Consider the following statements: I. Some species of turtles are herbivores. II. Some species of fish are herbivores. III. Some species of marine mammals are herbivores. IV. Some species of snakes are viviparous. Which of the statements given above are correct?

All four statements are correct, so the answer is D. The question tests whether you know that herbivory and viviparity are not confined to the animals you usually picture.

• Statement I (correct): The green sea turtle is largely herbivorous as an adult, grazing on seagrass and algae. Some freshwater turtles also eat plant matter.
• Statement II (correct): Grass carp, tilapia and many cichlids are plant-eating fish. Herbivory is common in freshwater fish.
• Statement III (correct): Sirenians, namely the manatee and the dugong, are marine mammals that feed on seagrass. This is the standard example for this statement.
• Statement IV (correct): Many snakes give birth to live young rather than laying eggs. Examples include vipers such as the Russell's viper, boas, garter snakes and anacondas.

The core concept is the diversity of feeding strategies and reproductive modes across vertebrate classes. This links to the Environment and Biodiversity syllabus, especially marine ecosystems and the conservation of seagrass meadows that support dugongs and turtles.

Trap: Aspirants often reject a statement because they associate turtles or marine mammals only with carnivory, and so they pick a partial option like A or C.