Environment, Ecology and Biodiversity
Environment, Ecology and Biodiversity tests ecosystems, food chains, conservation, pollution and global environmental agreements. The focus is on concepts and Indian examples, including Maharashtra's protected areas.
Core rules
- Ecosystem components: biotic and abiotic; producers, consumers, decomposers.
- Energy flow: food chains and webs; Lindeman's 10% law; energy decreases at each trophic level.
- Biodiversity hotspots in India: Himalaya, Indo-Burma, Western Ghats–Sri Lanka, Sundaland (Nicobar Islands).
- Conservation: national parks, wildlife sanctuaries, biosphere reserves, tiger reserves, Ramsar wetlands.
- Global agreements: UNFCCC (1992), Paris Agreement (2015, COP21), Convention on Biological Diversity, CITES.
- Maharashtra examples: Nandur Madhmeshwar and Lonar as Ramsar sites; Thane Creek Flamingo Sanctuary.
Worked example
In the chain grass, grasshopper, frog, snake, what happens if frogs decline? Grasshoppers increase, grass cover falls, and snakes face food shortage. Reasoning: follow the trophic links in both directions, not just one.
Traps
- Confusing national parks with wildlife sanctuaries; sanctuaries permit more regulated human activity.
- Mixing Ramsar sites with World Heritage Sites.
- Forgetting that the Paris Agreement was under UNFCCC, not CBD.
- Assuming all pollution is air pollution; noise and plastic matter too.
- Treating every tiger reserve as a national park.