Oryza sativa is the scientific name of which crop?
- A.Wheat
- B.Rice
- C.Maize
- D.Barley
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is B, rice. Rice is Oryza sativa, a member of the grass family, and the epithet sativa, meaning cultivated or sown, marks it as a crop raised by farmers rather than a wild species. Option A is wrong because wheat is Triticum aestivum, the bread wheat grown as a rabi crop across northern India. Option C is wrong because maize is Zea mays, the only cultivated species of its genus and a kharif crop. Option D is wrong because barley is Hordeum vulgare, another rabi cereal of the same family. Candidates should learn the four cereals as a set, Oryza sativa, Triticum aestivum, Zea mays and Hordeum vulgare, because matching questions are usually built from this group. Candidates should also note that both rice and wheat belong to the family of grasses, which is the single most important plant family for human food across the world.
Read the full article: Scientific Names of Plants and Animals: GK List
Practice Questions
View allThe system of binomial nomenclature was given by which scientist?
- A.Charles Darwin
- B.Carolus Linnaeus
- C.Gregor Mendel
- D.Robert Hooke
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The Swedish naturalist Carolus Linnaeus introduced the two part naming of organisms in Systema Naturae and applied it to the plant kingdom in Species Plantarum, and because he also built the ranked system of classification he is called the father of taxonomy.
Read the full explanation →What is the scientific name of the mango?
- A.Mangifera indica
- B.Musa paradisiaca
- C.Psidium guajava
- D.Carica papaya
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The mango belongs to the genus Mangifera and the species epithet indica marks its Indian origin; it is also the national fruit of India, which is why this name appears in both science and static general knowledge papers.
Read the full explanation →Panthera tigris is the scientific name of which animal?
- A.Lion
- B.Leopard
- C.Tiger
- D.Cheetah
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Panthera tigris is the tiger, the national animal of India, and the Bengal tiger found in the country is its subspecies Panthera tigris tigris, a three part name that illustrates trinomial nomenclature.
Read the full explanation →What is the scientific name of the Indian peafowl, the national bird of India?
- A.Pavo cristatus
- B.Columba livia
- C.Passer domesticus
- D.Corvus splendens
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The Indian peafowl, declared the national bird of India, is Pavo cristatus, the epithet cristatus referring to the crest on its head, and it is protected under the Wild Life Protection Act of 1972.
Read the full explanation →In a binomial scientific name, what does the first word denote?
- A.The species
- B.The genus
- C.The family
- D.The kingdom
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In a binomial name the first word is the genus and is written with a capital initial letter, while the second word is the species epithet and is written entirely in small letters; both are italicised in print and underlined separately in handwriting.
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