Which of the following statements about biodiversity hot spots is/are correct?
- 1Biodiversity hot spots are identified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN).
- 2Biodiversity hot spots are defined according to their vegetation.
- 3In India, Eastern Ghats and Western Himalaya are the biodiversity hot spots.
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
- A1 and 2 only
- B3 only
- C1, 2 and 3
- D1 only
Explanation
Biodiversity hotspots are defined according to their vegetation — Norman Myers' concept rests on exceptional plant endemism (over 1,500 endemic vascular plant species) plus severe habitat loss — so statement 2 is correct. Statement 3 is false: India's hotspots are the Western Ghats–Sri Lanka, the Eastern Himalaya and the Indo-Burma region, not the Eastern Ghats and Western Himalaya. Key disputed: statement 1 credits hotspot identification to the IUCN, whereas the concept and the global hotspot list come from Norman Myers and Conservation International; the key A is retained because '2 only' is not among the options.