It Was Just Here a Minute Ago: Extinctions Trivia Quiz | Animals

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. This flightless bird looked like an oversize ostrich. It lived on Madagascar until 300-400 years ago. What was it?

Answer: Elephant bird

The elephant bird weighed 1000 lbs. and one of its eggs equaled 160 chicken eggs. Native only to Madagascar, it was described and drawn by humans who saw it, but probably became extinct due to their general activities. Surprisingly, its closest living relative is the little kiwi in New Zealand, not the ostrich.

2. This little toad, named for its bright color, was rarely seen but often heard about, as it was used to represent the loss of biodiversity and amphibian extinction. It was last seen around 1989, is now declared extinct, and we don't really know why. What toad was it?

Answer: golden toad

The bright yellow golden toad would have been easy to spot, if it didn't live in a tiny cloud forest area north of Monteverde, Costa Rica. It was first described by a herpetologist in 1966, just 23 years before its last sighting. Climate change or fungal infection were proposed as reasons for its death, but we don't really know yet and maybe never will.

3. This huge European cow or bull was the wild ancestor of modern tame cattle, but went extinct 400 years ago. What was it?

Answer: Aurochs

The aurochs shows up in cave paintings from thousands of years ago. They were tamed by humans in at least two separate events, leading to all the different variations of milk and beef cattle. They were also hunted, and despite attempts to save them, the last aurochs were killed in Poland in the 17th Century.

4. This flightless bird looked like a penguin with a heavy, hooked bill. It lived on rocky coastlines of the North Atlantic, but was hunted to death in the 19th Century. What was it?

Answer: Great auk

The great auk was unafraid of humans and awkward on land, so it was easy prey for hunters who wanted its feathers or skin, and sadly, they treated it in inhumane ways. It lived into the 19th century, but we only have a few drawings from life or stuffed birds to examine. Laws were passed to try to save it, but they weren't enough.

5. Another Madagascar native, this creature was smaller than normal but still liked to wallow in mud and water. Officially, it died out 1,000 years ago, but some sightings were recorded into the 19th century. What was it?

Answer: Malagasy pigmy hippopotamus

Scientists have never really sorted out the classifications of different Madagascar hippopotamus remains, though some of them showed signs of butchering, indicating that they survived until humans arrived and why they went extinct. They were the only hoofed animals ever native to the island.

6. What extinct bird in the eastern US looked like it might have said "Polly want a cracker?" if it were just a little bigger?

Answer: Carolina parakeet

The Carolina parakeet had a bright green body with a yellow and red head. It was the only parrot species native to the eastern US, and unmistakable as a parrot or parakeet, to even a casual observer. Numbers declined in the 19th century, as deforestation removed their habitat, and by the early 20th century they were gone, perhaps helped to extinction by poultry disease.

The last couple lived and died in the Cincinnati Zoo, where the last passenger pigeon also lived.

7. Picture a dog-like animal that carries its young in a pouch. It's extinct, but what was it?

Answer: Tasmanian tiger or thylacine

The thylacine got its nickname Tasmanian tiger because, of course, it lived in Tasmania, Australia and New Guinea, and also because it had stripes like a tiger on its back and flanks. Hunting, as well as competition with dogs, habitat loss and disease, have been blamed for its official extinction in the early 20th century, though a few hopeful and unconfirmed sightings still occur.

8. You've probably heard of this big, flightless pigeon, that became extinct in the 17th century because it was too stupid to run from hunters. It has become the poster child for recent extinctions. What was it?

Answer: raphus cucullatus

I listed the dodo's Latin name, raphus cucullatus, to try to make this question a little harder. The dodo is probably the most well-known modern extinction that could have been easily prevented by not over-hunting. Dodos survived well in their ecological niche on Mauritius, but weren't able to change fast enough to become nimble and frightened when humans arrived. The birds named as wrong answers became extinct long before man could see them alive, but they're early kinds of birds found in fossils

9. Charles Darwin warned that this animal would become extinct soon, on his trip to study island species. What was the first canid (dog-like animal) to become extinct in modern times?

Answer: Falkland Islands wolf

Hunting eliminated the Falkland Islands wolf in 1876. It was also called the warrah. Charles Darwin, after his voyage on the Beagle, wrote that he feared it would be "classed with the dodo, as an animal which has perished from the face of the earth." In less than 50 years, he was right.

10. This chicken-like bird fed many settlers in the eastern U.S. It might have even been used instead of wild turkey at early Thanksgiving meals. But now it's gone. What was it?

Answer: heath hen

Heath hens wandered on Boston Common, back in the 1700s when the space was used for a cow pasture. The wild hen made a cheap meal for poor families to hunt all up and down the east coast. By the 19th Century, its numbers were declining sharply. For once, people did the right thing, setting up a reserve where 70 remaining birds grew to become 2000.

But incredibly bad luck hit in the early 20th Century: a fire in nesting season, natural predators (goshawks), disease, inbreeding, too few females, and severe winters combined to ensure extinction.

The last bird, a male, was seen fruitlessly searching for females to impress on the breeding grounds in 1932 and he died soon afterward.

Source: Author littlepup

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor guitargoddess before going online.
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It Was Just Here a Minute Ago: Extinctions Quiz

These animals went extinct less than 500 years ago, and in general, looked different enough that the average person could tell something unusual was being lost forever. Why did we let these go?

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