Which of the following acronyms has been used by Biologists to describe the factors that threaten to biodiversity ?

Question

UnlockIAS · Accepted Answer

Correct — option (4), HIPPO, is the acronym biologists actually use to summarise the principal threats to biodiversity. Popularised by the biologist E. O. Wilson, HIPPO stands for Habitat destruction (loss and fragmentation of natural habitat), Invasive species (non-native organisms that outcompete or prey on native species), Pollution (contamination of air, water and soil that degrades ecosystems), Population (the growth of human population, which drives demand for land, food and resources), and Overharvesting (overexploitation of species through hunting, fishing and logging beyond what populations can sustain). Wilson arranged the five factors in descending order of overall importance, with habitat destruction judged the single largest driver of biodiversity loss worldwide. Unlike the other three options, HIPPO is not the name of an organisation or a regulatory process — it is a mnemonic specifically built to list threat categories, which is exactly what the question asks for.

Why the other options are wrong — (a) EIA stands for Environmental Impact Assessment, a regulatory process used to evaluate the likely environmental consequences of a proposed project before it is approved. It is a planning and clearance tool, not a mnemonic that lists the categories of threat to biodiversity, so it does not answer what the question is asking for.  (b) IUCN stands for the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the global body that assesses and publishes species' conservation status through its Red List. It is the name of an organisation, not an acronym describing the factors that threaten biodiversity, so it does not fit the question's description even though it is closely associated with conservation science.  (c) EPA typically refers to an Environmental Protection Agency (or, in the Indian context, the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986) — a regulatory body or law aimed at controlling pollution and safeguarding the environment. Like EIA, it names a governance mechanism rather than a list of biodiversity-threat categories, so it does not match what the question asks for.

Concept: HIPPO is a mnemonic coined by biologist E. O. Wilson to rank the principal drivers of biodiversity loss: Habitat destruction, Invasive species, Pollution, Population (human population growth), and Overharvesting, listed in Wilson's assessment of descending importance. It is deliberately built to be memorable and to communicate, in one word, that habitat loss is the single biggest threat to species survival worldwide, ahead of invasive species, pollution, human population pressure, and overexploitation.

State PCS 2025 Q33 — Environment & Ecology PYQ with Answer

State PCS 2025 Q33 — Environment & Ecology PYQ with Answer