Environment and Ecology For UPSC [Official]

Q.) Consider the following statements about 'State of the World’s Birds': 1. It is an annual report released by BirdLife International. 2. It was released at Global Flyways Summit co-hosted by United Nations Environment Programme. 3. The Global Flyways Summit 2026 was hosted at Bonn, Germany.

Happy birthday to Hon'ble Prime Minister Shri. Narendra Modi.

1. It is a species of fungus in the family Morchellaceae of the Ascomycota. 2. It is found on the foothills of the Himalayas. It grows in conifer forests across temperature regions, and the foothills in Himachal Pradesh, Uttaranchal, and Jammu and Kashmir. a. It is largely found in Rajouri, Poonch, Doda, Kishtwar, Kupwara and Ramban districts of Jammu and Kashmir. 3. It usually grow in clusters on logs of decaying wood, leaves or humus soil. 4. It may or may not grow in the same spot the next season. 5. Physical Appearance: They are pale yellow in colour with large pits and ridges on the surface of the cap, raised on a large white stem. 6. It is known to be one of the most expensive mushrooms, with only 500 gm gucchi costing up to Rs 18,000. 7. Gucchis can vary in colour from blonde to dark black. 8. Gucchis are weather dependent, triggered by the temp and moisture. 9. Ideal weather conditions for the great morel are when daytime Celsius is between 15 and 20 and night-time temperatures are in the five to nine. 10. It is prized by professional chefs and amateur foodies alike for its nutty, earthy flavour. 11. Note: Gujjars living in the mountains are known as skilled morel hunters. 12. It can fetch prices upward of Rs 40,000 a kg due to their scarcity and short growing season. 13. According to experts, gucchi is becoming rarer because of climate change, deforestation, and habitat destruction. 14. The Jammu and Kashmir forest department data shows morel mushroom production has shrunk from 2,000 quintals in 1991 to around 45 quintals in 2021. 15. Health benefits of gucchi mushrooms: a. They are rich in potassium, vitamins and copper. b. They are also a rich source of vitamin D apart from several B-vitamins. c. It is further rich in antioxidants that prevent health issues including heart diseases and diabetes by removing reactive oxygen species that harm the body. #SpeciesInNews

Context: Assam CM highlights ‘big comeback’ of ‘small hog’. The population of the endangered pygmy hog (Porcula salvania), once thought to be extinct, has increased from six individuals in 1996 to 194 through a captive breeding programme in Assam. In July 2026, The Standing Committee of the National Board for Wildlife (SC-NBWL) has recommended the inclusion of the pygmy hog in in the list of critically endangered species under a centrally sponsored scheme, Integrated Development of Wildlife Habitats (IDWH). Pygmy Hog (Porcula salvania): 1. It is the smallest and the rarest wild suid in the world. 2. Its range once extended across the entire southern foothills of the Himalaya, by the 1990s, the species’ domain had shrunk to just one location in the world — Manas National Park of Assam. 3. It is listed as ENDANGERED in IUCN's Red List.of Threatened Species 4. It is listed in Appendix I of CITES. 5. It is dependent on early successional riverine communities, typically comprising dense tall grasslands, commonly referred to as 'thatchland'. 6. Today, the largest population of about 150 thrives in Orang, Assam. 7. Two potential re-introduction sites were identified in Sonai Rupai Wildlife Sanctuary and Nameri National Park, both in Sonitpur district of Assam bordering Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh. 8. It is on the brink of extinction, as only a few isolated and small subpopulations survive in the wild. In fact, the only viable population of the species, with a few hundred individuals, exists in small grassland pockets of Manas National Park and an adjacent reserve forest in the Manas Tiger Reserve. 9. Threats: Loss and degradation of habitat due to human settlements, agricultural encroachments, dry-season burning, livestock grazing, commercial forestry, hunting for meat and flood control schemes. British naturalist Gerald Durrell and his trust initiated the pygmy hog conservation in 1971. It led to the Pygmy Hog Conservation Programme (PHCP). Pygmy Hog Conservation Programme (PHCP): 1. The Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust of the United Kingdom, the Assam Forest Department, the Wild Pig Specialist Group of the International Union for Conservation of Nature, and the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change are the PHCP collaborators. 2. Assam-based biodiversity conservation organisation Aaranyak and Ecosystems India are implementing the programme. 3. The conservation programme began after conservationists captured six pygmy hogs from the Bansbari range of Manas National Park in 1996 and brought them to a captive breeding facility on the southern edge of Guwahati. 4. Conservationists began reintroducing the pygmy hogs to the wild in 2008. The mammals are now found in the Sonai-Rupai Wildlife Sanctuary, Bornadi Wildlife Sanctuary, Orang National Park, and Manas National Park. #SpeciesInNews Source: The Hindu, The Hindu

Every year, 16th September is observed as the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer. Theme 2026: Global action for a cooler planet. It emphasizes how scientific discoveries about ozone depletion transformed into global policies and successful international cooperation. It is on this day in 1987, nations signed the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. On 16th Sept 2009, the Vienna Convention and the Montreal Protocol became the first treaties in the history of the United Nations to achieve universal ratification. The Parties to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer reached agreement at their 28th Meeting of the Parties on 15 October 2016 in Kigali, Rwanda to phase-down hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs).

“Accept what is, let go of what was, have faith in what will be.” — Sonia Ricotti.

No matter how someone treated you in the past. Be kind not just for them but also for oneself. PK: Please, be Kind.

Q.) Consider the following statements regarding the distribution of insolation received at the Earth's surface: 1. The maximum insolation received at the Earth's surface occurs at the equator because the sun's rays fall vertically overhead throughout the year. 2. Subtropical desert regions experience lesser surface insolation than equatorial regions. 3. Generally, at the same latitude the insolation is more over the oceans than over the continent.