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Animal Communication Trivia Quiz

How much do you know about the way animals communicate with each other (or with humans)? This quiz may surprise you!

A multiple-choice quiz by gatutkaca. Estimated time: 4 mins.

Author
gatutkaca

Time
4 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
272,671

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Average

Avg Score
6 / 10

Plays
564

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. On returning to the hive, honey bees perform a dance which indicates the distance and direction of food. What is this called? Hint

foraging dance

wriggle dance

waggle dance

zigzag dance

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Question 2 of 10

2. Which of the following birds does not mimic human speech? Hint

parrot

mynah

hornbill

macaw

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Question 3 of 10

3. The statements below explain some similarities between birdsong and human speech, but one of them is false. Which one? Hint

Birdsong involves regional dialects.

Birdsong involves grammatical structure.

Baby birds go through a period of 'babbling'.

Birdsong is learned by youngsters listening to adults.

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Question 4 of 10

4. Some dolphins have been taught to respond to humans using sign language.

True

False

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Question 5 of 10

5. Vervet monkeys use alarm calls to indicate the presence of different predators. Which alarm call prompts the monkeys to stand up on their hind legs? Hint

the elephant alarm

the leopard alarm

the snake alarm

the eagle alarm

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Question 6 of 10

6. How are squid believed to communicate with each other? Hint

by changing colour

by rubbing against each other

by emitting ink

by releasing pheromones

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Question 7 of 10

7. When chased by a cheetah or lion, gazelles often leap up and down. This signals to the predator that the gazelle is fit, and therefore difficult to catch. What is this behaviour called? Hint

stotting

prinking

bunting

displaying

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Question 8 of 10

8. A primate named Koko was taught to communicate using a form of sign language. Koko was which of these animals? Hint

Chimpanzee

Orangutan

Bonobo

Gorilla

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Question 9 of 10

9. When a cat rubs its chin on a human's legs, what is it most likely to be doing? Hint

relieving an itch

showing its affection

marking its 'territory'

asking for food

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Question 10 of 10

10. What is the technical term for the study of animal communication? Hint

ethology

palaeolinguistics

primatology

zoosemiotics

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. On returning to the hive, honey bees perform a dance which indicates the distance and direction of food. What is this called?

Answer: waggle dance

In the waggle dance the bee moves in a figure of eight, with a waggle run in the middle. The angle of the waggle run indicates the direction of the food, and the duration indicates the distance from the hive. Other bees pick up this information and fly straight to the food.

2. Which of the following birds does not mimic human speech?

Answer: hornbill

The hornbill has a very distinctive booming call, but is not known as a mimic. Parrots, mynahs and macaws are all good mimics.

3. The statements below explain some similarities between birdsong and human speech, but one of them is false. Which one?

Answer: Birdsong involves grammatical structure.

These are all true except the statement about grammatical structure. If birdsong had grammatical structure, it would involve different segments that could be combined in different ways to produce different meanings. There is no convincing evidence that birds do this.

4. Some dolphins have been taught to respond to humans using sign language.

Answer: True

Dolphins in the wild communicate through clicks and whistles, as well as through touch. But they are good learners, and can be easily trained. One of the dolphins at Kewalo Basin Marine Laboratory in Hawaii was trained to recognise over 60 words.

5. Vervet monkeys use alarm calls to indicate the presence of different predators. Which alarm call prompts the monkeys to stand up on their hind legs?

Answer: the snake alarm

Imagine what you would do if you were in long grass and someone said, 'Watch out, there's a snake'? Wouldn't you stand on tiptoe to minimise contact with the ground, while looking around trying to spot it? Vervets do much the same when they hear the snake alarm call.

After a leopard alarm they run to hide in a tree, and after an eagle alarm they look up and run into a bush. There is no elephant alarm call (as far as we know!).

6. How are squid believed to communicate with each other?

Answer: by changing colour

Squid have specialised skin cells called chromatophores which allow them to change their skin colour and pattern. They use this to communicate with each another during courtship rituals.

7. When chased by a cheetah or lion, gazelles often leap up and down. This signals to the predator that the gazelle is fit, and therefore difficult to catch. What is this behaviour called?

Answer: stotting

Stotting would appear to be counterproductive, as it slows the gazelle down. It's seen as a possible example of the 'handicap principle' according to which only very fit individuals can afford to send a 'costly' signal. Peacocks' tails are another example.

8. A primate named Koko was taught to communicate using a form of sign language. Koko was which of these animals?

Answer: Gorilla

Koko was born in 1971 and has been taught in excess of 1,000 signs. She has also chosen kittens as pets, giving them names which she communicated to her keepers by signs.

9. When a cat rubs its chin on a human's legs, what is it most likely to be doing?

Answer: marking its 'territory'

Rubbing with the forehead might indicate affection, but rubbing with the chin (where there are scent glands) is much more likely to be territorial.

10. What is the technical term for the study of animal communication?

Answer: zoosemiotics

Zoosemiotics comes from the Greek zoon (animal) and semeion (sign).
Ethology is the study of animal behaviour, primatology is the study of primates and palaeolinguistics is the study of ancient languages.

Source: Author gatutkaca

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor rossian before going online.
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