Biology

high importance~2 Q in Tier 14 formulas⚡ 12 shortcuts6 subtopics

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Branches of biology and ecology

⏱ 4 min read🧩 6 question types🎯 20 practice Q

The idea in one minute

Most questions here decode a word: ornithology is birds, sericulture is silk. The rest are ecology facts: the food chain, the 10% energy rule, and India's conservation firsts. Learn the word roots and the dates in small clusters.

Branches of study

The word ending -ology means the study of. The front part tells you what.

Branch	Studies
Ornithology	Birds
Entomology	Insects
Ichthyology	Fishes
Herpetology	Reptiles and amphibians
Mycology	Fungi
Virology	Viruses
Cytology	Cells
Histology	Tissues
Oncology	Cancer
Cardiology	Heart
Ophthalmology	Eye
Anthology	Flowers

Apiology is bees. Malacology is molluscs.

Watch: Entomology is insects. Etymology is the study of word origins.

Culture words: rearing living things

Word	Rears or grows
Apiculture	Honeybees (honey)
Sericulture	Silkworms (silk)
Pisciculture	Fish
Aquaculture	Water organisms
Horticulture	Garden plants
Floriculture	Flowers
Vermiculture	Earthworms
Silviculture	Forest trees
Poultry	Fowl

Tip: Decode the root: api is bee, seri is silk, pisci is fish, vermi is worm, silvi is forest.

Colour revolutions in India

Green: food grain. M.S. Swaminathan in India. Norman Borlaug worldwide.
White: milk. Verghese Kurien, Operation Flood.
Blue: fish.
Yellow: oilseeds.

Ecosystem and the 10% law

An ecosystem is a living community plus its physical surroundings.

The food chain runs in one direction.

Producers (green plants)
Herbivores (primary consumers)
Carnivores (secondary and tertiary consumers)

Decomposers (bacteria and fungi) recycle nutrients. A food web is many chains linked together.

Rule: Lindeman's 10% law says only about 10% of energy passes to the next level.

E_n = E_1 \times (0.1)^{n-1}

Here $E_1$ is the producer energy and $n$ is the level. Take 10,000 J at the producers. The herbivores get 1,000 J. Small carnivores get 100 J. Big carnivores get 10 J.

Energy flows one way. Nutrients cycle. Bioaccumulation makes toxins build up along the chain.

Cycles and conservation

Nitrogen cycle: soil nitrogen goes to plants, then animals, then back to soil. Rhizobium bacteria in legume root nodules fix the nitrogen.
The carbon cycle ties together respiration, photosynthesis and fuels.
Jim Corbett National Park (1936) is India's first national park.
Project Tiger began in 1973.
The Chipko movement (1973): villagers hugged trees to save them.
The IUCN Red List ranks threatened species (extinct, vulnerable, least concern). The Red Data Book records them.
Ramsar sites are wetlands.

Pollution and milestones

Air pollutants: CO, SO₂, NOₓ and particulates.
BOD (biochemical oxygen demand) measures water pollution. Higher BOD means dirtier water.
Silent Spring (Rachel Carson, 1962) warned against pesticides like DDT.
Dolly the sheep (1996) was the first cloned mammal.
Norman Borlaug is the father of the Green Revolution.
Salim Ali is the birdman of India.

Question types you will see

Each type: how to recognise it, the method step by step, and one question to try.

Type 1very common4 practice Q

Branch of study and organism

How to spot it:

'Ornithology is the study of', 'entomology', 'ichthyology', 'herpetology', 'study of cancer'.

Method

Split the word into root and -ology.
Recall the root: ornitho is bird, ento is insect.
Kill the trap: entomology is not etymology.

Why it works:

Root plus -ology gives the answer.

Try this

Entomology is the study of what?

Show solution

Ento means insect.
Etymology is a different word.

Answer

Insects

Type 2very common3 practice Q

Culture or rearing word and creature

How to spot it:

'Sericulture is associated with', 'apiculture', 'pisciculture', 'vermiculture'.

Method

Split the word: root plus culture.
Api is bee, seri is silk, pisci is fish, vermi is worm.
Silvi means forest trees.

Why it works:

Each word is a Latin root plus culture.

Try this

Sericulture is the rearing of what?

Show solution

Seri means silk.
Silk comes from silkworms.

Answer

Silkworms

Type 3common3 practice Q

Food chain and the 10% law (computed)

How to spot it:

'Producers trap 10,000 J, energy at the third level', 'the 10% law was given by', 'primary consumers'.

Method

Count the levels from the producers as level 1.
Multiply by 0.1 once for each step.
Third level means two steps.

Why it works:

Each step keeps only a tenth.

Try this

Producers store 10,000 J. By the 10% law, how much energy reaches the third trophic level?

Show solution

Level 1: 10,000 J.
Level 2 (herbivores): 1,000 J.
Level 3 (small carnivores): 100 J.

Answer

100 J

Type 4common3 practice Q

Conservation firsts and biodiversity

How to spot it:

'First national park of India', 'Project Tiger was launched in', 'Chipko movement', 'IUCN Red List'.

Method

Jim Corbett: 1936, first park.
Project Tiger and Chipko: 1973.
Red Data Book and IUCN list threatened species.

Why it works:

Names and years come in fixed pairs.

Try this

India's first national park (1936) is which park?

Show solution

It was set up in 1936.
Project Tiger began here in 1973.

Answer

Jim Corbett National Park

Type 5common3 practice Q

Colour revolutions and scientists

How to spot it:

'White Revolution is related to', 'father of the Green Revolution', 'birdman of India'.

Method

Match the colour to the produce first.
Then attach the name.
Salim Ali is the birdman. Rachel Carson wrote Silent Spring.

Why it works:

Colour first, name second.

Try this

The White Revolution (Operation Flood) in India is associated with what?

Show solution

White means milk.
Verghese Kurien led it.

Answer

Milk production

Type 6occasional2 practice Q

Ecology basics and pollution measures

How to spot it:

'BOD measures', 'which organisms are decomposers', 'food web is', 'bioaccumulation'.

Method

BOD: higher value means more polluted water.
Decomposers are bacteria and fungi.
Toxins like DDT build up along the food chain.

Why it works:

Ecology terms have short fixed meanings.

Try this

BOD of a water sample indicates what?

Show solution

More organic waste means bacteria use more oxygen.
So higher BOD means dirtier water.

Answer

Its pollution level

Formula sheet

10% law of energy transfer

E_{n} = E_{1} \times (0.1)^{\,n-1}

E₁ = energy at the producer level, n = trophic level. Each step keeps one tenth

Shortcuts that save time

⚡ Culture words by root

Api is bee (apiary). Seri is silk. Pisci is fish (Pisces). Viti is vine or grapes. Pomo is fruit (pomegranate). Olera is vegetables.

Example

Sericulture is the rearing of what?

Show solution

Seri means silk.
Silk comes from silkworms.

Answer

Silkworms

⚡ Study-of roots

Ornitho is bird. Ento is insect. Ichthyo is fish. Herpeto is creeping animals. Myco is fungus. Phyco is seaweed or algae. Onco is tumour. Nephro is kidney.

Mistakes to avoid

Where most students lose marks on this subtopic.

Mistake 01

Confusing entomology (insects) with etymology (word origins).

Entomology is insects.

Mistake 02

Mixing up pisciculture (fish) and pomology (fruits).

Pisci means fish. Pomo means fruit.

Mistake 03

Saying energy cycles in an ecosystem.

Energy flows one way. Nutrients cycle.

Mistake 04

Reading 10% law as 90% passing on.

Only 10% passes to the next level. The rest is lost.

Mistake 05

Giving Swaminathan credit for the White Revolution.

White Revolution (milk) is Verghese Kurien. Swaminathan is Green.

Quick revision

Read this the night before the exam.

Ornithology birds, entomology insects, ichthyology fish, herpetology reptiles, mycology fungi, oncology cancer.
Apiculture bees, sericulture silk, pisciculture fish, vermiculture worms, silviculture trees.
10% law (Lindeman): 10,000, 1,000, 100, 10 J up the chain.
Corbett 1936 first park. Project Tiger 1973. Chipko 1973. Dolly the sheep 1996.
Green: Swaminathan and Borlaug. White: Kurien. Blue: fish. Yellow: oilseeds.
Rhizobium fixes nitrogen in legume nodules. Higher BOD means dirtier water.

Practice: 20 questions

Sets of 10, mixed across the question types above. Every answer has a step-by-step explanation.

Topic test · 10 questions

Suggested time 3 min · wrong answers go to your mistake notebook automatically.

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