European Wildlife Trivia Quiz

Answer: Wisent

The wisent (also known as European bison) was almost extinct around 1900. Only a few wisent survived in the Polish forest near Bialowieza. Since the 1920s they have been reintroduced to several Eastern European countries and in Spain. As most of the wild animals stem from about a dozen ancestors, they're still quite vulnerable to diseases. The typical wisent is 2 to 3m tall, not including the tail (on average some 30cm). It weighs on average between 300 and 900 kilos. Its outer appearance is quite similar to the American bison. The wisent lives in small herds (maximum 13 individual animals) and eats mostly grass. However, some leaves or (young) shoots are appreciated as well. They need to find fresh water every day. During winter, they break the ice to drink the underlying water.

The reindeer belongs to the family of the Cervidae (including all kinds of deer). Muskrat are related to lemmings and hamsters. They belong to the family of the Cricetidae. Grant's gazelle is a species of antelope living in Africa. The gazelle is also member of the Bovidae.

Answer: Eurasian otter

The Eurasian otter (which I'll name just otter hereafter) is on average 57 to 95 cm tall, not including the tail which is also 35 - 45 cm. An otter weighs about 7 to 12 kg. Otters live in lodges on the boards of large freshwater bodies. They need a rather extended territory of unpolluted water to hunt for fish. Occasionally they'll also eat birds, small mammals, crustaceans, frogs or insects. Otters are near threatened species.

The biggest danger for the otter population is water pollution. The common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) lives worldwide in warm seas and oceans.

It feeds on fish, crustaceans and squid. The narwhal (Monodon monoceros) is a whale with a long tusk living in the Arctic Ocean, especially near Greenland and Canada.

The Eurasian beaver (Castor fiber) is a rodent, so a herbivore.

Answer: Common hedgehog

The common hedgehog, also known as European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus), is about 20-30 cm long and has the habit of rolling up whenever it finds itself threatened. Its long spines protect the hedgehog from most predators, but unfortunately these are no protection to modern traffic. Hedgehogs live throughout West and North Europe, including suburban areas. They live on invertebrates (especially slugs and ground beetles), young birds, bird eggs or whatever they can find. If they find dry food for cats, it is a real feast.
Hedgehogs are not threatened with extinction.

The other options don't live in Europe in the wild. The caribou is native to North America (especially Canada), while the white rhinoceros is typically found in South Africa. The Indian elephant inhabits India, China and South-East Asia.

Answer: Barbary macaque

The Barbary macaque is a monkey (though lacking a tail) measuring at most 75 cm and weighing no more than 16 kg. It lives in Gibraltar and some Moroccan or Algerian forests. Whereas the Barbary macaque is endangered (because of habitat loss) in Africa, the colony in Gibraltar has adapted to suburban life and does quite well. Barbary macaques are predominantly herbivorous.

It feeds on leaves and fruit, with occasionally some insects. In Gibraltar the British military provide them also with vegetables and flowers. Howler monkeys are native to South America. Wild ring-tailed lemurs inhabit southern Madagascar.

The mandrill lives in Central Africa.

Answer: No

The greater horseshoe bat is the largest European bat. Its average size is from 57 to 71 mm long, with a wingspan of about 350 mm. Greater horseshoe bats can weigh up to 30 grams. They are quite common in southern Europe and Asia. They feed mainly on moths and beetles, as well as some other insect species. Only three species of the vampire bats are known to feed on (fresh) blood: the common vampire bat, the white-winged vampire bat and the hairy-legged vampire bat.

These three species are native to Latin-America only.

Answer: Rabbits

Iberian lynx live in southern Spain and Portugal, mostly in grassland with some shrubs. They reach a length of about 85 to 110 cm, plus the relative short tail (12 to 30cm). An average Iberian lynx weighs about 9 to 13 kilos. Iberian lynx feed mainly on rabbits, supplemented with other small animals (mostly hares and rodents).
Tapas, gazpacho and paella are typical Spanish dishes. These are not available for wild animals such as the Iberian lynx.

Answer: Grey wolf

The grey wolf (Canis lupus) once was spread over all the northern hemisphere. As they tend to make their dens out of sight of humans, the territory of the grey wolf has diminished. The European grey wolf mainly inhabits regions in Scandinavia and North Russia. European grey wolfs can reach a length of 105 - 160 cm and a weight of about 36 kilos.

They usually hunt down moose and bison, prey that exceeds their own dimensions. Eurasian lynx prefers rabbits or hares as their meal. Only during winter they'll track down larger prey. Red fox hunt down small rodents such as mice and ground squirrels. European badgers are omnivorous, with a preference for earthworms, rats and mice.

Answer: Forest

Red squirrels can be 19-23 cm (not including their tail, which also measures 15 to 20 cm). They may weigh about 300 grams. Red squirrels inhabit forests consisting of conifers or broadleaf deciduous trees. They feed on seeds, nuts, fungi and berries. Red squirrels live all over Europe and Northern Asia.
Midtown is a habitat in which only few wild animals can be found. The best known wild mammal occasionally living midtown is the North-American raccoon.

Answer: Knut

Knut the polar bear was born in December 2006. He was abandoned by his mother, and one of the zoo keepers fed him manually. Knut survived and became one of the great attractions of the Berlin Zoo in March 2007. In March 2011, Knut died of an infection of the brain.
Keiko is the name of the orca starring in the movie "Free Willy" (1993). Clarence was the cross-eyed lion in the TV series "Daktari" (1965). On a more regional scale, Gust was the gorilla who attracted many visitors to the Antwerp zoo during his lifespan (1952-1988).

Answer: Grey seal

The grey seal can reach a length of 2.5 - 3.3 m and can weigh 170 to 330 kg. The cows are considerably smaller. They feed on various fish, lobster and octopus. Large grey seal colonies can be found in Lincolnshire, Northumberland, the Orkney Islands and off the Dublin coast. Furthermore, grey seals are quite common in North America (New Jersey, Newfoundland) and in the Baltic region.
The walrus only lives in the arctic regions.
The California sea lion is native to the West coast of North America, as its name clearly indicates. Manatees live between Florida and the northern coast of Brazil, as well as the Amazon Basin and West-Africa.