Practicing Success

Target Exam

CUET

Subject

Biology

Chapter

Sexual Reproduction in Flowering Plants

Question:

Read the sentence and answer the questions.

Plants utilize both abiotic and biotic agents for pollination. Abiotic agents include wind and water, while biotic agents mainly involve insects, particularly bees.Wind pollination relies on lightweight and non-sticky pollen grains that can be easily carried by air currents. Plants adapted for wind pollination often have exposed stamens for efficient dispersion of pollen. Their stigmas are usually large and feathery to capture airborne pollen grains. Grasses are a common example of plants that rely on wind pollination.Water pollination occurs in aquatic plants such as Vallisneria, Hydrilla, and marine seagrasses like Zostera. These plants release their pollen into the water, where it is transported to female flowers for fertilization. Some aquatic plants, like hyacinths and water lilies, have flowers that emerge above the water level and can be pollinated by insects or wind.Among the biotic agents, insects, especially bees, play a dominant role in pollination. Insect-pollinated flowers are often large, colorful, fragrant, and rich in nectar to attract pollinators. In some cases, flowers provide additional benefits to the insects, such as safe places for egg-laying. An example of this is the Amorphophallus, which offers tall flowers serving as a safe spot for egg deposition. A similar mutualistic relationship exists between certain species of moths and the Yucca plant, where both species are dependent on each other for their life cycles to be completed successfully.

Match List I with List II

List I List II
A. Wind pollution I. Bees
B. Water pollination II. Grass
C. Major insect pollinator III. Zostera 
D. Tallest flower IV. Amorphophallus

 Choose the correct answer from the options given below:

Options:

A-I, B-III, C-II. D-IV

A-I, B-III, C-IV, D-II

A-II, B-I, C-III, D-IV

A-II, B-III, C-I, D-IV

Correct Answer:

A-II, B-III, C-I, D-IV

Explanation:

The correct answer is Option (4): A-II, B-III, C-I, D-IV

List I List II
A. Wind pollution II.  Grass
B. Water pollination III. Zostera
C. Major insect pollinator I.    Bees
D. Tallest flower IV.  Amorphophallus

Pollination by wind is more common amongst abiotic pollinations. Wind-pollination is quite common in grasses.

Some examples of water-pollinated plants are Vallisneria and Hydrilla which grow in fresh water and several marine sea grasses such as Zostera. Not all aquatic plants use water for pollination. 

The majority of flowering plants use a range of animals as pollinating agents. Bees, butterflies, flies, beetles, wasps, ants, moths, birds (sunbirds and humming birds), and bats are the common pollinating agents.Among the animals, insects, particularly bees are the dominant biotic pollinating agents.

In some species floral rewards are in providing safe places to lay eggs; an example is that of the tallest flower of Amorphophallus (the flower itself is about 6 feet in height).