NCERT Solutions Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World

F R E E S T U D Y M AT E R I A L F O R E V E R Y S T U D E N T

CLASS 6 · SCIENCE

NCERT Solutions

Chapter 2: Diversity in the Living
World

NCERT Textbook — Curiosity

BOOK PAGES SECTIONS QUESTIONS MEDIUM

9 – 34 20 61 English

Solutions, notes, sample papers & more at 67 pages

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

CLASS 6 · SCIENCE · CURIOSITY

NCERT Solutions — Chapter 2: Diversity in the Living
World
Complete NCERT Solutions for Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World from the NCERT
textbook Curiosity. Every question of the chapter is answered — all ten questions of Let us enhance our
learning, the tasks in Activities 2.1 to 2.10, the Learning further projects and every in-text question from
pages 9 to 34 — with what you observe, why it happens and an everyday Indian example.

TEXTBOOK BOOK PAGES

Curiosity (Class 6) 9 – 34

SECTIONS QUESTIONS

20 61

MEDIUM

English

In-text Questions — Page 10
The nature walk with Dr Raghu and Maniram chacha

Q1 Have you ever observed different plants and animals around you? Share and discuss
your observations with your friends and teacher.

Yes. Even a short walk from home to school passes dozens of different living things — you only
have to slow down and look.
What you will observe:

Plants — soft green grass along the road, tulsi in a pot, a gudhal (hibiscus) hedge with
bright red flowers, a tall neem or peepal at the corner, a money plant climbing a wall, and a
pumpkin creeper spreading on the ground.
Animals — crows and mynas on wires, sparrows in a hedge, a squirrel running up a trunk,
ants marching in a line, butterflies moving flower to flower, a lizard on the wall, buffaloes
near a pond, and frogs calling after rain.
Even the sounds differ — the chapter's most important observation is that each bird has its
own unique chirp. A koel's call, a crow's caw and a sparrow's chirp can be told apart without
seeing the bird at all.

Page 1 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Why this matters: all these differences together are called diversity. The variety of
plants and animals found in one region is the biodiversity of that region. No two
kinds are exactly alike — in shape, size, colour, food, home or sound — and it is this
variety that Chapter 2 sets out to organise.

Tip for the walk: Dr Raghu's rule — observe without disturbing. Do not pluck leaves
or flowers and do not frighten any animal. Carry a notebook, a pen and a water
bottle, and write down what you see on the spot; memory fades but notes do not.

Activity 2.1: Let us explore and record — Pages 10–12

Page 2 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Section 2.1 Diversity in Plants and Animals Around Us

ACTIVITY

Q1 Record your observations in Table 2.1 about the features of stems, leaves, flowers
and anything interesting in various plants.

S. LOCAL STEM LEAVES (SHAPE / FLOWERS ANY OTHER
NO. NAME ARRANGEMENT OBSERVATIONS
OF OF LEAVES) AND FEATURES
PLANT

1. Common Soft A single leaf Green leaves
grass and grows
thin alternatively from
different points
on the stem

2. Tulsi Hard Arrangement of a Pinkish
and pair of leaves in purple
thin the opposite
directions

3. Hibiscus Hard

4. Neem Hard Leaves with
and smooth surface
thick

5. Any
other

Table 2.1, page 11 — Observations of different plants around us. The blank cells are the
ones you fill in.

Dig out four or five plants' worth of observations from your own nature walk. Here is a
completed Table 2.1 you can compare your entries with.

Page 3 of 67

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Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World
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S. LOCAL STEM LEAVES (SHAPE / FLOWERS
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ANY OTHER om
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NO. NAME OF ARRANGEMENT) OBSERVATIONS

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PLANT
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1. las Common
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Soft and A single long narrow leaf Very small, Green leaves; veins
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different points on the stem missed

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2. Tulsi Hard A pair of leaves in opposite Pinkish purple Strong pleasant smell
and thin
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tiny

3. Hibiscus
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What to look for while filling it: three things decide most of the entries — is the

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(alternate) or two facing each other (opposite)?, and what

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Try This: Collect only fallen leaves and flowers and press them between newspaper
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sheets in a heavy book. In a week you will have a scrapbook of your own locality's

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plants.

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Similarities: every plant you observed had the same basic parts — roots, a stem, leaves, and
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most had flowers. All were fixed in one place, all were green in some part, and all made their
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Differences: the book itself lists the three main ones.
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Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Stem — tall or short, hard or soft, thick or thin, brown or green. Compare the soft green
stem of grass with the hard thick brown trunk of a neem.
Leaves — different shapes, sizes and colours, and a different arrangement on the stem:
one leaf at a point in grass, a pair of opposite leaves in tulsi, many leaflets on one stalk in
neem.
Flowers — varying in colour, shape and scent: pinkish-purple in tulsi, large red in gudhal,
small white bunches in neem.

Why the differences matter: a difference that appears again and again in many
plants can be used as a basis for grouping. "Hard stem or soft stem" separates
trees and shrubs from herbs; "net-like veins or parallel veins" will later separate
dicots from monocots. That is how a long messy list becomes a short, usable set of
groups.

Page 5 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Q3 Now, create a list of animals you observed during this walk or from your previous
experiences. Record the places where they live, the food they eat and the way they
move around in Table 2.2.

NAME OF PLACE FOOD THE WAY ANY OTHER
THE ANIMAL WHERE THEY EAT THEY MOVE OBSERVATIONS
(LOCAL THEY AROUND AND FEATURES
NAME) LIVE

Crow Tree Insects Fly and walk Carrying a twig in its
beak

Ant Nest in Leaves, Have six legs
soil and seeds and
burrow insects

Cow Grasses,
leaves

Any other

Table 2.2, page 12 — Observations of different animals around us. The blank cells are the
ones you fill in.

Here is Table 2.2 completed with common Indian animals. Use it to check your own entries.

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Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

NAME OF PLACE FOOD THE WAY THEY ANY OTHER
THE ANIMAL WHERE THEY THEY EAT MOVE AROUND OBSERVATIONS
LIVE

Crow Tree Insects, grains, Fly and walk Carrying a twig in its
leftover food beak

Ant Nest in soil and Leaves, seeds Walk / crawl Have six legs; move in a
burrow and insects line

Cow Shed, grassy field Grasses, leaves Walk and run Chews the cud; has
hooves and horns

Squirrel Tree, hole in a Nuts, fruits, Run, climb, jump Three stripes on its back;
wall seeds bushy tail

Fish Pond, river Water plants, Swim Streamlined body and
small insects fins

Frog Pond edge — Insects Hop and swim Moist skin; croaks loudly
water as well as after rain
land

Check it yourself: add one animal that nobody else in your class has written — a
house lizard, a snail after rain, a bulbul, a mongoose, a dragonfly. That single extra
entry is your own contribution to the class list of local biodiversity.

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Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Q4 What are the similarities and differences among the animals that you have
observed and recorded in Table 2.2?

NAME OF PLACE FOOD THE WAY ANY OTHER
THE ANIMAL WHERE THEY EAT THEY MOVE OBSERVATIONS
(LOCAL THEY AROUND AND FEATURES
NAME) LIVE

Crow Tree Insects Fly and walk Carrying a twig in its
beak

Ant Nest in Leaves, Have six legs
soil and seeds and
burrow insects

Cow Grasses,
leaves

Any other

Table 2.2, page 12 — Observations of different animals around us. The blank cells are the
ones you fill in.

Similarities: all of them eat food, breathe, move from place to place on their own, grow,
respond to what happens around them and produce young ones. Moving about by themselves
is the one big difference from plants.
Differences — the book groups them under three headings:

BASIS HOW THEY DIFFER EXAMPLES

Where they On land, on trees, in water, or both land and Cow on land, crow on trees, fish in water, frog
live water in both

What they eat Only plants, only animals, or both Cow eats grass; frog eats insects; crow eats
both

How they Walk, run, fly, crawl, swim, hop Crow flies, ant crawls, fish swims, frog hops
move

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Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World
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Why it happens: the way an animal moves matches the place it lives in. A fish needs

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a streamlined body and fins to push through water; a cow needs legs and hooves
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.chard ground; a crow needs wings to reach the branches
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Activity 2.2: Let us appreciate — Page
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Section 2.1 — How much variety does one

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ACTIVITY

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What are your observations about the various plants and animals that have been
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After every student has drawn on the blackboard, three things stand out.

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Hardly any two drawings are the same. Even with 40 students, the board fills up with

a gl banana, cow, dog, parrot, peacock, butterfly, elephant,
mango, neem, tulsi, rose, sunflower,
fish, cat — an enormous variety from one small locality.
Some appear again and again. Mango, rose, cow, parrot and butterfly are drawn by many
com
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students, because they are common and easy to notice.

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g wings, some fins.
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Every drawing shows different features. Some plants have thick trunks, some thin stems;
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Why the drawings differ so much: each student chose the plant or animal they had

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watched closely and liked most. Since everyone's home, street and experience is
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different, the class as a whole ends up recording far more biodiversity than any one

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Did you know? Closing your eyes for 30 seconds before drawing is not a game — it
forces you to recall the plant or animal from memory of your m
a s e own observation, not
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Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Q2 How many different plants and animals did the entire class draw on the
blackboard?

Count them on the board and write the actual number for your class. In a class of about 40
students the usual result is:

Students in the class = 40

Drawings made = 40 plants + 40 animals = 80 drawings

After removing repeats → about 20–25 different plants and 20–25 different animals

Why the count of different kinds is smaller than the number of drawings: several
students draw the same popular mango tree or the same cow. Repeats must be
counted only once, because we are counting varieties, not pictures. This is exactly
how scientists count species in a forest — the same tiger seen twice is still one tiger.

Tip: Make two columns on the board, "Plants" and "Animals", and put a tally mark
next to a name each time it is repeated. You then get both the number of different
kinds and the most common kind, in one go.

Q3 Do you think that there may be many more varieties of plants and animals other
than those drawn on the board?

Yes — very many more. The board shows only what one class in one locality happened to
remember.

Even in your own town there are plants and animals nobody drew — bougainvillea, ashoka,
bamboo, water hyacinth, earthworms, spiders, snails, honeybees, bats, owls.
Move a little further and the list changes completely — cactus in the Rajasthan desert,
deodar in the Himalayas, mangroves in the Sundarbans, corals and colourful fish around
the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
Many living things are simply too small to notice, and many are active only at night.

Why it happens: the variety of plants and animals in a region is its biodiversity, and
India is one of the richest countries in the world for it. What a class can list is limited
by where they live and what they have looked at — not by how much life actually exists.

Page 10 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Try This: Repeat the same activity with a class in another state through a letter or a
video call. Compare the two boards. The number of names common to both lists will
surprise you — it will be small.

In-text Questions — Page 14
Section 2.2 How to Group Plants and Animals?

Q1 Trees provide food and shelter to some birds and other animals, animals help in
spreading seeds after eating fruits, and so on. Can you think of more such
examples?

Yes. Every member of the biodiversity of a region depends on other members. Here are more
examples from around us:

Bees and butterflies carry pollen from flower to flower while collecting nectar, so mango,
mustard and pumpkin plants can form fruit. Without them the crop falls sharply.
Earthworms make burrows in the soil, letting in air and water and turning dead leaves into
manure, so plants grow better. Farmers call them the farmer's friend.
Cattle eat grass and their dung returns nutrients to the soil, from which fresh grass grows.
Frogs and birds eat insects that would otherwise destroy a paddy field, while snakes eat rats
that eat stored grain.
Fallen leaves rot and become food for fungi, worms and bacteria — which release nutrients
that trees take up again through their roots.
Banyan and peepal fruits are eaten by bats, koels and monkeys; the seeds pass out far
away and grow into new trees.

The big idea: these examples show that plants and animals are dependent on each
other. Remove one member and the others suffer — if the bees vanish, the mango
tree bears fewer fruits; if the trees are cut, the birds lose both food and shelter.

Q2 How would you arrange your books and notebooks in groups? Would arranging
them in groups help you better organise your school bag?

Yes — grouping makes the bag far easier to use. I would arrange them like this:

Page 11 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

By subject — the Science textbook with the Science notebook, Maths with Maths, and so on.
Then one day's homework needs only one bundle to be pulled out.
By type — all textbooks in the big compartment, all notebooks behind them, rough work
register on top.
By the timetable — only the books needed for today's periods go into the bag, arranged in
period order.
By size — thick books at the back against the spine so the bag does not bulge, thin ones in
front.

Why grouping helps: in a jumbled bag you must search through everything to find
one book. Once things are grouped, you only search inside one small group. The
same reason applies in science — grouping makes it easier to understand and study
plants and animals on the basis of their similarities and differences.

Did you know? You see this idea everywhere in India — a kirana shop keeps all dals
together and all soaps together, a chemist arranges medicines by type, and a library
shelves books by subject. You will meet grouping again in the chapter Materials
Around Us.

Activity 2.3: Let us group — Pages 14–15
Section 2.2 — Making your own basis for grouping

ACTIVITY

Q1 Group them on the basis of common features. Share and discuss the basis of
grouping you have made with other groups in your class.

With the picture cards pooled, pick one feature at a time and sort every card by it. Here is how
one group of six students did it.

Page 12 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

BASIS CHOSEN GROUP 1 GROUP 2

Plants — presence of Rose, sunflower, hibiscus, mustard Fern, moss, pine, grass (flowers not
flowers seen)

Plants — hard or soft stem Mango, neem, rose (hard) Tomato, coriander, spinach (soft)

Animals — eating habits Cow, goat, deer, grasshopper (plant Lion, frog, kingfisher (animal eaters)
eaters)

Animals — place they live Fish, dolphin, whale (water) Camel, dog, elephant (land)

What to do while sharing: state clearly which single feature you used, and show that every card
in your set really has it. If even one card does not fit, the basis is not sharp enough and must be
re-worded.

Why one feature at a time: if you use two features together — say "tall and
flowering" — a tall plant without flowers has nowhere to go. A good basis must put
every card in exactly one group.

Q2 You will be surprised to see that the basis used by different groups may vary. What
do you think are the reasons behind it?

The bases differ because a plant or animal has many features, and each group noticed a
different one first.

Different features caught the eye. One group looked at the height of plants; another
looked at the presence or absence of flowers; a third looked at hard/soft stem (see Fig.
2.2).
Different cards were collected. A group whose magazines had many water animals
naturally chose "place they live" as the basis.
Different interests and experiences. A student from a farming family thinks first of "useful
crop / not a crop"; a student who keeps a pet thinks of "tame / wild".
None of these is wrong. There is no single correct basis — only bases that are more or less
useful for the question you are asking.

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Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World
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Why this is an important lesson: grouping is done by us, for our convenience.

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Scientists too choose the basis that answers their question — a doctor groups
o g harm the crop, a
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Q3 What is the importance of grouping?

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Grouping makes it easier to understand and study plants and animals on
s emthe basis of their
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m a huge number to a few handfuls. Instead of remembering thousands of plants
similarities

a s ereduces
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It

fits.
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It lets you predict. Once you know a plant is a monocot, you can say without digging that its
em agl
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roots are fibrous and its leaf veins parallel.
It makes finding and comparing
groups stand out at once.

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It helps in daily work. A farmer decides on the same treatment for a whole group of crops;

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a forest officer plans protection for a whole group of habitats.
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m everyday proof: think of a chemist's shop with 5,000 medicines. Grouped by a g
a s eThe
a gl type, a strip is found in seconds; thrown into one heap, the same search could take
an hour. Nothing about the medicines changed — only the arrangement did.
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Did you know? You will learn more about the importance of grouping in our daily
lives in the chapter Materials Around Us.

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Activity
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Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Section 2.2.1 How to group plants?

ACTIVITY

Q1 Look closely at the height of different plants. Is the stem brown or green? Can you bend
easily, or is it stiff? Also, observe from where the branches of the plants arise. Fill in you
in Table 2.3.

S. NAME HEIGHT STEM: STEM: STEM: BRANCHES BRANCH
NO. OF (SHORT GREEN TENDER THICK CLOSE TO HIGHER
THE / / / HARD / THE UP ON
PLANT MEDIUM BROWN THIN GROUND THE STE
/ TALL)

1. Mango Tall Brown Hard Thick Yes

2. Rose Medium Brown Hard Thin Yes

3. Tomato Short Green Tender Thin Yes

Table 2.3, page 16 — Grouping of plants based on height and nature of stem. The blank rows a
fill in.

Here is Table 2.3 completed with plants you can find in almost any Indian school garden.

S. NAME HEIGHT COLOUR TENDER THICK BRANCHES BRANCHES NAME
NO. OF THE OF / HARD / CLOSE TO HIGHER OF
PLANT STEM THIN THE UP ON PLANT
GROUND THE STEM GROUP

1. Mango Tall Brown Hard Thick — Yes Tree

2. Rose Medium Brown Hard Thin Yes — Shrub

3. Tomato Short Green Tender Thin Yes — Herb

4. Neem Tall Brown Hard Thick — Yes Tree

5. Gudhal Medium Brown Hard Thin Yes — Shrub
(hibiscus)

6. Coriander Short Green Tender Thin Yes — Herb
(dhania)

Page 15 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Safety and care: bend the stem only gently, just enough to feel whether it springs
back. Take care that the stems do not break — the plant has to keep growing after
you leave.

Reading the table: notice that the columns move together. Wherever "Tall + Brown
+ Hard + Thick + branches higher up" appears, the answer in the last column is Tree.
Wherever "Short + Green + Tender" appears, it is Herb. That is what makes these
features a good basis for grouping.

Q2 What differences do you observe among herbs, shrubs, and trees? How can you group p
shrubs, and trees based on the data entered in Table 2.3?

S. NAME HEIGHT STEM: STEM: STEM: BRANCHES BRANCH
NO. OF (SHORT GREEN TENDER THICK CLOSE TO HIGHER
THE / / / HARD / THE UP ON
PLANT MEDIUM BROWN THIN GROUND THE STE
/ TALL)

1. Mango Tall Brown Hard Thick Yes

2. Rose Medium Brown Hard Thin Yes

3. Tomato Short Green Tender Thin Yes

Table 2.3, page 16 — Grouping of plants based on height and nature of stem. The blank rows a
fill in.

The three groups differ in height, in the nature of the stem, and in where the branches
begin.

Page 16 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

FEATURE HERB SHRUB TREE

Height Short — usually below your Medium — about your own Tall — much taller than you
knee or waist height

Stem Green Brown Brown
colour

Stem Soft and tender, bends easily Hard and woody but thin Hard, woody and thick
nature

Branches Close to the ground Many stems branching close to Start higher up, away from
the ground the ground

Example Tomato, coriander, spinach Rose, gudhal, mehandi Mango, neem, banyan

How to use the table to group any plant — ask three questions in order:

1. Is the stem green and soft? → it is a herb.
2. If the stem is brown and hard, is it thin, with many stems branching near the ground? →
it is a shrub.
3. If it is thick and the branches begin higher up? → it is a tree.

Why the stem decides the height: a soft green stem cannot carry much weight, so
a herb stays small. A woody stem is stiff and strong, so it can hold a tall crown of
branches and leaves high above the ground — where more sunlight is available. Two
more kinds have weak stems and solve the problem differently: climbers (money
plant, grapevine) take support from something else, and creepers (pumpkin,
watermelon) simply spread along the ground.

Activity 2.5: Let us compare — Page 17
Section 2.2.1 — Venation in leaves

ACTIVITY

Q1 Look at the leaves of different plants collected by you, during the nature walk. Do
you notice any variation in the shape and structure of these leaves?

Yes — a great deal of variation. Hold each leaf up against the light and the differences
become obvious.

Page 17 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

WHAT VARIES WHAT YOU SEE

Shape Long and narrow in grass; broad and pointed in gudhal; heart-shaped in money plant; needle-like
in pine

Size A tiny tulsi leaf beside a banana leaf a metre long

Margin (edge) Smooth in mango; toothed in tulsi and rose

Surface Smooth and shiny in neem; rough and hairy in some others

Number of A single blade in mango; many small leaflets on one stalk in neem and imli
parts

Veins Thin lines running through the leaf — in a net-like pattern in gudhal, side by side in banana
and grass

Why the last row is the important one: shape and size change even between two
leaves of the same plant — an old leaf is bigger than a new one. But the pattern of
veins never changes within a plant. A feature that stays the same is a reliable basis
for grouping, so it is venation that the chapter takes up next.

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Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World
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What differences do you see in the veins of leaves shown in Fig. 2.4a and Fig. 2.4b?
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Q2

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Fig. 2.4, page 17 — leaves showing different types of venation. Redrawn sketch of the

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The thin lines running through a leaf are called veins, and the pattern they

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venation.
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a s em (a) Hibiscus — reticulate venation (b) Banana — parallel venation

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The two patterns of veins. In (a) the side veins branch again and again and join up like a net; in (b) the
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veins run side by side from one end of the leaf to the other and never cross.
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Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

FIG. 2.4A — HIBISCUS LEAF FIG. 2.4B — BANANA LEAF

Pattern A net-like pattern of veins on both sides of a thick Veins running parallel to one another
middle vein

Name Reticulate venation Parallel venation

Do the veins Yes — they branch and join again and again No — they stay side by side
meet?

Other examples Mango, neem, tulsi, mustard, chana Grass (Fig. 2.4c), wheat, maize,
sugarcane

Check it yourself: hold a gudhal leaf and a grass blade up to sunlight. The net in the
gudhal leaf and the straight lines in the grass blade can be seen without any lens at
all.

In-text Questions — Pages 17 & 18
Section 2.2.1 — Other features for grouping plants

Q1 What can be other features on the basis of which you can group plants?

Besides height and the nature of the stem, plants can be grouped on many other features:

Venation of leaves — reticulate or parallel (taken up right after this question).
Type of root — taproot or fibrous root.
Number of cotyledons in the seed — dicot or monocot.
Presence or absence of flowers — a rose plant flowers, a fern never does.
Leaf shape and arrangement — broad or narrow; one leaf at a point or a pair facing each
other.
Where they grow — in water (lotus, water hyacinth), on land (neem), in a desert (cactus), on
mountains (deodar).
Life span — a few months (wheat, mustard), a few years (banana), or a very long time
(banyan).
Use to us — food crops, medicinal plants (tulsi, aloe vera), timber, ornamental plants.

Page 20 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Which basis is best? The one that is easy to check and does not change with age
or season. Height changes as a plant grows and flowers appear only in one season,
but the venation of a leaf and the type of root stay the same all through the plant's
life — so the chapter builds its main grouping on those.

Q2 Do you think that plants can be grouped on the basis of venation present in their
leaves?

Yes. Venation is one of the best bases available, because there are only two patterns and every
leaf falls clearly into one of them.

Plants with reticulate venation → hibiscus, mango, neem, tulsi, mustard, chana, rose

Plants with parallel venation → banana, grass, wheat, maize, sugarcane, bamboo,

lemongrass

Two clear groups, no plant left out and none in both

Why it is such a useful basis:

It is easy to observe — one leaf and a little sunlight are enough; nothing has to
be dug up or cut.
It does not change with the age of the plant or the season.
It predicts other features. As the very next activities show, a plant with reticulate
venation almost always has a taproot and two cotyledons, and one with parallel
venation has fibrous roots and one cotyledon. One quick look at a leaf tells you
three things about the plant.

Q3 Now, let us try to explore roots of the plants. Do all plants have roots? Are these
roots similar?

Almost all the plants you see around you do have roots — but the roots are not all similar.
Do all plants have roots? Every plant you meet in your garden, field or park — grass, tomato,
rose, mango — has roots. They hold the plant firmly in the soil and take up water and minerals.
(A few simple plants such as mosses and floating algae have no true roots, but you will study

Page 21 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

those in higher classes.)
Are the roots similar? No. Dig out two plants carefully and you will see two clearly different
arrangements:

In a mustard plant there is one main thick root going straight down, with small side roots
branching off it.
In a grass plant there is no main root at all — a bunch of thin roots of similar size comes
out from the base of the stem.

Tip before you dig: wet the soil and loosen it with a khurpi first. Roots are thin and
break easily, and a broken root system will show you the wrong picture. Wash the
roots in water before observing, and replant the herb afterwards.

Activity 2.6: Let us find out — Page 18
Section 2.2.1 — Types of roots

ACTIVITY

Q1 What are the similarities and differences in the roots of the plants collected by you?

Similarities: every root you washed was underground, not green, was branched, held the
plant firmly in the soil, and had fine root hairs near its tip that soak up water and minerals.
Differences: they fall into exactly two arrangements.

TAPROOT SYSTEM FIBROUS ROOT SYSTEM

Main root One thick main root growing straight No main root at all
down

Other roots Small side (lateral) roots arising from A bunch of thin roots of similar size from
the main root the base of the stem

Depth Goes deep into the soil Spreads out near the surface

Leaf venation of the Reticulate Parallel
same plant

Examples Mustard, hibiscus, radish, carrot, Grass, wheat, maize, lemongrass, onion
chana

Page 22 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Why the two shapes exist: a deep taproot can reach water far below the surface,
which is why mustard and gram survive in dry fields. A wide, shallow bunch of
fibrous roots grips the top layer of soil tightly, which is why grass holds the soil of a
river bank or a playground together and prevents it from washing away.

Q2 What differences do you see in the roots of plants shown in Fig. 2.5a and Fig. 2.5b?

Main root (taproot)

Side roots

Many thin roots of similar size

(a) Taproot system in (b) Fibrous root system
a mustard plant in common grass

Fig. 2.5, page 18 — types of roots. Redrawn sketch of the figure in the book.

Fig. 2.5a is a mustard plant and Fig. 2.5b is a common grass plant. This is what the two
pictures show.

Page 23 of 67

as e
Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World
a g l AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

co m
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The

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Fig. 2.5a (mustard): the roots consist of one main root with small side roots arising from it.

s e m which you recorded in Activity 2.1, also has a
The main root is called a taproot. Hibiscus,
taproot.
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Fig. 2.5b (grass): the roots appear as a bunch of similar-sized thin roots arising from the
base of the stem. Such roots are called fibrous roots.
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a
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Yes — and every one of them has fibrous roots.
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shoots of wheat, maize or paddy, which are also grasses. Wash the soil off any of them and

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same size spreading out from the base of the stem.

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Why every grass is the same in this respect: all grasses are monocots — their

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ag checking.
predict both facts without

co m
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m ase
.co


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Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Check it yourself: pull out a small clump of doob grass from a playground edge and
try to shake the soil off. It clings on — the mat of fibrous roots binds the soil. That is
exactly why grass is planted on canal banks and playgrounds to stop soil from being
washed away by rain.

In-text Questions — Page 19
Section 2.2.1 — Linking venation and roots

Q1 Is there any relation between the type of leaf venation and the type of root of the
same plant? How do we find this out?

Yes, there is a clear relation — and the way to find it out is to collect data on many plants
and look for a pattern.
The method (this is Activity 2.7):

1. Take five or more different plants — the more the better, so that the pattern is not an
accident.
2. For each plant note two things: the venation of its leaves (reticulate or parallel) and the type
of its roots (taproot or fibrous).
3. Enter both in one table, side by side, so the pair can be seen at a glance.
4. Look at the table and ask: does one type of venation always go with one type of root?

Sadabahar → reticulate venation + taproot

Lemongrass → parallel venation + fibrous roots

Chana → reticulate + taproot | Wheat → parallel + fibrous

The pairs repeat — so the relation is real.

Why we must check many plants: two plants agreeing could be a coincidence.
When ten plants out of ten follow the same pairing, we can state it as a general rule.
This is exactly the scientific method you learnt in Chapter 1 — observe, guess, test,
analyse.

Activity 2.7: Let us relate and analyse — Page 19

Page 25 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Section 2.2.1 — Table 2.4, venation and roots together

ACTIVITY

Q1 Before planting them, observe their roots and the venation in their leaves. Record
your observations in Table 2.4.

S. NAME OF THE TYPE OF LEAF VENATION TYPE OF ROOT
NO. PLANT (RETICULATE / PARALLEL) (FIBROUS / TAP)

1. Lemongrass Parallel Fibrous

2.

3.

4.

5.

Table 2.4, page 19 — Types of leaf venation and roots. Only the first row is filled in for
you.

Collect saplings from the school nursery, wash the soil off the roots gently, and fill Table 2.4 like
this.

S. NAME OF THE TYPE OF LEAF VENATION TYPE OF ROOT
NO. PLANT (RETICULATE / PARALLEL) (FIBROUS / TAP)

1. Lemongrass Parallel Fibrous

2. Marigold (genda) Reticulate Tap

3. Sadabahar Reticulate Tap
(periwinkle)

4. Tulsi Reticulate Tap

5. Maize seedling Parallel Fibrous

Page 26 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Care while doing it: observe the roots before planting, keep them moist, and plant
the saplings in the school garden immediately afterwards. The activity should end
with five living plants, not five dead ones.

Read the last two columns together: wherever the third column says "Parallel", the
fourth says "Fibrous"; wherever it says "Reticulate", the fourth says "Tap". The table
has no exception — that repetition is the discovery.

Q2 Do you observe any relation between the leaf venation and types of root in these
plants? Do other plants with reticulate venation have taproots too? Do other plants
with parallel venation have fibrous roots too?

Yes. The two features always go together, and the rule holds for other plants as well.

Reticulate venation → Taproot

Parallel venation → Fibrous roots

The evidence from the book:

Sadabahar has a taproot and reticulate venation.
Lemongrass has fibrous roots and parallel venation.
Chickpea (chana) — another plant with taproots and reticulate venation.
Wheat — fibrous roots and parallel venation.
Add your own: mango, neem, mustard, marigold, tulsi all show reticulate + taproot; grass,
maize, sugarcane, banana, onion all show parallel + fibrous.

So the general statement is: generally, plants with reticulate venation have taproots, while
those with parallel venation have fibrous roots.

Why should a leaf tell us about the root? Because both are decided by the same
thing — the plant's seed type. A seed with two cotyledons (a dicot) grows into a
plant with reticulate leaves and a taproot; a seed with one cotyledon (a monocot)
grows into a plant with parallel-veined leaves and fibrous roots. Activity 2.8 shows
this directly.

Page 27 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Tip: Notice the word generally. A few plants are exceptions, so a good scientific
statement says "generally" instead of "always" when the evidence supports a strong
trend rather than a law without exception.

In-text Questions — Page 20
Sections 2.2.1 and 2.2.2 — From seeds to animals

Q1 Is there any relation among the seed of a plant, types of root and leaf venation? Are
all seeds similar?

No, all seeds are not similar — and yes, the seed decides both the root type and the leaf
venation.
Seeds are of two kinds. Soak a chana (chickpea) and a maize grain in water for two or three
days and open them:

The chana splits neatly into two equal halves. Each half is a cotyledon, a store of food for
the baby plant. Such a plant is a dicotyledon (dicot).
The maize does not split into halves; it has a single thin cotyledon. Such a plant is a
monocotyledon (monocot).

Dicot seed (2 cotyledons) → reticulate venation → taproot e.g. chana, rajma, mustard

Monocot seed (1 cotyledon) → parallel venation → fibrous roots e.g. maize, wheat, rice

Why one feature settles all three: the seed is where the whole plant comes from.
The number of cotyledons is decided at the very beginning, and the same plan then
builds the roots and the leaves. That is why these three features travel together and
never mix.

Q2 Just like plants, animals too are significantly different from one another. How can
we group such a wide variety of animals? What features can you think of to group
them?

Animals can be grouped in many ways. We simply pick a feature that is easy to observe and that
every animal clearly has or does not have.

Page 28 of 67

as e
Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World
a g l AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

co m
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BASIS OF GROUPING GROUP 1 GROUP 2

m as e
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Type of movement (used in the Fly — pigeon, housefly, butterfly
fish a
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Walk / crawl / swim — goat, ant,

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chapter)
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aBody part used for movement Legs and wings — pigeon, Fins — fish; no legs — snake,
grasshopper earthworm

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Habitat Terrestrial — camel, dog, lion Aquatic — fish, whale, dolphin

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agPlant eaters — cow, goat,
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Body covering Feathers — birds; hair —
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a s
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lizard earthworm

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How young ones are produced Lay eggs — hen, fish, frog, lizard Give birth — cow, goat, whale, bat

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Which basis to choose: the same one rule as for plants — the feature must be easy

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Activity 2.8: Let us compare — Page
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Section 2.2.1 — Dicot and monocot seeds

ACTIVITY
agl

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Remove the seed coat of a chickpea. Now, observe the structure of the chickpea and
m .
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Q1

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maize seeds. Are they similar or different?
a g
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They are clearly different. This is what you observe after soaking both for two or three days.

m a s e
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g l as
a

co m
m .
m as e
.co


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Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

OBSERVATION CHICKPEA (CHANA) — FIG. 2.6A MAIZE (MAKKA) — FIG. 2.6B

Seed coat Peels off easily after soaking Tightly joined, does not peel off

Splitting Splits neatly into two equal parts Does not split — stays in one piece

Number of cotyledons Two, both thick and fleshy One, thin

Name of the group Dicotyledon (dicot) Monocotyledon (monocot)

Other seeds like it Rajma, moong, matar, groundnut, mustard Wheat, rice, jowar, bajra

Why soaking is necessary: a dry seed is stone-hard and would break, not split.
Soaking lets the seed absorb water and swell, so the seed coat loosens and the two
cotyledons separate along their natural join. Look between them and you can even
spot the tiny baby plant with its first root and shoot.

Did you know? The two halves of a soaked chana are the same two halves you see
in chana dal. "Dal" is literally the split cotyledons — which is why dal is such a good
store of food energy for us too.

Q2 What relation do you observe among leaf venation, root types and the number of
cotyledons in seeds of a plant?

The three features go together in two fixed sets.

DICOT plants MONOCOT plants

Seed with two cotyledons Seed with one cotyledon

Leaves — reticulate venation Leaves — parallel venation

Roots — taproot system Roots — fibrous root system

Chana, rajma, mustard, mango, Maize, wheat, rice, grass,
gudhal, tulsi, neem banana, sugarcane, onion

The three features never mix. Knowing any one of them tells you the other two.

Page 30 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

In the book's own words: dicot plants have reticulate venation and a taproot system, while
monocot plants have parallel venation and a fibrous root system.

Why this is so useful: you rarely get to see a plant's seed, its leaf and its roots all at
once. But because the three go together, one observation is enough. Pick up a
fallen banana leaf, see the parallel veins, and you already know the banana plant has
fibrous roots and grew from a single-cotyledon seed — without digging up a single
plant.

Activity 2.9: Let us find out — Pages 21–22

Page 31 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Section 2.2.2 How to group animals?

ACTIVITY

Q1 Which body parts are used by the animals in the poster you created and those in
Fig. 2.7 for movement?

Birds flying

Ant Earthworm Centipede Snake
Sparrow on a tree

Tortoise Butterfly
Cow Rabbit

Duck
Frog

Fish

Fig. 2.7, page 21 — diversity in animals. Redrawn sketch of the pond-and-field scene
printed in the book, with every animal named.

Fig. 2.7 shows a pond and the field around it, with several animals magnified in circles — an ant,
an earthworm, a centipede, a tortoise, a snake, a butterfly, a frog and a fish, along with a cow, a
rabbit, birds on a tree and egrets at the water's edge. This is the body part each one uses.

Page 32 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

ANIMAL IN FIG. 2.7 BODY PART USED FOR MOVEMENT HOW IT MOVES

Ant Six legs Walks and crawls

Earthworm Whole body — muscles and tiny bristles Crawls by stretching and shortening

Centipede Many pairs of legs Crawls quickly

Butterfly Wings and legs Flies; walks on a flower

Snake Whole body and scales (no legs) Crawls / slithers

Tortoise Four short legs Walks slowly; swims

Frog Strong hind legs with webbed feet Hops on land, swims in water

Fish Fins and tail Swims

Cow Four legs with hooves Walks and runs

Rabbit Four legs, hind legs longer Hops and runs

Birds (sparrow, egret) Wings and legs Fly, walk, wade

The pattern to notice: the body part matches the surroundings. Wings for air, fins
for water, legs for hard ground — and for animals that move through soil or grass,
no limbs at all but a long muscular body that pushes against whatever it touches.

Page 33 of 67

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Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World
a g l AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

co m
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List these animals in Table 2.5. Note the ways in which these animals move and
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Q2

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name the body parts used for movement.

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Earthworm Centipede Snake
Sparrow on a tree

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Fig. 2.7, page 21 — diversity in animals. Redrawn sketch of the pond-and-field scene

m s em
printed in the book, with every animal named.
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S. NAME OF THE TYPE OF BODY PARTS USED FOR

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1. Ant Legs

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4. Housefly Walks and flies Legs

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a

co m
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m ase
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Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Table 2.5, page 22 — Movements in animals and their body parts involved. The blank
cells are the ones you fill in.

Here is Table 2.5 filled in, with the blanks of the printed table completed and a few animals of
your own added.

S. NAME OF THE TYPE OF BODY PARTS USED FOR
NO. ANIMAL MOVEMENT MOVEMENT

1. Ant Walks and crawls Legs

2. Goat Walks and jumps Legs

3. Pigeon Walks and flies Legs and wings

4. Housefly Walks and flies Legs and wings

5. Fish Swims Fins

6. Snake Crawls Whole body and scales

7. Frog Hops and swims Hind legs with webbed feet

8. Earthworm Crawls Muscles of the body and bristles

Tip: the two blanks in the printed table are for the ant (type of movement — walks
and crawls) and the fish (type of movement — swims). Fill in your own rows 6, 7 and
8 with animals you have actually watched, not copied.

Page 35 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Q3 What conclusions can you draw from the data given in Table 2.5?

S. NAME OF THE TYPE OF BODY PARTS USED FOR
NO. ANIMAL MOVEMENT MOVEMENT

1. Ant Legs

2. Goat Walks and jumps Legs

3. Pigeon Walks and flies Legs and wings

4. Housefly Walks and flies Legs and wings

5. Fish Fins

6. Any other

7.

8.

Table 2.5, page 22 — Movements in animals and their body parts involved. The blank
cells are the ones you fill in.

Three conclusions come straight out of the table.

1. Different animals have different types of movement. Animals can fly, run, crawl, walk,
hop or jump, and swim.
2. They use different body parts to move. Wings, legs, fins — and some animals, like the
earthworm and the snake, use the whole body because they have no limbs at all.
3. One animal may have more than one type of movement. A pigeon both walks and flies; a
frog both hops and swims; a housefly both walks and flies. So the same animal can appear in
two groups if we group by movement.

Why the third point matters: it shows that a basis of grouping must be stated
carefully. "Animals that fly" and "animals that walk" overlap, because a pigeon does
both. A sharper basis would be "animals that can fly" and "animals that cannot fly" —
that puts every animal in exactly one group.

Page 36 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Q4 How can we group animals based on their movements?

Pick one clear question about movement, and sort every animal by the answer.

BASIS GROUPS FORMED EXAMPLES

Can it fly? Flying / non-flying Pigeon, housefly, butterfly, bat | cow, fish, ant, snake

How does it move on Walkers / hoppers / Goat, cow | frog, rabbit, grasshopper | snake,
land? crawlers earthworm, ant

Does it swim? Swimmers / non- Fish, whale, duck, frog | goat, pigeon, ant
swimmers

Which body part is Legs / wings / fins / no Goat, ant | pigeon, housefly | fish | snake,
used? limbs earthworm

Number of legs None / two / four / six / Snake | pigeon | goat | ant | centipede
many

Why grouping animals is worth doing: like plants, grouping animals is important
for understanding their diversity. It also reveals a deeper idea — the way an animal
moves is closely tied to where it lives. Fins go with water, wings with air, hooves with
hard ground. That link is exactly what section 2.3 takes up next.

Try This: Make a poster of ten animals from your own area and mark each one with
a symbol — a wing, a leg, a fin or a wavy line for no limbs. The poster then groups
itself.

In-text Questions — Page 23
Section 2.3 Plants and Animals in Different Surroundings

Q1 Does the movement of these animals depend upon their surroundings?

Yes — very strongly. The way an animal moves, and the body part it uses, both match the
surroundings it lives in.

Page 37 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

ANIMAL SURROUNDINGS BODY PART MOVEMENT

Fish Water Streamlined body and fins (Fig. 2.8a) Swims

Goat Grassy areas on land Four legs with hooves (Fig. 2.8b) Walks, runs, jumps

Bird Air and trees Wings and light bones Flies

Earthworm Inside soil Soft body with bristles, no limbs Burrows and crawls

Camel Sandy desert Long legs with wide hooves Walks on sand without sinking

Why it happens: water pushes back on anything moving through it, so a swimmer
needs a smooth streamlined shape and flat fins to push against the water. Air
offers little support, so a flyer needs wings and a light body. Loose sand gives way
underfoot, so a desert animal needs wide hooves that spread its weight. Hard
ground gives grip, so legs and hooves are enough. The body suits the surroundings
— and features of this kind are called adaptations.

Check it yourself: notice how a fish's body is thin at both ends and wide in the
middle, exactly like the front of a boat. Boat builders copied nature — the same
shape lets both slip through water with the least effort.

Activity 2.10: Let us compare and analyse — Page 24

Page 38 of 67

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Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World
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Section 2.3 — Table 2.6, life in different regions
co m
e m.
m as
ACTIVITY

.co a g l
a s emthe names of plants and animals you or your classmates have observed in the
gl
List
a
Q1
regions given in the table or already know about.

co m
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l a se
ag
S. IN THE ON IN THE IN THE ANY OTHER
NO. DESERT MOUNTAINS OCEAN FOREST REGION

1. Camel Deodar tree Fish Lion
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2. Any other

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Table 2.6, page 24 — Animals and plants found in different surroundings. The blank cells

m a s
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are the ones you fill in.

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Here is Table 2.6 filled in with plants and animals of different Indian regions.

e m
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a
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NO. DESERT OCEAN FOREST REGION (POND /

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1. Camel Deodar tree Fish Lion Frog

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2. Cactus Yak Whale Sal and teak Lotus and water

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3. Khejri tree, Rhododendron Dolphin, Elephant, Duck, water snail,

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chinkara leopard, pine seaweed, sea bamboo
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Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Q2 What are your observations regarding plants and animals found in various regions?
Discuss your observations with your classmates.

The main observation is that the plants and animals found in one kind of region are
different from those found in another kind of region. A camel is never found in the ocean
and a whale is never found in a desert.
Looking more closely, three things stand out:

Each region has its own set of living things. Cactus and camel belong to the desert;
deodar and yak to the mountains; fish, whale and coral to the ocean; lion, tiger and tall trees
to the forest.
The living things of a region share features suited to that region. Desert plants have
thick fleshy stems; mountain trees are conical with sloping branches; ocean animals are
streamlined.
Even the same kind of plant can look different in different regions. Rhododendrons are
short with small leaves in the windy Nilgiri hills but taller in Sikkim; camels of the hot desert
have one hump, those of the cold desert two.

Why the biodiversity of a region varies: because the conditions vary — the
amount of water, the heat and cold, the wind, the snow, the kind of soil. Only those
plants and animals that can tolerate and survive those particular conditions are
found there. Different conditions therefore hold different biodiversity.

In-text Questions — Pages 24–26
Section 2.3 — Adaptations of desert and mountain life

Q1 Notice that these two types of plants found in different regions are different from
each other. Why is it so? Why does the biodiversity of a region vary from that of
another?

Because the conditions of the two regions are completely different, and only plants that
can survive those particular conditions are able to live there.

Page 40 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

DESERT OF RAJASTHAN — HIMALAYAS OF HIMACHAL —
CACTUS (FIG. 2.9) DEODAR (FIG. 2.10)

Conditions Very little water; very hot by day, very cold Extreme cold with frequent snowfall
at night

What the plant Thick and fleshy stems Conical shape, flexible and sloping branches
looks like

How it helps The fleshy stem stores water and helps The shape lets the snow slide off easily, so
the plant tolerate the hot conditions branches do not break under its weight

The reasoning in one line: a deodar planted in the Thar would dry up because it
has no way to store water; a cactus on a Himalayan slope would be crushed and
frozen by snow settling on it. Each is built for one set of conditions only. Biodiversity
varies from region to region because of diverse conditions.

Did you know? A cactus also has its leaves reduced to spines. Broad leaves would
lose a great deal of water into the hot dry air — and the spines protect the stored
water from thirsty animals as well.

Page 41 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Q2 Look at the images of a camel from the hot desert of Rajasthan (Fig. 2.11) and a
camel from the cold desert of Ladakh (Fig. 2.12). What are the differences you
observe between them? What advantages do these differences provide to these
camels?

Hooves Hooves

Fig. 2.11: A camel living in the Fig. 2.12: A camel living in the
hot desert of Rajasthan cold desert of Ladakh

• One hump • Two humps
• Long legs, wide hooves • Short legs; long hair

Fig. 2.11 and Fig. 2.12, page 25 — redrawn sketches of the two photographs printed in
the book, with the hooves labelled as in the book.

Both are camels, but their bodies are built for two very different deserts.

Page 42 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

FEATURE CAMEL OF THE HOT CAMEL OF THE ADVANTAGE
DESERT COLD DESERT
(RAJASTHAN) (LADAKH)

Legs Long legs, greater height Comparatively short Long legs keep the body away from the
legs and shorter height hot sand; short legs give balance while
walking in mountainous regions

Hooves Wide hooves Smaller, harder hooves Wide hooves spread the weight so the
camel walks on sand without sinking
into it

Humps One hump Two humps Humps store food; the two humps of the
cold-desert camel shrink in late winter
as the stored food is used up

Hair Short hair Long hair from head to Long hair traps warmth and helps it
neck survive the freezing winters of Ladakh

Why both are still camels: a desert — hot or cold — is a place with very little water
and very little food. Both animals therefore keep the same basic camel design:
humps to store food and a body that can go long without water. What differs is the
ground they walk on and the temperature — sand and heat in Rajasthan, rocky
slopes and snow in Ladakh — and it is exactly those two things that the legs, hooves
and hair have adapted to.

Q3 What other features can help camels to survive in the desert?

The chapter gives three more, told by Kashi from Rajasthan, and there are others you can add.

They excrete only small amounts of urine.
Their dung is dry — very little water is lost with it.
They do not sweat.

Little urine + dry dung + no sweating

= very little water leaves the body

= a camel can survive for many days without drinking water

Other helpful features you can observe or find out about:

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Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World
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Long eyelashes and closable nostrils keep blowing sand out of the eyes and nose.
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WHAT IT MEANS EXAMPLES OF THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS
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Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Why habitat is such a good basis: the habitat provides food, water, air, shelter
and everything else needed for survival. So living things that share a habitat also
tend to share adaptations — every ocean animal is streamlined, every desert plant
saves water. Grouping by habitat therefore groups by way of life, not just by address.

Q2 What would happen if the habitat of a plant or an animal is damaged? What would
happen if a goat does not get grass to eat? Can a fish survive without water?

If a habitat is damaged, its plants and animals lose their home, food and other resources
— and that leads to loss of biodiversity.
The goat: grass is the goat's food. Without grass it would go hungry, become weak, stop giving
milk, and would either have to move away in search of grazing or would not survive. This is what
happens to herders in a drought year, when whole flocks must be walked hundreds of
kilometres to find fodder.
The fish: No — a fish cannot survive without water. Water is not just where it lives; a fish
takes in oxygen dissolved in water through its gills, and its fins can push only against water. Out
of water the gills dry up and it cannot breathe at all. You see this whenever a village pond dries
up in May.

Why the damage spreads: living things depend on one another. If a forest is cut,
the deer lose food and shelter, the tiger loses the deer, the birds lose nesting trees,
and the fruit trees lose the birds that spread their seeds. One damaged habitat pulls
down a whole chain — which is why the damage to habitats results in the loss of
biodiversity.

Did you know? India has acted on exactly this. Project Tiger was started in 1973 to
protect the declining Bengal Tiger, the Cheetah Reintroduction Project in 2022,
and the habitats of the Great Indian Bustard have been declared protected areas in
Gujarat, Rajasthan and Maharashtra.

Page 45 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Q3 Check with your parents, grandparents, and neighbours to know about the plants,
birds, insects or any other animal they used to see frequently in their childhood but
do not see as often now.

This is a survey you must actually do — ask three or four elders and write down their own
words. Here is the method and a model answer.
Method: ask each person (i) which plants, birds and insects were common when they were your
age, (ii) which of them they rarely see now, and (iii) what they think changed. Note the place they
lived in, because the answers depend on it. Then make a class list of the names that came up
more than once.

Sample answer: My grandmother says that when she was in school, house
sparrows nested in the roof of almost every house and vultures circled over the
fields. Fireflies lit up the hedges in the rainy season and there were so many frogs
after the first rain that the pond was noisy all night. Today she sees very few
sparrows, no vultures at all, and hardly any fireflies. She says the old mud-and-tile
houses with holes for nesting have gone, the pond has been filled in for houses, and
the fields are sprayed with far more pesticide than before.

Why these changes happen: all three reasons she gives are examples of habitat
damage. Concrete buildings have no nesting holes; a filled-in pond removes the
frog's breeding place; pesticides kill the insects that sparrows and fireflies feed on.
Once the habitat goes, the animal cannot stay — even though nobody set out to
harm it.

Q4 Find out about the sacred groves in your region.

Sacred groves are undisturbed patches of forest protected by the local community. Their
sizes vary from quite small to very large, and they are found all over India. They are home to
many kinds of plants and animals, including numerous medicinal plants. No one is allowed to
harm any animal, cut trees, or disturb the area — so a sacred grove is a community protected
treasure of biodiversity.
How to find out about the one near you: ask elders in your village or neighbourhood for the
local name (they are called by different names in different states), visit it with a teacher, note the
trees, birds and medicinal plants inside it, and ask who looks after it and what the rules are.

Page 46 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

STATE LOCAL NAME FOR A SACRED GROVE

Kerala Kavu / Sarpa kavu

Meghalaya Law Kyntang / Law Lyngdoh (e.g. Mawphlang)

Maharashtra Devrai / Deorai

Rajasthan Oran / Kenkri

Karnataka Devarakadu / Devara kan

Himachal Pradesh & Uttarakhand Deo bhumi / Dev van

Why sacred groves work so well: the protection does not come from a fence or a
guard but from the community's own belief and agreement. Because everyone
accepts the rule, no one breaks it. Many sacred groves therefore hold old trees and
rare medicinal plants that have disappeared from the forest all around them — living
proof that ordinary people can protect biodiversity, just as they did in the Save Silent
Valley movement.

Let us enhance our learning — Pages 31–33
End-of-chapter questions

LET US ENHANCE OUR LEARNING

Q1 Here are two types of seeds. What differences do you find among the roots and leaf
venation of their plants? (a) Wheat (b) Kidney beans

The two seeds belong to the two great groups of plants, so their roots and leaves are different
too.

Page 47 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

(A) WHEAT (B) KIDNEY BEANS (RAJMA)

Number of One (the grain does not split into halves) Two (the soaked seed splits into two
cotyledons in the halves)
seed

Group Monocotyledon (monocot) Dicotyledon (dicot)

Type of root Fibrous roots — a bunch of thin roots of Taproot — one thick main root with
similar size from the base of the stem small side roots

Leaf venation Parallel venation — veins run side by side Reticulate venation — a net of veins
on both sides of a thick middle vein

Depth of roots Spread near the surface, holding the top soil Goes deep, reaching water lower down

Why the seed decides everything else: the number of cotyledons is fixed the
moment the seed is formed, and the same body plan then builds the roots and the
leaves. So a one-cotyledon seed always gives parallel venation and fibrous roots, and
a two-cotyledon seed always gives reticulate venation and a taproot.

Check it yourself: soak a few wheat grains and a few rajma seeds overnight. The
rajma splits into two halves in your fingers; the wheat grain does not. Then grow
both on wet cotton for a week and look at the roots — a bunch of equal threads
under the wheat, one strong central root under the rajma.

Q2 Names of some animals are given below. Group them based on their habitats. Write
the names of aquatic animals in the area marked ‘A’ and terrestrial animals in the
area marked ‘B’. Enter the names of animals living in both habitats in part ‘C’.
Horse, Dolphin, Frog, Sheep, Crocodile, Squirrel, Whale, Earthworm, Pigeon, Tortoise

The two circles overlap, so an animal that uses both land and water goes into the overlapping
part C.

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A — Aquatic C — Both B — Terrestrial
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Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Q3 Manu’s mother maintains a kitchen garden. One day, she was digging out radish
from the soil. She told Manu that radish is a kind of root. Examine a radish and
write what type of root it is. What type of venation would you observe in the leaves
of radish plant?

A radish is a taproot — a swollen main root — and the leaves of a radish plant show
reticulate venation.
What you observe when you examine a radish:

There is one thick main root, white and long, tapering to a point at the lower end. This is
the part we eat.
Thin side roots come out of it all along its length — you can see the tiny scars or hair-like
roots on the surface.
There is no bunch of equal thin roots at the base of the stem, so it is certainly not a fibrous
root system.
The leaves at the top have a thick middle vein with a net of smaller veins on both sides of
it.

One main root + small side roots → Taproot

Taproot → plant is a dicot → leaves show reticulate venation

Why the radish is so thick: the radish plant stores extra food in its taproot to use
later for making flowers and seeds. We harvest it before that happens — which is
why the root is fat, juicy and full of food. Carrot, turnip, beetroot and sweet
potato are stored in the same way.

Check it yourself: next time a bunch of radish comes home with its leaves attached,
hold one leaf up to the light. The net of veins is very clear — and that alone tells you
the plant is a dicot with a taproot, without digging anything up.

Page 50 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Q4 Look at the image of a mountain goat and a goat found in the plains. Point out the
similarities and differences between them. What are the reasons for these
differences?

(a) Mountain goat (b) Goat found in the plains

• Thick shaggy coat • Short, smooth coat
• Short, strong legs • Longer, slender legs
• Large curved horns • Small horns

(a) Mountain goat and (b) Goat found in the plains, question 4, page 32 — redrawn
sketch. Note: the printed page of the textbook carries only these two captions; the
pictures themselves are missing from the book’s own page, so this sketch is drawn from
the features the chapter describes.

Both are goats, so most of the body is the same; what differs is exactly what the two habitats
demand.
Similarities: both have four legs with split hooves, two horns, a small tail, hair on the body, two
ears and a similar face. Both are plant eaters that graze on grass and leaves, both chew the
cud, and both give birth to young ones and feed them milk.

Page 51 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

FEATURE MOUNTAIN GOAT OF REASON FOR THE DIFFERENCE
GOAT THE PLAINS

Hair / Thick, long, woolly Short, thin hair The mountains are very cold; a thick coat traps
coat coat warm air and keeps the body warm. In the hot
plains a thin coat lets heat escape.

Body Stout and heavily built Slimmer and A compact body loses less heat in the cold
lighter

Legs Shorter, thicker and Longer and Short strong legs give balance and grip on steep
stronger slender rocky slopes; longer legs suit walking and running
on flat ground

Hooves Hard-edged with soft Smoother, The rough pads act like the sole of a sports shoe and
rough pads inside ordinary hooves stop the goat slipping on rock

The reason behind all of it: these are adaptations — special features that enable
an animal to survive in its own region. The mountain goat's region is cold, steep and
rocky, so its body is built for warmth and grip. The plains goat's region is warm and
flat, so its body is built for keeping cool and moving fast. Exactly the same thing
happened with the camels of the hot and the cold desert on pages 25–26.

Did you know? The soft undercoat of the mountain goats of Ladakh is combed out
each spring and woven into pashmina — one of the warmest and finest wools in the
world. The goat grew it to survive the winter; we borrow it.

Q5 Group the following animals into two groups based on any feature other than those
discussed in the chapter—cow, cockroach, pigeon, bat, tortoise, whale, fish,
grasshopper, lizard.

The chapter has already used habitat, movement, food and colour, so we must pick
something else. Here is the clearest one.
Basis chosen: presence or absence of a backbone.

GROUP 1 — ANIMALS WITH A GROUP 2 — ANIMALS WITHOUT A
BACKBONE BACKBONE

Cow, pigeon, bat, tortoise, whale, fish, lizard Cockroach, grasshopper

Page 52 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Two other correct answers, each with a different basis:

BASIS GROUP 1 GROUP 2

How young ones are Give birth to young ones — Lay eggs — cockroach, pigeon, tortoise, fish,
produced cow, bat, whale grasshopper, lizard

Number of legs Six legs — cockroach, Four legs — cow, bat, tortoise, lizard; two legs —
grasshopper pigeon; no legs — whale, fish

Body covering Hair — cow, bat, whale; Scales — fish, lizard; hard shell — tortoise; hard outer
feathers — pigeon case — cockroach, grasshopper

What makes a grouping correct: two tests. First, the basis must be a single clear
feature that can be checked. Second, every animal in the list must fall into
exactly one group — none left out, none in both. Both the backbone grouping and
the egg-laying grouping pass these tests, so both are right. Grouping by "useful or
not useful to us" would fail, because it changes from person to person.

Q6 As the population grows and people want more comfortable lives, forests are being
cut down to meet various needs. How can this affect our surroundings? How do you
think we can address this challenge?

Cutting forests damages the habitat of thousands of plants and animals, and the harm
reaches us too.
How it affects our surroundings:

Loss of habitat and biodiversity. Animals lose their home, food and shelter. This is exactly
why the Bengal Tiger, the Cheetah and the Great Indian Bustard declined in India.
Soil erosion and landslides. Roots hold the soil. Once the trees go, rain washes the topsoil
away and hillsides slip.
Less rain and hotter days. Trees give out water vapour and shade. Where forests go, the
area becomes hotter and drier.
Floods and dry wells. Forest soil soaks up rain like a sponge; bare ground lets it rush off at
once, so rivers flood in the monsoon and the water table falls in summer.
More carbon dioxide and polluted air. Trees take in carbon dioxide and give out oxygen.
Fewer trees means dirtier air and a warmer climate.
Animals entering villages. With no food in the forest, elephants and leopards come into
fields and towns, which is dangerous for both sides.
Loss of medicines and livelihoods. Many medicinal plants grow only in forests, and forest-
dwelling communities depend on them for a living.

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c om
How we can address the challenge:
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1. Plant more than we cut. Afforestation drives such as Van Mahotsav, and planting

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every school
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2. Usesless
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3. Use alternatives. LPG or solar cookers instead of firewood; bamboo and agricultural waste
instead of forest timber.
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4. Protect what remains. Support nationalmparks, sanctuaries and projects such as Project
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Tiger, and protect community forests sacred groves.
5. Agroforestry. Grow trees along with crops on farm land so that timber and fruit come from
fields, not forests.
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Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Q7 Analyse the flowchart. What can be examples of ‘A’ and ‘B’?

Plant

Yes

Does it have leaves?

Yes

Does it have reticulate No
B
venation?

Yes

A

The flowchart printed with question 7, page 32.

Read the flowchart step by step. Start at "Plant" → "Does it have leaves?" → Yes → "Does it have
reticulate venation?" Now the path splits:

Reticulate venation → Yes → A = plants with reticulate venation (dicots)

Reticulate venation → No → B = plants with leaves but parallel venation (monocots)

A B

What it Plants whose leaves have reticulate venation Plants whose leaves do not have reticulate
stands for venation — they have parallel venation

Examples Hibiscus (gudhal), mango, neem, tulsi, Banana, grass, wheat, maize, rice,
mustard, chana, rose, banyan, peepal, sugarcane, bamboo, lemongrass, onion,
marigold, sadabahar coconut palm

Also true of Taproot; two cotyledons in the seed (dicots) Fibrous roots; one cotyledon in the seed
them (monocots)

Page 55 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Why the chart begins with "Does it have leaves?": the venation question only
makes sense for a plant that has leaves. A cactus, whose leaves are reduced to
spines, would answer "No" at the first question and leave the chart altogether. A
flowchart works only if each question is asked in the right order.

Try This: Extend the chart yourself. Under A add "Is the stem soft and green?" — Yes
gives tulsi and tomato (herbs), No gives mango and neem (trees and shrubs). A
flowchart of this kind is called a key, and biologists use exactly this method to
identify unknown plants.

Q8 Raj argues with his friend Sanjay that “Gudhal (hibiscus) plant is a shrub.” What
questions can Sanjay ask for clarification?

Sanjay should ask questions that check the three features which define a shrub — height, the
nature of the stem, and where the branches arise.

1. How tall is the plant? Is it shorter than us, about our own height, or much taller? (A shrub is
of medium height.)
2. What is the colour of the stem — green or brown? (A shrub has a brown stem.)
3. Is the stem hard or soft? Can it be bent easily, or is it stiff and woody? (A shrub has a hard
woody stem.)
4. Is the stem thick like a tree trunk, or thin? (A shrub's stem is hard but thin.)
5. Where do the branches arise — close to the ground or higher up on the stem? (In a
shrub they branch close to the ground.)
6. Is there one single main stem, or many stems coming up from near the base? (A shrub
has many.)
7. Does the stem need any support to stand? (If yes it would be a climber, not a shrub.)

Gudhal → medium height ✔ brown stem ✔ hard but thin ✔ branches near the ground ✔

So Raj is right — the gudhal (hibiscus) plant is a shrub.

Why asking is better than arguing: Sanjay's questions turn an opinion into an
observation. Instead of "I think it is a shrub" versus "I think it is a tree", both boys
end up looking at the same plant and checking the same four features — and then
there is nothing left to argue about. This is the scientific method from Chapter 1
used in a quarrel between friends.

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Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Tip: Compare the gudhal with a rose (also a shrub), a tomato plant (a herb) and a
mango tree. Placing the doubtful plant beside a known example of each group is the
quickest way to settle such a question.

Q9 Based on the information in the table, find out examples of these plants for each
group. Group A — Dicot seed, Taproot; Group B — Monocot seed, Fibrous roots. (a)
What other similarities do plants of group A have? (b) What other similarities do
plants of group B have?

GROUP TYPE OF SEED TYPE OF ROOT EXAMPLES

A Dicot Taproot

B Monocot Fibrous roots

The table printed with question 9, page 33. The 'Examples' column is the one you fill in.

Filling the "Examples" column of the table:

GROUP TYPE OF TYPE OF EXAMPLES
SEED ROOT

A Dicot Taproot Gram (chana), kidney bean (rajma), mustard, pea, groundnut,
mango, neem, gudhal, rose, marigold, tomato, sadabahar

B Monocot Fibrous roots Wheat, maize, rice (paddy), grass, sugarcane, bamboo, banana,
onion, lemongrass, coconut palm

(a) Other similarities among plants of group A:

Their seeds split into two cotyledons.
Their leaves show reticulate (net-like) venation.
Their main root goes deep into the soil, with side roots branching from it.
Their leaves are usually broad, with a stalk joining them to the stem.

(b) Other similarities among plants of group B:

Their seeds have a single cotyledon.
Their leaves show parallel venation.

Page 57 of 67

Class 6 Science Chapter 2 Diversity in the Living World AglaSem · NCERT Solutions

Their roots are a bunch of similar thin roots from the base of the stem, spreading near the
surface.
Their leaves are usually long and narrow, with the base wrapping round the stem.

Why the two lists never mix: all these features are settled together when the seed
is formed. That is why a single observation is enough — see a bunch of fibrous roots
under a plant and you can safely say its leaves have parallel veins and its seed had
one cotyledon, even before looking.

Did you know? Almost every cereal India grows — wheat, rice, maize, jowar, bajra —
is in group B, and almost every pulse — chana, arhar, moong, urad, rajma — is in
group A. That is why a plate of dal-chawal is literally a monocot and a dicot on the
same plate.

Q10 Observe the labelled part of a duck in the picture given below. What differences do
you observe in the feet of the duck compared to the other birds? Which activity
would the duck be able to perform using this part?

Webbed feet Separate, clawed toes

(a) Duck (b) Pigeon

Question 10, page 33 — redrawn sketches of the duck and the pigeon, with the duck’s
webbed feet labelled as in the book.

The duck has webbed feet; the pigeon does not.

Page 58 of 67

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