Mark the statements as true (T) or false (F).
(i) The Amazon rain forest is called the ‘lungs of the planet’.
(ii) The Amazon rain forest is being cut and cleared for cultivating soya beans and for conversion to grasslands for raising mutton goats.
(iii) When a species becomes extinct, the plant and animal species associated with it in an obligatory way also become extinct.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → (i)-T, (ii)-F, (iii)-T
Two of the statements are about habitat loss in the Amazon rain forest, and the third defines co-extinction.
(i) The Amazon rain forest is called the ‘lungs of the planet’. — True. NCERT says it is so huge that it is called the ‘lungs of the planet’.
(ii) The Amazon rain forest is being cut and cleared for cultivating soya beans and for conversion to grasslands for raising mutton goats. — False. The forest is cleared for soya beans or to make grasslands for raising beef cattle, not mutton goats.
(iii) When a species becomes extinct, the plant and animal species associated with it in an obligatory way also become extinct. — True. This is co-extinction, for example the parasites of a host fish that dies out.
So the correct marking is (i)-T, (ii)-F, (iii)-T.
NCERT Extract:
Loss of Biodiversity – “… The Amazon rain forest (it is so huge that it is called the ‘lungs of the planet’) harbouring probably millions of species is being cut and cleared for cultivating soya beans or for conversion to grasslands for raising beef cattle.”
Loss of Biodiversity – “… (iv) Co-extinctions: When a species becomes extinct, the plant and animal species associated with it in an obligatory way also become extinct. When a host fish species becomes extinct, its unique assemblage of parasites also meets the same fate.”