UPSC Prelims 2025 · GS Paper I
Question 37: Environment and Ecology
Regarding Peacock tarantula (Gooty tarantula), consider the following statements :
- IIt is an omnivorous crustacean.
- IIIts natural habitat in India is only limited to some forest areas.
- IIIIn its natural habitat, it is an arboreal species.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
AnswerThe answer is (d).
The Gooty tarantula, or metallic tarantula (Poecilotheria metallica), is a spider, an arachnid, not a crustacean, and it is a carnivore that eats insects and small prey, so Statement I is wrong. It is found only in a small patch of Eastern Ghats forest in Andhra Pradesh, so Statement II is correct. It lives and nests in tree holes and is arboreal, so Statement III is correct. It is critically endangered. Remember: arachnid, arboreal, restricted to the Eastern Ghats.
- I. It is an arachnid and a carnivore, not an omnivorous crustacean.
- II. Its natural habitat is limited to some forest areas of the Eastern Ghats in Andhra Pradesh.
- III. It is a tree-dwelling, arboreal species.
How you could have got this
- If you were sure statement II is correct, (a) and (b) go: each of them leaves II out.
What you needed to know: Its natural habitat is limited to some forest areas of the Eastern Ghats in Andhra Pradesh.
The red flag in statement II is “only”. In UPSC’s papers, statements with “only” were true 27% of the time (82 statements). A hint, not a rule.
- Then, if you were sure statement III is correct, (c) goes: it leaves III out.
What you needed to know: It is a tree-dwelling, arboreal species.
Only (d) is left. You didn’t need statement 1.
This follows an unofficial answer: UPSC has not published its key for this year, and if that answer is wrong, so is this path.
Which options go is worked out from UPSC’s key and the options, not by a model.
Why each option is right or wrong
- (a) Wrong: it is an arachnid and not an omnivorous crustacean.
- (b) Wrong: statement I is wrong because it is not a crustacean.
- (c) Wrong: statement III is also correct since it lives in trees.
- (d) Right: its habitat is limited to some forest areas and it is arboreal.
Explanation: written by UPSC Grade, not by UPSC.
Source: UPSC, Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 2025, General Studies Paper I, Series A. The paper on upsc.gov.in.