← Back to Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering Hub
View Complete Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering Syllabus
GovtJobsNet.com EY · Ecology and Evolution
SYLLABUS GATE Ecology and Evolution Syllabus 2027: EY PDF and Exam Pattern
GATE EY syllabus 2027 with the official PDF, 100-mark exam pattern and complete section-wise topic tables for Ecology and Evolution.
Updated:
GATE EY syllabus 2027Ecology and EvolutionGATE 2027 PDFIIT Madras
Use the available GATE EY Syllabus 2027 download resources and review the detailed syllabus, unit-wise topics, exam pattern information, preparation guidance below.
📸
Tired of resizing your photo for every exam?
Save your photo & signature once — auto-format for SSC, UPSC, TNPSC & 45+ portals.
Key Highlights
- EY is the official GATE code for Ecology and Evolution.
- The official syllabus contains 5 sections: Ecology; Evolution; Mathematics and Quantitative Ecology; Behavioural Ecology; Applied Ecology & Evolution.
- The paper is a 3-hour Computer-Based Test for 100 marks, including 15 marks of General Aptitude.
- Allowed second-paper codes when EY is primary: XL.
- The official IIT Madras PDF is available in the download section.
GATE EY Syllabus 2027 Overview
The official GATE EY syllabus 2027 for Ecology and Evolution is organized into 5 sections, covering Ecology, Evolution, Mathematics and Quantitative Ecology, Behavioural Ecology and the remaining paper-specific areas listed below. This page follows the IIT Madras syllabus order, provides the correct 100-mark exam pattern, and links the official PDF so aspirants can prepare from a complete, verified checklist.
How to Prepare from the GATE EY Syllabus
- Create one checklist for every official section and retain the same sequence used in the PDF.
- Start with a diagnostic test, then allocate more study time to weak high-coverage sections instead of dividing time equally.
- Solve previous-year GATE questions immediately after completing each topic and record errors by concept, calculation and time pressure.
- Revise formulas, definitions and frequently confused conditions in short weekly cycles, followed by mixed-section tests.
- Use the official PDF as the final scope document; coaching notes should expand a listed topic, not introduce an unrelated syllabus.
GATE EY Official Source and Internal Links
The syllabus tables were checked against the IIT Madras GATE 2027 EY PDF. Use the download section for the database-hosted copy, the GATE syllabus hub to switch papers, and the notification page for registration dates and policy updates.
Exam Pattern
GATE EY Exam Pattern 2027
| Section | Marks | How it applies |
|---|---|---|
| General Aptitude | 15 | Common to all GATE papers |
| Core subject questions | 85 | Selected test-paper syllabus |
| Total | 100 | 3-hour CBT |
General Aptitude
Marks
15
How it applies
Common to all GATE papers
Core subject questions
Marks
85
How it applies
Selected test-paper syllabus
Total
Marks
100
How it applies
3-hour CBT
GATE EY Question and Marking Rules
| Question type | Possible marks | Negative marking |
|---|---|---|
| MCQ | 1 or 2 | Yes: 1/3 for a wrong 1-mark MCQ; 2/3 for a wrong 2-mark MCQ |
| MSQ | 1 or 2 | No negative marking and no partial marking |
| NAT | 1 or 2 | No negative marking |
MCQ
Possible marks
1 or 2
Negative marking
Yes: 1/3 for a wrong 1-mark MCQ; 2/3 for a wrong 2-mark MCQ
MSQ
Possible marks
1 or 2
Negative marking
No negative marking and no partial marking
NAT
Possible marks
1 or 2
Negative marking
No negative marking
Syllabus Breakdown
GATE EY Syllabus 2027 - Official Section-wise Topics
The tables below preserve the section order and complete topic coverage published by IIT Madras for the GATE 2027 EY paper. Use each table as a study and revision checklist, and verify any later corrigendum against the official PDF.
Section 1: Ecology
| Topic area | Official syllabus coverage |
|---|---|
| Fundamental Concepts | Abiotic and biotic components of ecosystems; Levels of biological organization (individuals, population, species, community, ecosystems, biomes); Niches; Habitats; Functional traits; Ecophysiology (e.g. physiological adaptations, homeostasis, acclimation). |
| Population Ecology | Population dynamics and growth (density dependent/independent); Meta-population ecology; Age-structured populations. |
| Interactions | Types of interactions (mutualism, symbiosis, commensalism, competition, parasitism, predation, etc.); Two species population models (Lotka -Voltera equations); Trophic levels and their direct and indirect interactions. |
| Community Ecolog y | Community assembly, structure and succession; Role of dispersal and habitat/environmental filtering; levels of diversity (alpha, beta, gamma); Species richness, Evenness and diversity indices; Relative abundance; Species-area relationships; Diversity gradients (e.g. latitudinal and altitudinal gradients); Theory of island biogeography. |
| Ecosystem Structure and Function | Primary and secondary productivity; Food web, energy flow, and biogeochemical cycles (e.g. carbon and nitrogen); Ecosystem properties (e.g. stability, resilience); Global biomes and biogeographic zones; Flora and fauna of India; Biogeography of India. |
| Topic area | Official syllabus coverage |
|---|---|
| Fundamental Concepts | Abiotic and biotic components of ecosystems; Levels of biological organization (individuals, population, species, community, ecosystems, biomes); Niches; Habitats; Functional traits; Ecophysiology (e.g. physiological adaptations, homeostasis, acclimation). |
| Population Ecology | Population dynamics and growth (density dependent/independent); Meta-population ecology; Age-structured populations. |
| Interactions | Types of interactions (mutualism, symbiosis, commensalism, competition, parasitism, predation, etc.); Two species population models (Lotka -Voltera equations); Trophic levels and their direct and indirect interactions. |
| Community Ecolog y | Community assembly, structure and succession; Role of dispersal and habitat/environmental filtering; levels of diversity (alpha, beta, gamma); Species richness, Evenness and diversity indices; Relative abundance; Species-area relationships; Diversity gradients (e.g. latitudinal and altitudinal gradients); Theory of island biogeography. |
| Ecosystem Structure and Function | Primary and secondary productivity; Food web, energy flow, and biogeochemical cycles (e.g. carbon and nitrogen); Ecosystem properties (e.g. stability, resilience); Global biomes and biogeographic zones; Flora and fauna of India; Biogeography of India. |
Section 2: Evolution
| Topic area | Official syllabus coverage |
|---|---|
| Fundamentals | Lamarckism; Darwinism; Modern Synthesis; Variation; Heritability; Natural selection; Fitness and adaptation; Types of selection (e.g. stabilizing, directional, disruptive). |
| Diversity of Life | Origin and history of life on earth; Paleobiological evidence; Diversity and classification of life; Classical taxonomy vs systematics (cladistics). |
| Life History Theory | Allocation of resources; Tradeoffs; r/K selection; Strategies (e.g. semelparity and iteroparity). |
| Interactions | Co-evolution (e.g. mutualism, arms race, co-speciation); Prey-predator interactions (e.g. mimicry, crypsis); Host-parasite interactions |
| Population and Quantitative Genetics | Origins of genetic variation; Mendelian genetics; Hardy -Weinberg equilibrium; Drift; Selection (one-locus two-alleles model); Population genetic structure (panmixia, gene flow, FST); Polygenic traits; Gene-environment interactions (phenotypic plasticity); Heritability; Epistasis and epigenetic inheritance. |
| Molecular Evolution and Phylogenetics | Mutation rates; Molecular clocks; Neutral processes; Rates of evolution; Chromosomal and genome evolution (e.g. hybridization, ploidy, introgression); Phylogenetic methods (parsimony; maximum likelihood, Bayesian, etc); Phylogeography |
| Macroevolution | Species concepts; Speciation and extinction; Adaptive radiation; Convergence; Biogeographic processes; Continental drift. |
| Topic area | Official syllabus coverage |
|---|---|
| Fundamentals | Lamarckism; Darwinism; Modern Synthesis; Variation; Heritability; Natural selection; Fitness and adaptation; Types of selection (e.g. stabilizing, directional, disruptive). |
| Diversity of Life | Origin and history of life on earth; Paleobiological evidence; Diversity and classification of life; Classical taxonomy vs systematics (cladistics). |
| Life History Theory | Allocation of resources; Tradeoffs; r/K selection; Strategies (e.g. semelparity and iteroparity). |
| Interactions | Co-evolution (e.g. mutualism, arms race, co-speciation); Prey-predator interactions (e.g. mimicry, crypsis); Host-parasite interactions |
| Population and Quantitative Genetics | Origins of genetic variation; Mendelian genetics; Hardy -Weinberg equilibrium; Drift; Selection (one-locus two-alleles model); Population genetic structure (panmixia, gene flow, FST); Polygenic traits; Gene-environment interactions (phenotypic plasticity); Heritability; Epistasis and epigenetic inheritance. |
| Molecular Evolution and Phylogenetics | Mutation rates; Molecular clocks; Neutral processes; Rates of evolution; Chromosomal and genome evolution (e.g. hybridization, ploidy, introgression); Phylogenetic methods (parsimony; maximum likelihood, Bayesian, etc); Phylogeography |
| Macroevolution | Species concepts; Speciation and extinction; Adaptive radiation; Convergence; Biogeographic processes; Continental drift. |
Section 3: Mathematics and Quantitative Ecology
| Topic area | Official syllabus coverage |
|---|---|
| Mathematics and Statistics in Ecology | Simple functions (linear, quadratic, exponential, logarithmic, etc); Concept of derivatives and slope of a function; Permutations and combinations; Basic probability (probability of |
| Official coverage | random events; Sequences of events, conditional probability, etc); Probability distributions (e.g. binomial, normal, Poisson); Descriptive statistics (mean, variance, coefficient of variation, confidence intervals, etc.). |
| Study design and Statistical methods | Statistical hypothesis testing; Concept of p-value; Type I and Type II error, Statistical tests (e.g. t-test, Chi-square test); Correlation, linear regression and ANOVA. |
| Topic area | Official syllabus coverage |
|---|---|
| Mathematics and Statistics in Ecology | Simple functions (linear, quadratic, exponential, logarithmic, etc); Concept of derivatives and slope of a function; Permutations and combinations; Basic probability (probability of |
| Official coverage | random events; Sequences of events, conditional probability, etc); Probability distributions (e.g. binomial, normal, Poisson); Descriptive statistics (mean, variance, coefficient of variation, confidence intervals, etc.). |
| Study design and Statistical methods | Statistical hypothesis testing; Concept of p-value; Type I and Type II error, Statistical tests (e.g. t-test, Chi-square test); Correlation, linear regression and ANOVA. |
Section 4: Behavioural Ecology
| Topic area | Official syllabus coverage |
|---|---|
| Classical Ethology and Sensory Ecology | Proximate and ultimate explanations for behaviour; Innate and learnt behavior; Basic mechanisms (e.g., neuroethology, behavioural endocrinology); Modes of communication (chemical, visual, etc); Movement (e.g. navigation). |
| Foraging and Reproduction | Optimal foraging theory; Space use (e.g. territoriality); Mating systems; Sexual selection and sexual conflict (runaway selection, good-genes, handicap principle, etc); Parental care. |
| Social Behaviour | Costs and benefits of group-living; Intraspecific competition (e.g. scramble and contest); Kin selection; Altruism. |
| Topic area | Official syllabus coverage |
|---|---|
| Classical Ethology and Sensory Ecology | Proximate and ultimate explanations for behaviour; Innate and learnt behavior; Basic mechanisms (e.g., neuroethology, behavioural endocrinology); Modes of communication (chemical, visual, etc); Movement (e.g. navigation). |
| Foraging and Reproduction | Optimal foraging theory; Space use (e.g. territoriality); Mating systems; Sexual selection and sexual conflict (runaway selection, good-genes, handicap principle, etc); Parental care. |
| Social Behaviour | Costs and benefits of group-living; Intraspecific competition (e.g. scramble and contest); Kin selection; Altruism. |
Section 5: Applied Ecology & Evolution
| Topic area | Official syllabus coverage |
|---|---|
| Biodiversity and Conservation | Biodiversity-ecosystem function relationships; Ecosystem services; Conservation (endemism, biodiversity hotspots, protected areas); Global conservation initiatives (e.g. COP, IUCN, CBD, CITES); Conservation genetics and methods (genetic diversity, inbreeding depression, DNA fingerprinting and DNA barcoding). |
| Disease Ecology and Evolution | Epidemiology; Zoonotic diseases; Antibiotic resistance. |
| Global Change | Causes, consequences, adaptation and mitigation of climate change; Threats to biodiversity (e.g. pollution, habitat loss and change); Invasive species. |
| Topic area | Official syllabus coverage |
|---|---|
| Biodiversity and Conservation | Biodiversity-ecosystem function relationships; Ecosystem services; Conservation (endemism, biodiversity hotspots, protected areas); Global conservation initiatives (e.g. COP, IUCN, CBD, CITES); Conservation genetics and methods (genetic diversity, inbreeding depression, DNA fingerprinting and DNA barcoding). |
| Disease Ecology and Evolution | Epidemiology; Zoonotic diseases; Antibiotic resistance. |
| Global Change | Causes, consequences, adaptation and mitigation of climate change; Threats to biodiversity (e.g. pollution, habitat loss and change); Invasive species. |
Download Official PDFs & Question Papers
Official GATE EY Syllabus 2027 PDF
Prepare for Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering
Frequently Asked Questions
Use the featured PDF button on this page. It opens the database-hosted copy of the official IIT Madras EY syllabus.
Yes. General Aptitude is compulsory in every GATE 2027 test paper and carries 15 marks.
The paper uses Multiple Choice Questions, Multiple Select Questions and Numerical Answer Type questions carrying one or two marks.
Negative marking applies only to incorrect MCQs. MSQ and NAT questions have no negative marking, and MSQs have no partial marking.
Follow the official section order, complete topic-level concepts and examples, solve previous-year questions after each unit, and use full-length mock tests only after completing the major sections.