Consider the following pairs : Wildlife : Naturally found in 1. Blue-finned Mahseer : Cauvery River 2. Irrawaddy Dolphin : Chambal River 3. Rusty-spotted Cat : Eastern Ghats Which of the pairs given above are correctly matched?
- (a) 1 and 2 only
- (b) 2 and 3 only
- (c) 1 and 3 only ✓ UPSC's answer
- (d) 1, 2 and 3
Why the answer is (c)
• Pair 1 is correct: the blue-finned mahseer (Tor khudree) is native to the Cauvery and other peninsular rivers.
• Pair 3 is correct: the rusty-spotted cat, the world's smallest wild cat, occurs in dry and moist forests of the Eastern Ghats, Western Ghats and central India.
• Pair 2 is wrong: the Irrawaddy dolphin lives in brackish coastal waters — Chilika Lake and the Sundarbans; the Chambal has the Gangetic river dolphin.
• Hence 1 and 3 only, option (c).
Why the other options are wrong
- (a) 1 and 2 only
- Pair 2 is wrong: Irrawaddy dolphins are in Chilika, not Chambal.
- (b) 2 and 3 only
- Pair 2 is wrong; pair 1 is correct.
- (d) 1, 2 and 3
- Pair 2 is wrong.
Asked in the GS Paper I of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2019, held on 2 June 2019. Question and answer key: Union Public Service Commission. Explanation: UPSC Answer Check.