Consider the following statements: 1. Biodiversity is normally greater in the lower latitudes as compared to the higher latitudes. 2. Along the mountain gradients, biodiversity is normally greater in the lower altitudes as compared to the higher altitudes. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Consider the following statements: 1. Biodiversity is normally greater in the lower latitudes as compared to the higher latitudes. 2. Along the mountain gradients, biodiversity is normally greater in the lower altitudes as compared to the higher altitudes. Which of the statements given above is/are correct? Correct Answer Both 1 and 2

The correct answer is Both 1 and 2.

Key Points

• Latitude
  • It is the angular distance of a place north or south of the earth's equator.
  • It is measured with 180 imaginary lines that form circles around the Earth east-west, parallel to the Equator.
  • The Equator is the line of 0 degrees latitude. Each parallel measures one degree north or south of the Equator, with 90 degrees north of the Equator and 90 degrees south of the Equator.
  • The latitude of the North Pole is 90 degrees N, and the latitude of the South Pole is 90 degrees S.
• The term biodiversity (from “biological diversity”) refers to the variety of life on Earth at all its levels, from genes to ecosystems, and can encompass the evolutionary, ecological, and cultural processes that sustain life.
• Biodiversity increases from the poles to the tropics for a wide variety of terrestrial and marine organisms. It is also called the latitudinal diversity gradient.
• Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• Elevational diversity gradient (EDG) is an ecological pattern where biodiversity changes with elevation.
• The researchers in the past have found that plant biodiversity initially increases with altitude, until it reaches a diversity peak at around 1 300 to 1 800 m, after which point it decreases with altitude.
• Hence, statement 2 is correct.