What critical environmental vulnerability threatens endemic flora on isolated Mediterranean islands such as Crete?
Answer and explanation
Correct answer: A. habitat fragmentation and overgrazing
- Step 1: Crete harbors hundreds of rare endemic botanical species adapted to microclimates in high-altitude gorges. Excessive livestock grazing and tourism-driven habitat fragmentation threaten these small, isolated plant populations with extinction. Answer: habitat fragmentation and overgrazing. Why not the others: "widespread equatorial permafrost melt" refers to high-latitude polar or subpolar tundra rather than Mediterranean islands; "monsoonal silt deposition" characterizes tropical South Asian river deltas rather than semi-arid Greek island terrains; "deep volcanic trench collapse" posits a catastrophic geological event rather than chronic biological habitat pressures.
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