Answer: B

Explanation:

Energy pyramids represent energy flow between trophic levels. Hence, statement 1 is correct.

An energy pyramid usually shows the rate of energy flow between trophic levels, not the total energy stored. Hence, statement 2 is incorrect.

Energy pyramids are always upright (biomass pyramids are inverted), that is narrower at each successive level (unless organisms enter the ecosystem from elsewhere). This pattern reflects the laws of thermodynamics, which tell us that new energy cannot be created and that with each transfer some of the energy is converted into a useless form (heat). Hence, statement 3 is correct.

Answer: A

Explanation:

Pulicat Lake is not designated as a Ramsar wetland. Manipur's Loktak Lake is also included among the 82 Ramsar sites of India, which became a Ramsar site in 1990 and is spread over 266 square kilometers. Rudrasagar Lake in Tripura became a Ramsar site in 2005 and is spread over 2.4 square kilometres. Chilka Lake, the oldest Ramsar site in India, is located in Odisha, it got its name in 1981 and is spread over 1165 square kilometers. Wular Lake in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir was named Ramsar in 1990 and is spread over 189 square kilometers. Hence, option (a) is correct.

Answer: B

Explanation:

Fungi and other oxidized biomass are called decomposers and are not primary producers. They obtain their biomass from the oxidation of organic matter and do not produce food themselves like autotrophs. Hence, statement 1 is incorrect.

However, in other forms, fungi can become primary producers when forming a symbiotic relationship with algae. For example, lichens located in tundra climates are an exceptional example of a primary producer, combining, by mutualistic symbiosis, photosynthesis by algae (or nitrogen fixation by cyanobacteria) with the protection of a decomposer fungus. Hence, statement 2 is correct.

Answer: A

Explanation:

seabuckthorn is a bushy plant which bears orange-yellow edible berries. In India, it is found above the tree line in the Himalayan region, usually in dry areas such as the cold desert of Ladakh and Spiti. Hence, statement 1 is correct.

In Himachal Pradesh, it is locally called chharma. It grows in the forests of Lahaul and Spiti and some parts of Kinnaur. Apart from being an important source of fuel and fodder, seabuckthorn is a soil-bound plant that prevents soil erosion, reduces siltation of rivers and helps preserve floral biodiversity. Hence, statement 2 is correct.

Its fruits and leaves are rich in vitamins, carotenoids and omega fatty acids. Seabuckthorn also has commercial importance, as it is used in making juices, jams, nutritional capsules etc.

Hence, statement 3 is incorrect.

Answer: B

Explanation:

The Appiko movement is one of the forest-based environmental movements in India. This movement took place in the Western Ghats of Uttara Kannada district of Karnataka. About 160 men and women marched for 8 km in Kelase forest and forced the contractors who were cutting the forests on the orders of the forest department to stop the cutting of trees. Hence, statement 1 is incorrect.

During the 1980s, when contractors tried to fell trees, Pandurag Hegde led people to protect the trees in the forest by hugging the trees or Appiko (as in the local language Kannada). Pandurang Hegde is an environmentalist from Uttara Kannada district, Karnataka, India and is known as the person who started the Appiko movement to protect trees in the Western Ghats. Hence, statement 2 is correct.