Solanum tuberosum is the scientific name of which vegetable?
- A.Tomato
- B.Brinjal
- C.Potato
- D.Onion
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is C, the potato. The potato is Solanum tuberosum, and the epithet tuberosum points to the tuber, a swollen underground stem rather than a root, which is the part eaten; the plant belongs to the nightshade family and reached India through the Portuguese. Option A is wrong because the tomato of the same genus is Solanum lycopersicum, long written as Lycopersicon esculentum. Option B is wrong because the brinjal, also of this genus, is Solanum melongena, which makes these three a favourite matching set. Option D is wrong because the onion is Allium cepa and belongs to a different family altogether, along with garlic, Allium sativum. Remember that the potato is a stem and not a root. The potato came to India in the seventeenth century and is today the most widely grown vegetable crop in the country, with Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal as the leading producers.
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 →Oryza sativa is the scientific name of which crop?
- A.Wheat
- B.Rice
- C.Maize
- D.Barley
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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.
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.
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