Class 9 Geography Chapter 5 Extra Question Answers - Natural Vegetation and Wildlife

Q1. How many plant and animal species are approximately found in India?

In India there are 47,000 plant species and 89,000 species of animals found in India. 

Q2. What does 'Natural Vegetation' mean?

Natural vegetation refers to a plant community which has grown naturally without human aid and has been left undisturbed by humans for a long time.

Q3. What is 'Virgin Vegetation'?

The natural vegetation which has been left undisturbed by the humans for a long time is called Virgin Vegetation. 

Q4. What do 'Flora' and 'Fauna' refer to?     

Flora: is the term used to denote plants of a particular region or period. Fauna: The species of animals found in a particular region is reflected as fauna. 

Q5. What kind of land is suitable for natural vegetation?

The undulating and rough terrains are areas where grasslands and woodlands develop and give shelter to a variety of wildlife. 

Q6. What kinds of soils are needed for natural vegetation?

The sandy soils of deserts support cactus and thorny bushes while wet, marshy deltic regions support mangroves and deltic vegetation and hill slopes with some depth soil have conical trees.

Q7. Why are the western slopes of the western Ghats concerned with thick forests and not the eastern slopes?

On the western rainy slopes of the western Ghats, forests really appear as wet evergreen forests and thick as compared to eastern Ghats because eastern Ghats remain in rain shadow. 

Q8. Which factors are responsible for changes in India's natural vegetation?

Factors responsible for changes in India's natural vegetation are: growing demand for cultivated land, development of industries and mining, urbanization and for grazing of pasture.

Q9. What are the major types of vegetation found in India?

• Tropical Rain forests 
• Tropical Deciduous forests 
• Tropical Thorn Forests and Shrubs
• Montane Forests 
• Mangrove Forests. 

Q10. Which animals are found in Tropical Rain Forests?

Common animals found in these forests are elephants, monkeys, lemus and deer and One-horned rhinoceros. 

Q11. Name the commercially important trees of Tropical Rain Forests.

Ebony, mahogany, rosewood, rubber and cinchona are some of the commercially important trees of tropical rain forests. 

Q12. Give one important characteristic of Tropical deciduous forests.

Trees of these forest type shed their leaves for about six to eight weeks in dry summers.

Q13. In which regions are moist deciduous forests found?

They are found in north eastern states, along the foothills of the Himalayas, Jharkhand, West Orissa, Chhattisgarh and on the eastern slopes of Western Ghats.

Q14. What are the important species of moist deciduous forests?

Teak, bamboos, sal, shisham, sandal wood, khair, kusum, arjun and mulberry are some of the important species of moist deciduous forests.

Q15. In which regions are dry deciduous forests found?

They are found in the rainy parts of the peninsular plateau and plains of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.

Q16. Name the important dry deciduous species.

Teak, sal, peepal, neem, are some important dry deciduous species.

Q17. Name the important coniferous trees of temperate forests.

In temperate forests, coniferous trees like pine, deodar, silver tree, spruce and cedar are found. 

Q18. Name the common animals found in Montane forests.

Kashmir stag, spotted deer, wild sheep, Jack rabbit, Tibetan antelope, yak, snow leopard, squirrels, shaggry horn wild ibex, bear, rare red panda, sheep and goats with thick hair. 

Q19. In which regions are Mangrove forests found?

They are found in the deltas of the Ganga, the Mahanadi, the Krishna, the Godavari and the Kaveri.

Q20. What is the chief characteristic of Mangrove trees?

The chief characteristic is that Mangrove trees can survive both in saltwater as well as fresh river water. 

Q21. In which regions is majestic elephant found?

They are found in the hot wet forests of Assam, Karnataka, and Kerala. 

Q22. In which regions are horned rhinoceros are found?

One-horned Rhinoceros live in swampy and marshy lands of Assam and West Bengal. 

Q23. What are the natural habitats of lions and tigers in India?

Gir Forests are the habitat of Indian lions and tigers live in Madhya Pradesh, Sunderbans of West Bengal and the Himalayan Regions. 

Q24. Name some important birds found in India.

Some of the important birds of India are peacocks, pheasants, ducks, parakeets, cranes and pigeons. 

Q25. Name some of the important biosphere reserves of India.

Sundarbans in the West: Bengal, Nanda Devi in Uttranchal the GuIf of Mannar, in Tamil Nadu and Nilgiris at the injunction of Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. 

Q26. How many National Parks and Wild Life Sanctuaries are there in India?

There are 89 National Parks and 49 wildlife sanctuaries in India. 

Q27. Which wildlife projects are set up to save endangered species? 

Project Tiger, Project Rhino and Project Great Indian Bustard are set up to save these endangered species. 

Q28. Why are forests important for human beings?

• Forests are renewable resources and play a major role in enhancing the quality of the environment.
• They modify the local climate and control soil erosion.
• They regulate the flow of streams and support a variety of industries like the rubber industry.
• Forests also provide a livelihood for many communities.
• They also offer panoramic or scenic views for recreation.
• They control the wind force and temperature and cause rainfall.
• They provide humus to the soil and shelter to wildlife.

Q29. What is an ecosystem? How do human beings influence the ecology of a region?

All plants and animals in an area are interdependent and interrelated to each other and their dependence on the environment is called an ecosystem. Human beings influence the ecology of a region in the following ways:

• They utilise vegetation and wildlife.
• The greed of human beings leads to the over utilisation of these resources.
• They cut trees and kill animals, thereby creating an ecological imbalance.
• As a result, some of the plants and animals have reached the verge of extinction. 

Q30. Give a brief description of the Tropical Rainforests.

• They are found in areas having more than 200 cm of rainfall.
• Since the region is warm and wet throughout the year, it has luxuriant vegetation of all kinds like trees, shrubs and creepers.
• There is no definite time for trees to slide their leaves and forests remain green all year round.
• Some of the commercially important trees found here are ebony, mahogany, rosewood, rubber and cinchona.
• Common animals found in these forests are elephants, monkeys, lemur and deer. 

Q31. What are the main characteristics of the Thorn Forests and Scrubs?

• In regions which receive less than 70 cm of rainfall, the natural vegetation consists of thorny trees.
• This type of vegetation is found in the north-western part of the country including semi-arid areas of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, UP and Haryana 
• Acacia, palms, euphorbia as and cacti are the main plant species.
• Trees are scattered and have long roots penetrating deep into the soil in order to get moisture,
• Leaves are mostly thick and small to minimise evaporation.
• These forests give way to thorn forests arid scrubs in arid areas.
• In these forests, the common animals are rats, mice, rabbits, fox, the wolf, tiger, lion, wild ass, horses arid camels.

Q32. Give a brief description of the Mangrove Forests.

• The mangrove tidal forests are found in the areas of coasts influenced by tides.
• Dense mangroves are the common varieties with routs of plants submerged underwater.
• The deltas of the Ganga the Mahanadi, the Kaveri and the Krishna are covered with such vegetation.
• In the Ganga- Brahmputra delta, Sundari trees are found which provide durable hard timber.
  Palm, coconut, keora, agar also grow in some parts of the delta.
• The Royal Bengal Tiger is the most famous animal in these forests. Turtles, crocodiles, gharials and snakes are also found here.

Q33. Give a description of any five medicinal plants.

• Jamun: The juice from ripe fruit is used to prepare vinegar and it also has digestive properties. The powder of the seed is used for controlling diabetes.
• Arjun: The fresh juice of leaves is a cure for earache. It is also used to regulate blood pressure.
• Babool: Its leaves are used as a cure for eyesores. Its gum is used as a tonic.
• Neem: It tins high antibiotic and anti-bacterial properties.
• Tulsi Plant: It is used to cure cough and cold. 

Q34. Why does India have a rich heritage of flora and fauna?

• India has a large latitudinal and longitudinal extent. The larger the area, the more is the variety.
• It has a great variety in its relief features. It has mountains, plateaus, valleys, plains, deserts, coastal areas, etc. They all have different types of flora and fauna.
• There is variation in the annual range of temperature as well as annual rainfall.
• The climate ranges from equable to hot and wet, hot and dry, cold and dry, etc. Each climatic region has its own vegetation.
• There are also various types of soils found in India. It has a variety of soils like alluvial, black, laterite, arid, red and yellow, and mountain soils, etc. As a result, we find different types of flora as well as fauna. 

Q35. What steps have been taken by the government to protect the flora and fauna of the country? 

Steps taken by the government to protect the flora and fauna are as follows:

• About fourteen biosphere reserves have been set up in the country to protect both flora and fauna. Four out of these are the Sunderbans (West Bengal), Nanda Devi (Uttarakhand), Gulf of Mannar (Tamil Nadu) and Nilgiris (Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu) have been included in the world network of Biosphere Reserves.
• Since 1992, financial and technical assistance is being provided to many botanical gardens by the government.
• Project Tiger, Project Rhino, Project Great Indian Bustard and many other eco-developmental projects have been introduced.
• About 89 national parks, 49 wildlife sanctuaries and zoological gardens have been set up to take care of the natural heritage.

Q36. Why does India have a rich heritage of flora and fauna?

• India has a large latitudinal and longitudinal extent. The larger the area, the more is the variety.
• It has a great variety in its relief features. It has mountains, plateaus, valleys, plains, deserts, coastal areas, etc. They all have different types of flora and fauna.
• There is a variation in the annual range of temperature as well as annual rainfall.
• The climate ranges from equitable to hot and not so hot and dry, cold and dry etc. Each climatic region has its own vegetation.
• There are also various types of soils found in India. It has a variety of soils like alluvial, black, laterite, arid, red and yellow, mountain soils, etc. With the result, we find different types of flora as well as fauna.

Q37. What is the importance of various species in the ecosystem?

• We have selected various crops from the reserve of edible plants from a bio diverse environment.
• We have also experimented with and selected many medicinal plants.
• There are animals who are milch animals. They provide us milk along with other milk products prepared by us.
• They also provide us help during the drought-prone seasons in cultivating and ploughing the fields. 
• The fish is nutritive and provides rich proteins.
• Many insects help in the pollination of crops and fruit trees. So, every species has a role to play in the ecosystem.

Q38. Ebony, mahogany, rosewood, rubber and. cinchona are the important trees of (a) Tropical deciduous forest (b) Montane forests (c) Mangrove forests (d) Tropical rainforests

(d) Tropical rainforests