A Flying Fox is Not a Fox Trivia Quiz

Answer: Kinkajou

A cousin of the raccoon, and most definitely not a bear, the honey bear or kinkajou is a nocturnal mammal found in the northern regions of South America. The name honey bear isn't very descriptive, because it doesn't look like a bear and has only been observed eating honey in captivity - appearance-wise, it's more like a raccoon-possum hybrid with a long, prehensile, monkey-like tail.

Answer: Squirrel

Believe it or not, prairie dogs are part of the squirrel family (Sciuridae) and are more accurately described as ground squirrels. Found across North America, prairie dogs are rather social creatures and will almost always be found in groups. They live in burrows and snack on grass, mainly, and have a distinctive bark, which may go someway to explaining their name.

Answer: Lizard

The name does not suggest any carnal proclivities but instead is more literal in describing the spiny bodies of the horny toads. Their rotund, squat bodies are particularly reminiscent of toads, hence the name, and as such mean they're not quite as quick off the mark than their other lizardy cousins. Denizens of the US state of Wyoming will no doubt be familiar with horny toads, given that they are their state's reptilian symbol.

Answer: Frog

Quite possibly the most confusingly named animal in this quiz, the mountain chicken is actually a frog found in the Caribbean, particularly on the islands of Dominica and Montserrat. They are critically endangered due to the increasing spread of chytridiomycosis, a fungal disease which can cause the frogs' appetite to diminish and their skin to thicken, causing them to die from asphyxiation or lack of nourishment.

Answer: Fish

The most obvious (and, let's face it, probably only) horse-like feature of the seahorse is its head, which curves down from its neck in that classic equine fashion. They have a small dorsal fin at the base of their back, which is their only means of moving through the water, so they rely on their prehensile tail to cling onto things and keep them from drifting off. One of the most famous examples of reproductive role reversal in the animal kingdom, male seahorses receive the eggs from the female and carry them in a pouch until they hatch, which is definitely not something horses do.

Answer: Viverrid

It's not a bear! It's not a cat! It's a viverrid! Bearcats are better known as binturongs and are related to civets and genets. Native to southeast Asia, binturongs are adept tree climbers and prefer to live in the safety of the woods. Their long, cat-like tails are used to help them balance as well as communicate with others, and their bear-like paws help them cling onto trunks and branches.

Answer: Beetle

Fireflies aren't flies, instead falling into the Lampyridae family, which is part of the larger beetle order of Coleoptera. The name is fairly descriptive in as much as it refers to their bioluminescence (or ability to produce their own light) to communicate or attract mates, but this is far from being fire-like and not all fireflies are actually capable of bioluminescence anyway.

Answer: Seal

Sea lions are closely related to seals and walruses in the group of animals called pinnipeds (that is, they use their front flippers to move), and so are in no way cats (as much as we all probably like the idea of a lion swimming around the sea), Several subspecies of sea lion exist across the world, including the Australian sea lion, the California sea lion and the Steller sea lion, the latter of which is the largest in the family.

Answer: Clam

Geoducks, as bizarre as the name is, are actually a species of clam rather than a quacking water bird (or a weird hybrid of two Pokémon). Geoducks are found in the Pacific Ocean, and are particularly prized by humans as a delicacy, especially in Asian cuisine.

In the wild, geoducks have incredible longevity - they can live well past 100 years, just happily burrowing into sand (in whatever way you can measure the happiness of a clam) and subsisting on microorganisms like plankton.

Answer: Bat

Yes, of course I was going to ask what a flying fox actually is. These cute, fuzzy creatures are part of the bat family, and can be found in parts of India, southeast Asia, and Australia, They like to snack on fruit (and maybe an insect here and there if they're in the mood), from which we get their alternative name, fruit bats.

But their cuteness is unfortunately counterbalanced by the fact that they're rather potent disease carriers (rabies, anyone?), so it's best not to get too close if you happen to see one in the wild.