Prelims 2018 · Environment · Question 87
Consider the following statements:<br/>1. Most of the world's coral reefs are in tropical waters.<br/>2. More than one-third of the world's coral reefs are located in the territories of Australia, Indonesia and Philippines.<br/>3. Coral reefs host far more number of animal phyla than those hosted by tropical rainforests.<br/><br/>Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Answer
1, 2 and 3
1. Most of the world's coral reefs are in tropical waters. — Correct. Coral reefs mainly occur in warm, shallow, sunlit tropical and subtropical seas, especially between about 30°N and 30°S.
2. More than one-third of the world's coral reefs are located in the territories of Australia, Indonesia and Philippines. — Correct. The Indo-Pacific has the largest concentration of reefs; Australia, Indonesia and the Philippines together account for well over one-third of global coral reef area.
3. Coral reefs host far more number of animal phyla than those hosted by tropical rainforests. — Correct. Coral reef ecosystems show extremely high taxonomic diversity and are known to contain more animal phyla than tropical rainforests.
Therefore, all three statements are correct.