Short Question Answers

Short question answers
1.What do you understand by deforestation ?

Ans. Large scale or indiscriminate cutting of trees is
called deforestation.
2. How do animals help in seed dispersal ?
Ans. Animals like monkeys, birds etc., eat fruits along
with their seeds. The seeds come out with the
excreta and get scattered to distant places. Some
thorny seeds stick to the fur of animals and get
dispersed to far off places.
3. What is humus ? What is its importance ?
Ans. The organic matter formed from the
decomposition of dead plant and animal
remains by the action of microorganisms (or
decomposers) is called humus.
It makes the soil fertile and provides moisture
and makes the soil porous.
4. How do nutrients recycle in a forest ?
Ans. When an animal or plant dies, the warm and
damp conditions on the forest floor allow for the
rapid decomposition of dead matter. Through
decomposition all the nutrients are returned to
the soil and absorbed by other living plants.
5. What is a food chain ? Give an example of a
simple food chain existing in a forest.
Ans. A food chain represents the exchange of energy.
In other words, it is the sequential order of who
eats whom in an ecosystem. The successive
levels in the food chains are called trophic levels.
Each food chain starts with a producer and ends
with a consumer.
A typical food chain existing in a forest is:
Plants → Insects → Frogs → Snakes → Eagles
6. How do forests maintain water table ?
Ans. The roots of trees make the soil porous.
Rainwater seeps through these pores and
recharges the groundwater. Thus wastage
of rainwater in the form of surface run off is
prevented and the water table is maintained.
II Long Answer Type Questions
1. Describe the different layers in a forest ?
Mention any three major uses of forests.
Ans. A typical forest is composed of two distinct
layers, viz. overstorey or the emergent layer
and understorey.
The tallest trees form the overstorey. This
layer is very sunny. Many butterflies and small
creatures live in this layer.
The lower layer of the forest is called understorey.
It is composed of herbs and shrubs. There are
many animals and creatures that live only in
the understorey of a forest.
Forests are not only home to a rich diversity of
flora and fauna, they also provide many useful
products of our daily use.
• Forest trees such as the bamboo are used
in making furniture, baskets, ladders, etc.
The teak tree is used to make furniture.
• The Neem tree is used for medicinal
purposes.
• Forests also provide raw material to make
paper and other products such as gum, wax,
rubber and honey.
• We get most of the fruits and dry fruits from
forests. Fruits like mango, orange, litchi,
apple, pear etc. grow in forests.
2. Why are forests called ‘green lungs’ ?
Ans. During photosynthesis green plants absorb
carbon dioxide and release oxygen needed for
respiration. In this way these maintain carbon
dioxide-oxygen balance in nature. Forests also
influence climate, water cycle and air quality.
It is the reason forests are called green lungs.
3. What is the role of forests in maintaining the
water cycle?
Ans. Forests play a vital role in the maintaining
the water cycle. Plants absorb water from the
ground through their roots. Excess water from
the plants is released into the atmosphere
in the form of water vapour. This process is
termed as transpiration. Plants release a huge
amount of water into the atmosphere through
transpiration. For example, a single apple tree
loses as much as 30 litres of water in a day.
The water vapour rises in the atmosphere and
condenses to form clouds. The clouds move to
the land due to sea breeze and bring rain. This
process goes on and water cycle is maintained.
4. Explain the interlinked relationship among all
the components of a forest.
Ans. All the components in a forest are interlinked
making it a dynamic entity. Plants get essential
elements and compounds like carbon, oxygen,
water, carbon dioxide, nitrogen etc. from the
soil and air. These are used by plants for their
growth and making food in combination with
sunlight. Once synthesised, this food becomes
available for us by the rest of ecosystem.
Animals access this food by consuming plants
or plant eaters. When the plants or animals die,
their decomposition returns the nutrients to the
soil for future use. In this way the process goes
on.
5. Suggest five ways to protect forests.
Ans. Way to protect forest:
• The cutting of trees in the forests must
be stopped at all costs. Indiscriminate
deforestation should be prohibited.
• Cutting of timber and other forest produce
should be strictly restricted.
• Forest fires should be prevented.
• Grazing of cattle in forests should be
discouraged. Grasslands should be
regenerated.
• Celebrations of all functions, festivals should
precede with tree plantation.
III Higher Order Thinking Skills
1. How does a forest develop in nature ?
Ans. The manner in which a tree grows in nature is
different from how it is allowed to grow in a potor nursery. The seeds begin to germinate after
they get suitable and favourable conditions to
do so. Seeds are often carried by wind, streams
of water or animals. When a seed begins to
grow, initially it depends on the nutrients it
has brought with it from its parent plant i.e.,
the nutrients available in the seed itself. As
the growth process continues, the roots anchor
themselves in the soil and begin to absorb
minerals and water from the soil. Over time this
sapling strengthens and begins to synthesise its
own food by the process of photosynthesis. The
process of growth continues and the plant bears
flowers that ultimately develop into fruits and
seeds. Seeds are dispersed and the process goes
on.
2. What will happen if all the deer are removed
from a forest?
Ans. In a forest (or in other ecosystem) all the
components-living and non-living interact with
each other and depend on each others. There
exists a food chain that continuously transfers
energy and recycle the nutrients. Deer is a prey
for lion. If all the deer of a forest are removed,
there will not be sufficient food for lions. So some
of the lions will die due to starvation. Decrease of
lions in forest will disturb the other food chains
in which lions operate. Moreover, the hungry
lion of the forest may come out in search of
food and even may kill the domestic animals or
human beings for getting food. This will create
an imbalance in the nature disturbing the food
chains and food webs.

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Short question answers

1.What do you understand by deforestation ?

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