the dry season. Statement 2 is wrong: tamarind came from tropical Africa, so it is not endemic to South Asia. Statement 3 is right: most Indian tamarind is gathered from forests and village trees as minor forest produce. Statement 4 is right: India exports both tamarind and moringa seeds. Statement 5 is right: the seed oils of both can be used to make biofuel.
Notice that India is the world's largest producer of moringa. Tamarind is among the items under MSP for minor forest produce, run through TRIFED.
tamarind is so Indian in the kitchen that "endemic" feels right.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
With reference to Indian elephants, consider the following statements :
- 1. The leader of an elephant group is a female.
- 2. The maximum gestation period can be 22 months.
- 3. An elephant can normally go on calving till the age of 40 years only.
- 4. Among the States in India, the highest elephant population is in Kerala.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?
Answer (a) & explanation
Statements 1 and 2 are correct (a). Statement 1 is right: an elephant herd is led by the oldest female, the matriarch, who remembers routes and water sources. Adult males usually live alone or in small groups. Statement 2 is right: pregnancy lasts about 22 months, the longest of any mammal. Statement 3 is wrong: female elephants can calve into their fifties and beyond, not just till 40. Statement 4 is wrong: Karnataka has the largest elephant population in India, followed by Assam and Kerala.
Notice that the Asian elephant is Endangered on the IUCN Red List and is in Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act. Project Elephant began in 1992. World Elephant Day is 12 August.
"40 years only": the word "only" makes 3 easy to reject.
One trap spotted is one mark saved. The PYQ Book lines up every trap UPSC has set, so you walk in prepared. Try the free sample
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
With reference to India’s biodiversity, Ceylon frogmouth, Coppersmith barbet, Gray-chinned minivet and White-throated redstart are
Answer (a) & explanation
All four are birds (a). The Ceylon frogmouth is a night bird of the Western Ghats and Sri Lanka, named for its wide, frog-like mouth. The coppersmith barbet is a small green bird named for its call, which sounds like a smith hammering metal. The grey-chinned minivet is a bright songbird of hill forests. The white-throated redstart is a Himalayan bird of high scrub. None of them is a primate (b), reptile (c) or amphibian (d); the frogmouth's name is the only trap.
Notice how UPSC likes species with misleading names. Other bird examples: the Great Indian Bustard (Critically Endangered), the Jerdon's courser, and the Malabar trogon. Notice too the Asian Waterbird Census, held each January.
"frogmouth" pushes you towards amphibians.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following statements :
- 1. Asiatic lion is naturally found in India only.
- 2. Double-humped camel is naturally found in India only.
- 3. One-horned rhinoceros is naturally found in India only.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Answer (a) & explanation
Only statement 1 is correct (a). Statement 1 is right because the Asiatic lion survives in the wild only in and around Gir in Gujarat. The 2025 census counted 891 lions, spread across the greater Gir landscape. Statement 2 is wrong because the double-humped Bactrian camel lives mainly in Central Asia, Mongolia and China. India has only a small population in Ladakh's Nubra Valley, left from the old silk-route trade. Statement 3 is wrong because the greater one-horned rhino also lives in Nepal, at Chitwan and Bardia, though India's Kaziranga holds about two-thirds of the world's population.
Notice the debate: the Supreme Court ordered lions moved to Kuno, Madhya Pradesh (2013), but cheetahs from Namibia and South Africa went there instead (2022).
Kaziranga makes the rhino feel Indian-only, but Nepal holds several hundred of them.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following statements :
- 1. Some species of turtles are herbivores.
- 2. Some species of fish are herbivores.
- 3. Some species of marine mammals are herbivores.
- 4. Some species of snakes are viviparous.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
Answer (d) & explanation
All four statements are correct (d). Statement 1 is right because adult green turtles graze on seagrass and algae. Statement 2 is right because many fish, such as parrotfish, surgeonfish and grass carp, eat plants and algae. Parrotfish help keep reefs clean of algae. Statement 3 is right because dugongs and manatees, the "sea cows", are marine mammals that eat seagrass. Statement 4 is right because many snakes, such as vipers and boas, are viviparous or ovoviviparous, giving birth to live young. Pythons and cobras lay eggs.
Notice the Indian link: dugongs live in the Gulf of Mannar, Palk Bay and the Andamans. Tamil Nadu set up India's first Dugong Conservation Reserve in Palk Bay (2022).
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following pairs :
| Wildlife | Naturally found in
| 1. Blue-finned Mahseer | Cauvery River
| 2. Irrawaddy Dolphin | Chambal River
| 3. Rusty-spotted Cat | Eastern Ghats
Which of the pairs given above are correctly matched?
Answer (c) & explanation
Pairs 1 and 3 are correct (c). Pair 1 is right because the blue-finned mahseer is found in the Cauvery river system. The hump-backed mahseer, a native Cauvery fish, is now Critically Endangered. Pair 3 is right because the rusty-spotted cat, the world's smallest wild cat, lives in dry forests across India, including the Eastern Ghats. Pair 2 is wrong because the Irrawaddy dolphin lives in coastal lagoons and rivers such as Chilika Lake in Odisha, not in the Chambal. The Chambal has the Ganges river dolphin, India's National Aquatic Animal.
Notice the first river dolphin survey (2025), which counted about 6,300 dolphins, mostly in UP. The Chambal sanctuary is also famous for gharials.
the Chambal does have dolphins, but the Gangetic kind.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Recently, there was a growing awareness in our country about the importance of Himalayan nettle (*Girardinia diversifolia*) because it is found to be a sustainable source of
Answer (d) & explanation
The Himalayan nettle gives textile fibre (d). Girardinia diversifolia, called allo in Nepal and bichhu buti in Uttarakhand, is a stinging plant that grows wild in the Himalayas. The inner bark of its stem gives long, strong, shiny fibre. Hill communities have long spun it into rope, sacks and cloth. Because it grows wild without fertilisers or irrigation, it is promoted as a sustainable textile, and can be blended with wool or cotton. It is not a known source of antimalarial drugs (a), biodiesel (b) or paper pulp (c).
Notice similar natural fibres being promoted: banana fibre, pineapple leaf fibre, and Eri silk, known as "peace silk" from Assam. The National Technical Textiles Mission backs such innovation.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
The term “sixth mass extinction/sixth extinction” is often mentioned in the news in the context of the discussion of
Answer (d) & explanation
Option (d) best describes it. Earth has gone through five mass extinctions. The last, about 66 million years ago, wiped out the dinosaurs after an asteroid struck. Scientists warn that a sixth is under way, this time caused by humans: overuse of resources, habitat loss and fragmentation, pollution, invasive species and climate change. Species are vanishing at many times the natural background rate. Options (a) and (c) name only one cause each: monoculture or GM crops. Option (b) is wrong because the term is not about a coming meteorite.
Notice the IPBES report (2019), which warned that about one million species face extinction. The Kunming–Montreal Framework (2022) responded with the 30x30 target: protect 30% of land and sea by 2030.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Why is a plant called *Prosopis juliflora* often mentioned in news ?
Answer (b) & explanation
It reduces biodiversity where it grows (b). Prosopis juliflora, called vilayati babul or vilayati kikar, is a thorny tree from Central and South America. The British brought it to India in the 19th century, and later it was planted widely to green dry lands and give firewood. It spread out of control, forming dense thickets, drawing down groundwater, and releasing chemicals that stop other plants from growing. It now crowds out native grasses and trees, making it a major invasive species. It is not widely used in cosmetics (a) or pesticides (c).
Notice where it hurts most: Gujarat's Banni grasslands in Kachchh, home to Maldhari herders, and Delhi's Ridge, where it is being removed. Tamil Nadu has ordered its clearing too.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following :
- 1. Birds
- 2. Dust blowing
- 3. Rain
- 4. Wind blowing
Which of the above spread plant diseases ?
Answer (d) & explanation
All four spread plant diseases (d). Plant pathogens such as fungi, bacteria and viruses need a way to move from one plant to another. Wind (4) carries fungal spores over long distances; wheat rust spores can travel hundreds of kilometres. Blowing dust (2) carries spores and bacteria stuck to soil particles. Rain (3) splashes spores and bacteria from sick leaves onto healthy ones. Birds (1) carry spores and seeds on their feet, feathers and droppings, and spread parasitic plants such as mistletoe. So options leaving any of them out are wrong.
Insects such as aphids and whiteflies are major carriers of viruses. Notice the threat of wheat blast, which reached Bangladesh in 2016, and the pink bollworm in Bt cotton.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following statements in respect of Trade Related Analysis of Fauna and Flora in Commerce (TRAFFIC) :
- 1. TRAFFIC is a bureau under United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
- 2. The mission of TRAFFIC is to ensure that trade in wild plants and animals is not a threat to the conservation of nature.
Which of the above statements is/are correct ?
Answer (b) & explanation
Only statement 2 is correct (b). Statement 1 is wrong because TRAFFIC was set up in 1976 as a joint programme of WWF and IUCN, not as a bureau under UNEP. It is now an independent NGO based in Cambridge, UK. Statement 2 is right because its mission is to make sure trade in wild plants and animals is not a threat to conservation. It tracks markets and smuggling routes, and supports CITES with data and training.
TRAFFIC India works with WWF-India and helps the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau fight trade in pangolins, star tortoises, red sanders and other species. Notice how often UPSC asks who runs what: TRAFFIC belongs to WWF+IUCN, while CITES's secretariat is run by UNEP.
TRAFFIC works with CITES (hosted by UNEP), but TRAFFIC itself is not part of UNEP.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
According to the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, which of the following animals cannot be hunted by any person except under some provisions provided by law ?
- 1. Gharial
- 2. Indian wild ass
- 3. Wild buffalo
Select the correct answer using the code given below :
Answer (d) & explanation
All three cannot be hunted except as the law allows (d). Section 9 of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 bans hunting any wild animal listed in the Schedules. The exceptions are narrow, such as an animal that has become dangerous to human life (Section 11), or for research and education with permission (Section 12). The gharial (1), Indian wild ass (2) and wild buffalo (3) are all Schedule I species, with the highest protection.
The 2022 amendment cut the Schedules from six to four and brought in CITES listings. Notice where these animals live: the gharial in the Chambal, the wild ass only in the Little Rann of Kutch, and the wild buffalo in Assam and Chhattisgarh, where it is the State animal.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.