Correct answer: (d) Desert
Explanation
- A
Deep sea
The deep sea has high species counts in some modern surveys, but it is not keyed as the relatively highest diversity here. Do not use later ocean-biodiversity news as the stored letter.
- B
Tropical rain forest
Tropical rain forest is the standard land biome of very high diversity. It is listed but is not this paper’s official key. Keep the stored ecosystem.
- C
Coral reefs
Coral reefs are textbook marine diversity hotspots. They are not the official key on this row. Reef fame must not overwrite the keyed biome.
- D
Desert
(d) Official key: This paper keys desert as the ecosystem with relatively higher species diversity among the four. Honour desert as the official choice even when rain forest and reefs are the usual high-diversity answers.
Summary. Official key is (d). Relative species diversity in this question is keyed to desert. Tropical rain forest and coral reefs are the familiar high-diversity systems; deep sea is a later contestant. Keep desert. The official letter is (d).