NEETBotanyBiodiversity and its Conservation
Given below are two statements: one is labelled as Assertion (A) and the other is labelled as Reason (R). Assertion (A): When a host fish species becomes extinct, its unique assemblage of parasites also meets the same fate. Reason (R): In a coevolved plant-pollinator mutualism, the extinction of one invariably leads to the extinction of the other. In the light of the above statements, choose the correct answer from t
Options
- ABoth (A) and (R) are true and (R) is the correct explanation of (A)
- BBoth (A) and (R) are true but (R) is not the correct explanation of (A)
- C(A) is true but (R) is false
- D(A) is false but (R) is true
Correct answer
B. Both (A) and (R) are true but (R) is not the correct explanation of (A)
Step-by-step solution
Both Assertion (A) and Reason (R) are true statements regarding co-extinction, which is one of the 'Evil Quartet' causes of biodiversity loss. When a species becomes extinct, the plant and animal species associated with it in an obligatory way also become extinct. Thus, when a host fish goes extinct, its obligate parasites also die out. This makes the Assertion true. The Reason statement is also a true example of co-extinction given in NCERT. However, the extinction of plant-pollinator mutualists does not explain w