Question

Which of the following is correctly matched?
A. Stratification- Population
B. Aerenchyma- Opuntia
C. Age pyramid- Biome
D. Parthenium-Threat to biodiversity

Answer 1

Hint: A population is all the organisms of the same group or species who live in a particular geographical area and are capable of interbreeding. Opuntia ficus indica, the prickly pear, is a species of cactus that has long been a domesticated crop plant grown in agricultural economies throughout arid and semiarid parts of the world. A biome is a community of plants and animals that have common characteristics in the environment in which they exist. The threat to biodiversity means a particular species or a thing is hampering the biodiversity of an area.

Complete answer: Stratification in the field of ecology refers to the vertical layering of habitat; the arrangement of vegetation in layers.
-Aerenchyma is a spongy tissue that forms spaces or air channels in the leaves, stems, and roots of some plants, which allows the exchange of gases between the shoot and the root. Aerenchyma is majorly found in aquatic and wetland plants but opuntia is a xerophytic plant.
-A population pyramid also called an "age-gender-pyramid", is a graphical illustration that shows the distribution of various age groups in a population, which forms the shape of a pyramid when the population is growing whereas a biome is a community.
-Parthenium is a species of flowering plant in the aster family, Asteraceae. It is native to the American tropics. Common names include Santa-Maria, Santa Maria feverfew, whitetop weed, and famine weed. The rapid growth of the weed had become a threat to the environment and biodiversity. It adversely affects the germination and growth of several crops.
So, the answer is D, i.e., Parthenium-Threat to biodiversity

Note: The rapid spread of the highly allergic and poisonous Parthenium weed all over the country has alarmed scientists who described it as a major emerging threat to the environment and biodiversity. The pollen grains of Parthenium hysterophorus, or carrot grass in common parlance, is poisonous, allergic, and aggressive weed whose pollens float in the air and cause several diseases like eczema, asthma, and dermatitis, hay fever (kala-azar), etc in human beings.