Which of the following tree species is/are found on Himalayas? 1. Oak 2. Rhododendron 3. Rosewood Select the correct answer using the code given below :
- (a)1 only
- (b)2 and 3
- (c)1 and 3
- (d)1 and 2
Correct — D, 1 and 2. Oak and Rhododendron are characteristic trees of the temperate Himalayan forests. Rosewood (shisham/sheesham and related species) is a tree of the tropical and peninsular forests/plains, not the Himalayan belt, so statement 3 is wrong.
- (a)1 only — Incomplete — Rhododendron (2) is also a classic Himalayan tree, not just oak.
- (b)2 and 3 — Rosewood (3) is tropical, not Himalayan; and oak (1) is Himalayan, so this pairing is wrong.
- (c)1 and 3 — Oak (1) is Himalayan, but Rosewood (3) is a tropical species, so 3 does not belong.
Himalayan vegetation changes with altitude: tropical/subtropical forests at the foothills give way to temperate forests of oak, pine, deodar and rhododendron, then to alpine meadows. Oak and rhododendron dominate the moist temperate belt (rhododendron is the state tree of Uttarakhand and Nagaland's/Sikkim's floral emblem). Rosewood is a tropical hardwood of the plains and peninsula.
Sort the species by habitat: oak and rhododendron are temperate Himalayan; rosewood is tropical. So only statements 1 and 2 are correct.
- Oak and rhododendron are typical temperate Himalayan trees.
- Rhododendron forms bright forests in the mid-Himalayan belt.
- Rosewood is a tropical hardwood of the plains and peninsular India.
- Himalayan forests grade from tropical foothills to alpine meadows with altitude.
- Including rosewood among Himalayan trees — it is tropical.
- Assuming only one species (oak) is Himalayan.
Asked as which listed species grow in the Himalayas, testing altitudinal vegetation.
No directly related past PYQ was found.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Which tree is the floral/most characteristic species of the temperate Himalayas?
- (a)Teak
- (b)Rhododendron
- (c)Rosewood
- (d)Sal
Answer(b) Rhododendron.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Rosewood (shisham) is mainly a tree of
- (a)alpine Himalayas
- (b)tropical/peninsular forests
- (c)cold deserts
- (d)mangroves
Answer(b) tropical/peninsular forests.