‘Rivet popper’ hypothesis was proposed by

The correct answer is Option (2) → Paul Ehrlich

The rivet popper hypothesis explains why losing species harms an ecosystem. An airplane (the ecosystem) is held together by thousands of rivets (species). Popping a few may not matter at first, but as more go the plane becomes dangerous. Losing a key rivet, such as one on the wing (a key species), is a serious threat at once.

Option (1) Alexander Von Humboldt — Incorrect. Humboldt is known for the species-area relationship, from his explorations of South America.

Option (2) Paul Ehrlich — Correct. The rivet popper hypothesis was proposed by the Stanford ecologist Paul Ehrlich. It compares an ecosystem to an airplane and its species to the rivets joining its parts.

Option (3) Edward Wilson — Incorrect. Wilson made the term biodiversity popular; he did not give the rivet popper analogy.

Option (4) Robert May — Incorrect. Robert May estimated the total number of species on earth at about 7 million.

Note: A similar question was also asked in CUET (UG) 2026 on 26-05-2026 (Slot 2), in CUET (UG) 2025 on 20-05-2025 (Slot 1), and in CUET (UG) 2023 on 02-07-2023 (Slot 3).

NCERT Extract:
The Importance of Species Diversity to the Ecosystem – “… There are no direct answers to such näive questions but we can develop a proper perspective through an analogy (the ‘rivet popper hypothesis’) used by Stanford ecologist Paul Ehrlich. In an airplane (ecosystem) all parts are joined together using thousands of rivets (species). If every passenger travelling in it starts popping a rivet to take home (causing a species to become extinct), it may not affect flight safety (proper functioning of the ecosystem) initially, but as more and more rivets are removed, the plane becomes dangerously weak over a period of time.”