Q. Consider the following statements :
Statement-I : Marsupials are not naturally found in India.
Statement-II : Marsupials can thrive only in montane grasslands with no predators.
Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?
- Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II is the correct explanation for Statement-I
- Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II is not the correct explanation for Statement-I
- Statement-I is correct but Statement-II is incorrect
- Statement-I is incorrect but Statement-II is correct
Answer: (c) Statement-I is correct but Statement-II is incorrect
Marsupials
- Marsupials are any members of the mammalian infraclass Marsupialia. All extant marsupials are endemic to Australasia, Wallacea and the Americas.
- A distinctive characteristic common to most of these species is that the young are carried in a pouch.
- Living marsupials include opossums, Tasmanian devils, kangaroos, koalas, wombats, wallabies, and bandicoots among others, while many extinct species, such as the thylacine, are also known.
- They give birth to relatively undeveloped young that often reside in a pouch located on their mothers’ abdomen for a certain amount of time.
- Close to 70% of the 334 extant species occur on the Australian continent (the mainland, Tasmania, New Guinea and nearby islands). The remaining 30% are found in the Americas—primarily in South America, thirteen in Central America, and one species, the Virginia opossum, in North America, north of Mexico.
