The cold desert of Ladakh and Lahaul-Spiti belongs to which biogeographic zone of India?
- A.Himalaya
- B.Trans-Himalaya
- C.Indian Desert
- D.Semi-Arid
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is B, Trans-Himalaya. The Trans-Himalaya is the belt lying beyond the Great Himalaya in Ladakh, Lahaul-Spiti and northern Sikkim; it is a cold desert because it stands in the rain shadow of the high ranges, and it is the one Indian zone whose fauna, such as the kiang, wild yak and black-necked crane, is Tibetan or Palaearctic in character. Option A is wrong because the Himalaya zone means the forested southern slopes with pine, oak, deodar and alpine meadow, not the arid plateau behind them. Option C is wrong because the Indian Desert zone is the hot desert of the Thar and Kachchh in Rajasthan and Gujarat. Option D is wrong because the Semi-Arid zone is the transitional thorn forest belt between the desert and the Deccan. Remember the pair: cold desert is Trans-Himalaya, hot desert is Indian Desert.
Read the full article: Biogeographic Zones of India: All 10 Zones and Wildlife
Practice Questions
View allThe division of India into ten biogeographic zones was given by which pair of scientists?
- A.Champion and Seth
- B.Rodgers and Panwar
- C.Hooker and Thomson
- D.Salim Ali and Ripley
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W. A. Rodgers and H. S. Panwar of the Wildlife Institute of India proposed the ten-zone biogeographic classification in 1988 while planning a representative wildlife protected area network for the country, and the ten zones with their biotic provinces are still the official framework.
Read the full explanation →Which is the largest biogeographic zone of India by area?
- A.Semi-Arid zone
- B.Deccan Peninsula
- C.Gangetic Plain
- D.Himalaya
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The Deccan Peninsula zone covers about forty-two per cent of the country, roughly two-fifths, stretching over the central highlands, Chota Nagpur, the eastern highlands and the Deccan plateau, and it carries most of India sal and teak forests and tiger reserves.
Read the full explanation →Which of the following biosphere reserves of India is situated in Meghalaya?
- A.Panna
- B.Simlipal
- C.Manas
- D.Nokrek
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Nokrek lies in the Garo Hills of Meghalaya and represents the North-East India biogeographic zone in the network of biosphere reserves; it is known for the wild citrus relative called the Indian wild orange and for the hoolock gibbon.
Read the full explanation →Where in India are the Sundari trees that provide durable and hard timber found?
- A.Tropical Deciduous Forests
- B.Mangrove Forests
- C.Montane Forests
- D.Tropical Evergreen Forests
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The sundari is a mangrove tree of the tidal deltaic forests of the Coasts biogeographic zone, and the Sundarbans of the Ganga-Brahmaputra delta take their name from it; its wood is hard and durable, and like other mangroves it has salt tolerant roots and breathing roots in the waterlogged mud.
Read the full explanation →The lion-tailed macaque and the Nilgiri tahr are characteristic animals of which biogeographic zone?
- A.Deccan Peninsula
- B.Western Ghats
- C.North-East India
- D.Coasts
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The Western Ghats zone includes the hill chain and the Malabar coastal plain, and its wet evergreen forests and high shola grassland mosaic hold a very high share of endemic species, among them the lion-tailed macaque of the rainforest canopy and the Nilgiri tahr of the Eravikulam grasslands.
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