Class 11 Biology Diversity Of Living World Question And Answers

Diversity of Living World Class 11 Biology Synopsis

• Biology is the science of life and living processes.
• Cells of an organism are the ‘Basic Units’ of ‘structure’ and ‘function’.
• The fundamental source of energy for all biological systems is the ‘Sun’.
• ‘ Diversity in living organisms comes from their ability to change.
• Evolution is the ‘Fundamental Organising Principle’ of life and it answers many questions about life and its complexity.
• The increase in complexity is right from the simple cellular level to the organism level followed by populations, communities, and ecosystem levels in the Biosphere.

Class 11 Biology Diversity of Living World notes

All the habitable zones of life on the earth constitute the Biosphere.

• Growth is one of the fundamental characteristics of living beings.
• ATP is the chief energy carrier for various reactions in living systems and it is appropriately described as the “Cellular Energy Currency”.
• + Lamarck (1809), a French Biologist coined the term ‘Biology’.
• So far over 1.25 million animal species have been identified and described.
• Carolus Linnaeus (1707 – 1788) Father of Taxonomy and Founder of Modern
• Systematics introduced the system of hierarchical classification.
• Three Domain classifications include Domain I – Bacteria, Domain ll.-Archaea,  Domain – III – Eukarya.
• Carolus Linnaeus popularised the “Binomial Nomenclature” in the 10th edition of his book “Systema Naturae”.
• Species is the ‘basic unit’ of classification. John Ray coined the term species.
• Buffon, in his book ‘Natural History’, proposed the idea of the evolution of species.

“The Origin of Species” is a book by Charles Darwin.

Class 11 Biology Chapter 1 Diversity of Living World Q&A

• Dobzhansky introduced the concept of “Mendelian Population” while defining species. Biology
• Kingdom Animalia includes eukaryotic, multicellular heterotrophs.
• The variation of life at various levels of biological organization is termed as Biodiversity.
• The term biodiversity was popularized by the sociobiologist “Edward Wilson”.

Class 11 Biology Diversity of Living World Very Short Question And Answers

Question 1. Define the term metabolism. Give any one Example.
Answer: The total of all the chemical reactions occurring in the bodies of organisms constitute metabolism and it is a defining feature of all living organisms without exception.

Example: Photosynthesis and respiration.

Diversity of Living World Class 11 important questions

Question 2. How do you differentiate between growth in a living organism and a nonliving object?
Answer: Growth in living beings is ‘growth from inside’ whereas growth in non-living things is by accumulating material on the surface.

Question 3. What is biogenesis?
Answer: ‘Life comes only from life and not from non-living substances’ is known as biogenesis.

Question 4. Define the term histology. What is it otherwise called?
Answer: Histology is the study of the microscopic structure of different tissues. This branch is also referred to as “Microanatomy”.

Class 11 Biology Diversity of Living World notes 

Question 5. Distinguish between embryology and ethology.
Answer:

1. Embryology deals with the study of events that lead to fertilization, cleavages, early growth, and differentiation of a zygote into an embryo.
2. The study of animal behavior based on the systematic observation, recording, and analysis of functions of animals, with special attention to ecological, physiological, and evolutionary aspects is called Ethology.

Question 6. ‘In a given area, remains of an animal that lived in the remote past are excavated for study. Which branch of science is it called?
Answer: Palaeontology, (specifically palaeozoology – study of fossils of animals)

Question 7. “Zoos are tools for classification” Explain.
Answer:

Zoos are the places where wild animals, taken out of their natural habitat, are placed in protected environments under human care. This enables us to study the various aspects of animal living. Thus it allows us to systematize the organism and position it in the animal world.

Question 8. Where and how do we preserve skeletons of animals, dry specimens, etc?
Answer: In Museums, animal specimens may also be preserved as dry specimens. Museums often have collections of skeletons of animals too.

Question 9. What In Trinominal nomenclature? Give Example
Answer:

The normal nomenclature Is the extension of the binominal system of nomenclature. This system permits the designation of subspecies with a three-worded name called Trinominal  Subspecies is a category below the level of species.

Example: Corvus splendens splendens.

Question 10. What is meant by tautonymy? Give two examples.
Answer:

The practice of naming animals, in which the generic name and species name are the same, is called tautonymy. So the name is called tautonym.

Example:  Naja naja (the Indian cobra), Axis axis (spotted deer).

Class 11 Biology Diversity of Living World solved questions

Question 11. Differentiate between Protostomia and Deuterostomia.
Answer:

• Protostomia: The eumetazoans in which blastopore develops into the mouth are referred to as the protostomians.
  • Example: Annelida
• Deuterostomia: These are coelomates in which the anus is formed from or near the blastopore
  • Example: Echinodermata

Question 12. ‘Echinoderms are enterocoelomates’. Comment.
Answer:

Enterocoel is a true coelom formed from the archenteron. In phylum Echinodermata, the true coelom is formed from the primitive gut called archenteron. Hence Echinoderms are enterocoelomates.

Question 13. What does ICZN stand for?
Answer:

ICZN stands for International Code of Zoological Nomenclature.

Question 14. Give the names of any four protostomian phyla.
Answer:

Four protostomian phyla:

1. Platyhelminthes
2. Nematoda
3. Annelida
4. Arthropoda.

Question 15. Nematode is a protostomian but not a eucoelomate. Justify the statement.
Answer:

In Nematodes the blastopore becomes mouth and the group belongs to protostomia. However, the body cavity is not a true coelom as it is not lined by mesodermal epithelial layers. Their body cavity is a pseudocoel.

Question 16. What is ecological diversity? Mention the different types of ecological diversities.
Answer:

Diversity at the ecosystem level is called “Ecological diversity”. The different types of ecological diversities are Alpha, Beta, and Gamma diversities.

Question 17. Define species richness.
Answer:

Species richness in simple terms, it is the number of species per unit area. The more the number of species in an area the more is the species richness.

Question 18. Mention any two products of medical importance obtained from Neturo.
Answer:

Quinine (a drug for Malaria) is obtained from the bark of cinchona officinalis.

1. Vin blasting (anti-cancer drug) from Vinca
2. Digitalin from the ’fox glove’ plant (Digitalis purpurea).

Question 19. Invasion of an Alien species leads to Justify this with two examples.
Answer:

Nile perch introduced into Lake Victoria, in East Africa led to the extinction of 200 species of cichlid fish in the lake.

The illegal introduction of exotic African catfish, Clarias gariepinus, for aquaculture purposes, is posing a threat to the indigenous catfishes.

Question 20. Write the full form of IUCN. In which book threatened species enlisted.
Answer:

1. International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN)
2. All the threatened species are listed in the Red Data Books published by the IUCN.

Short Answer Questions For Class 11 Biology Diversity of Living World

Question 1. Explain the Phylogenetic system of biological classification.
Answer:

Carolus Linnaeus introduced the system of hierarchical classification. Phylogenetic system of biological classification (cladistic classification) . It is an evolutionary classification based on how a common ancestry was shared. Cladistic classification summarizes the ‘genetic distance’ between all species in the ‘phylogenetic tree’.

In cladistic classification characters such as analogous characters (Characters shared by a pair of organisms due to convergent evolution

• Example: Wings in sparrows and patagia (wing-like structures in flying squirrels)

And homologous characters (characters shared by a pair of organisms, inherited from a common ancestor

• Example:  Wings of sparrows and finches) are followed/ taken into consideration.

Ernst Haeckel introduced the method of representing phylogeny by ‘trees’ or branching diagrams.

Question 2. Explain the Monarchy  Classification 
Answer:

Linnaeus was the first taxonomist to establish a definite hierarchy of taxonomic categories called taxa (singular: taxon) like kingdom, class, order, genus, and species.

Haeckel introduced the taxon phylum. A species sometimes may have more subspecies, which shows some morphological variations (intra-specific variations). Taxonomic Categories: Nowadays the three-domain classification is followed.

Class 11 Biology Diversity of Living World question and answers PDF

CARL WOESE and co-workers observed that many prokaryotes previously classified under ‘Prokaryota/ Monera’ are more closely related to the ‘eukaryotes’ and classified them under a separate Domain the ARCHAEA. This type of study is called ‘MOLECULAR SYSTEMATICS’.

Now there is a general agreement on the

Three domestic classifications of the living organisms namely:

DOMAIN -1: BACTERIA

DOMAIN – 2: ARCHAEA, and

DOMAIN – 3: EUKARYA

Note: DOMAIN is a taxon higher than ‘Kingdom’

Class 11 Biology Diversity of Living World MCQs with answers

Question 3. What is meant by classification? Explain the need for classification.
Answer:

Need for classification:

• It is impossible to study all living organisms. So, it is necessary to devise some means to make this possible. This process is called ‘classification’.
• Classification is defined as the process by which anything is grouped into convenient categories based on some easily observable characteristics
• . The scientific term used for these categories is ‘TAXA’ (singular: taxon). Taxa can indicate categories at different levels

Example: Animalia (which includes multicellular animals), chordata, mammalia, etc., represent taxa at different levels.

Hence, based on characteristics, all living organisms can be classified into different taxa  This process of classification is called taxonomy.

Question 4. Define species. Explain the various aspects of ‘species’.
Answer:

Species:

Species is the ‘basic unit’ of classification. Species is a Latin word meaning ‘kind’ or ‘appearance’. John Ray in his book ‘Historia Generalis Plantarum’, used the term ‘species’ and described it based on common descent (origin from common ancestors) as a group of morphologically similar organisms.

Linnaeus considered species, in his book ‘Systema Nature‘, as the basic unit of classification.

Buffon’s biological concept of species explains that a species is an interbreeding group of similar individuals sharing the common ‘gene pool’, and producing fertile offspring.

Class 11 Biology Diversity of Living World summary

Species are considered as a group of individuals which are :

1. Reproductively isolated from the individuals of other species – a breeding unit.
2. Sharing the same ecological niche – An ecological unit.
3. Showing similarity in the karyotype – a genetic unit.
4. Having similar structure and functional characteristics – an evolutionary unit.
5. Species are dynamic.

Question 5. What is genetic diversity and what are the different types of genetic diversity
Answer:

Genetic diversity:

It Is the diversity of genes within In species, A single species may show high diversity at the genetic level over Its distributional range,

For example:

Rauwolfia vomitoria, a medicinal plant growing In the Himalayan ranges shows great genetic variation, which might be in terms of potency and concentration of the active chemical (reserpine extracted from It is used In treating high blood pressure) that the plant produces. India has more than 50,000 different strains of rice and 1,000 varieties of mangoes. Genetic diversity increases with environmental variability and is advantageous for its survival.

Question 6. What are the reasons for greater biodiversity in the tropics?
Answer:

Reasons for greater biodiversity in the tropics:

• Reason 1: Tropical latitudes have remained relatively undisturbed for millions of years and thus had a long ‘evolutionary time’. As long duration was available in this region for speciation, it led to the species diversification
• Reason 2: Tropical climates are relatively more constant and predictable than that of the temperate regions. Constant environment promotes niche specialization (how an organism responds and behaves with the environment and other organisms of its biotic community), and this leads to greater species diversity.
• Reason 3: Solar energy, resources like water, etc., are available in abundance in this region. This contributed to higher productivity in terms of food production, leading to greater diversity.

Question 7. What is the “evil quartet”?
Answer:

The following are the four major causes of accelerated rates of species extinction in the world. These causes are referred to as the evil quartet.

• Habitat loss and fragmentation: These are the most important reasons for the loss of biodiversity.
• Over-exploitation: When need turns to greed, it leads to over-exploitation.
• Invasion of Alien species: When Alien species are introduced into a habitat, they turn invasive and establish themselves at the cost of indigenous species.
• Co-extinctions: In an obligate association between a plant and an animal, if a plant becomes extinct, the animal also becomes extinct as seen in a parasitic and host association.

Question 8. Explain In brief “Biodiversity Hot Spots”
Answer:

Conservationists Identified certain regions by name ‘Biodiversity hot spots for maximum protection as they are characterized by very high levels of species richness & high degree of endemism.

By definition ‘Biodiversity hot spot’ Is a ‘Biogeographic Region’ with a significant reservoir of biodiversity that is under threat of extinction from humans. They are Earth’s biologically ‘richest’ and ‘most threatened’ terrestrial Ecoregions.

Biodiversity hot spots:

The concept of biodiversity originated by Norman Myers. There are about 34 biodiversity hot spots in the world.

As these regions are threatened by destruction, habitat loss is accelerated examples:

1. Western Ghats and
2. Srilanka
3. Indo Burma
4. Himalayas in India

Ecologically unique and biodiversity-rich regions are legally protected.

1. Biosphere Reserves – 14
2. National Parks – 90
3. Sanctuaries -448.

Question 9. Explain the ‘Rivet Popper” hypothesis.
Answer:

This hypothesis is mainly for a reason, what happens if we lose a few species?

Will it affect man’s life? Paul Ehrlich’s experiment ‘The RIVET POPPER’ hypothesis, taking an airplane as an ecosystem, explains how the removal of one by one ‘rivets’ (species of an ecosystem) of various parts can slowly damage the plane (ecosystem) – shows how important a ‘species’ is in the overall functioning of an ecosystem.

Removing a rivet from a seat or some other relatively minor important parts may not damage the plane, but the removal of a rivet from a part supporting the wing can result in a crash. Likewise, the removal of a critical species’ may affect the entire community and thus the entire ecosystem.

Question 10. Write short notes on In-situ conservation.
Answer:

In-situ conservation is the process of protecting an animal species in its natural habitat.

Class 11 Biology Diversity of Living World previous year questions

The following are the types:

1. Biosphere Reserves:

An area that is set aside, and minimally disturbed for the conservation of the resources of the biosphere is a ‘Biosphere reserve’. The latest biosphere reserve (17th biosphere reserve in India) is Seshachalam Hills.

2. National Parks:

A National Park is a natural habitat strictly reserved for the protection of natural life. National Parks, across the country, offer a fascinating diversity of terrain, flora, and fauna.

Some important National Parks in India are – Jim Corbett National Park (the first National Park in India located in Uttarakhand), Kaziranga National Park (Assam), Kasu Brahmananda Reddy National Park, Mahavir Harina Vanasthali National Park (Telangana), Keoladeo Ghana National Park (Rajasthan), etc.

3. Sanctuaries :

Specific endangered faunal species are well protected In wildlife sanctuaries which permit eco-tourism (as long as animal life is undisturbed). Some Important sanctuaries in India (AP) include – Koringa Sanctuary, Eturnagaram Sanctuary, and Papikondalu Sanctuary.

4. Sacred Groves:

• A smaller group of trees than a forest is called a grove.
• A grove of trees of special religious importance to a particular culture is called a sacred grove.
•  In these regions, all the trees of wildlife were venerated (respected) and given total protection.

 The following is a list of Sacred Groves in INDIA:

In Meghalaya, Sacred Groves are the last refuges for a large number of rare and threatened species