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Quiz about Night Shift
Quiz about Night Shift

Night Shift Trivia Quiz


Young Dora is a bit of an explorer and likes meeting interesting creatures wherever she travels with her parents. As she has a new torch to play with, she has been going out at night. See if you can work out who is on night shift from the clues given.

A multiple-choice quiz by suomy. Estimated time: 5 mins.
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Author
suomy
Time
5 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
358,937
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Average
Avg Score
8 / 10
Plays
719
Awards
Top 35% Quiz
Last 3 plays: Guest 209 (10/10), japh (9/10), Guest 175 (6/10).
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Question 1 of 10
1. Dora is gambolling around forests in Madagascar. She's pleased to have come across this the world's largest nocturnal primate with some unusual features including rodent-like teeth and a very thin middle finger. "Sounds a bit Scottish to me", Dora comments to you, "Maybe a Scot discovered it." What is she on about? Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. Dora is in the UK visiting her Aunt Maisy. Making the most of opportunity to explore, her aunt points her in the direction of a sett behind her house where she can find this black and white faced weasel-family member. What night shift animal might this be?
Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. Catching up with Dora in the morning, you find that she has been out for a spot of night fishing at the local pond. She proudly displays her whiskered catch. "What have you got there?", you ask. "I was playing a bit of a 'cat and mouse' game except this time the fish was the mouse", said Dora laughing. What nocturnal fish is Dora likely to have caught for breakfast? Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. "Look what I found!", said Dora coming into the kitchen one dark Virginia evening. "I was having a look around when I came across this dead animal. It is still warm but maybe that is due to its fur." You point out that this white-faced animal is actually only playing dead and that it would be a good idea to put it outside before it comes to. What has Dora found? Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. Dora was hunting around outside the house last night and found an interesting creature. She last saw it scurrying away under the house. "But", said Dora, "I am not sure what it was. I'm sure it had eight legs but it didn't look like a spider. It had claws and its tail curved back over its body. What could it be?" Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. Dora was talking about a recent trip down under where she came across a type of possum during one of her night-time rambles. Thumbing through a book, she read: "This squirrel-sized possum glides from tree to tree and has a liking for the sweet sap of certain gum trees amongst others. These habits are reflected in its name." Can you work out what its name might be?
Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. During a trip to Kenya with her parents, Dora got to go on a ballooning trip. This involved a pre-dawn start and, once in the air, a chance to spot animals from the air. She watched a couple of spotted dog-like animals chase and catch a wildebeest, and then make a laughing sound. They were soon joined by others. What hunting and scavenging animal has Dora seen? Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. Dora is talking to her mother: "Do you see this insect I found in the wood stack. I put it in a jar in order to show you but then forgot about it. I guess it must have been a couple of weeks ago and it is still alive." "Yes, I've also heard that they can live without their heads for a couple of weeks as well. But I don't think we want that pest in the kitchen. They are a real health hazard and leave potentially harmful bacteria wherever they go", her mother replied. What night shift creature could this be? Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. "Describe what you found last night, Dora", you say. "Well, it was a big hairy spider as big as my hand. It didn't have a web but I saw it ambush a cricket. The cat appeared and got a bit close so the spider reared up on its legs. The cat then ran off." What is Dora describing?
Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. Visiting some farming cousins in Australia allows Dora to seek out this interesting nocturnal tunnel-dwelling marsupial. With a backwards facing pouch and a penchant for going through fences and other obstructions rather than around them, Dora discovers that they are not her cousins' favourite animal. What animal could this be? Hint



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Most Recent Scores
Dec 07 2024 : Guest 209: 10/10
Nov 19 2024 : japh: 9/10
Nov 01 2024 : Guest 175: 6/10

Score Distribution

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. Dora is gambolling around forests in Madagascar. She's pleased to have come across this the world's largest nocturnal primate with some unusual features including rodent-like teeth and a very thin middle finger. "Sounds a bit Scottish to me", Dora comments to you, "Maybe a Scot discovered it." What is she on about?

Answer: Aye-aye

It is not clear where the name came from, although it is not Scottish in origin. The common name may be onomatopoeic or it may be down to the locals saying 'heh heh' (meaning 'I don't know') because of their reluctance to mention the name of an animal considered by them to be evil.

The aye-aye was first classified as a rodent because of its continually growing incisors. In times past it was not easy to classify as it also has some cat-like and squirrel-type features. Genetically, it has now been shown to be part of the lemur family. It has developed a specialist foraging technique where it taps tree trunks and listens to the sound as a way of finding hollows created by grubs. It will then gnaw a hole at that point and insert its unusually narrow middle finger to retrieve a grub or insect. It is an omnivore and so enjoys fruit and nuts as well.
2. Dora is in the UK visiting her Aunt Maisy. Making the most of opportunity to explore, her aunt points her in the direction of a sett behind her house where she can find this black and white faced weasel-family member. What night shift animal might this be?

Answer: Badger

The sett is a badger's underground den and is a bit like a communal cave village with up to fifteen animals accommodated in tunnels and chambers that can run to several hundred metres. Most varieties of badger are European although North America has its own and there is the honey badger of Africa.

The African honey badger eats honey, of course, but is also carnivorous. Its distribution reaches India. Human consumption of badgers was fairly widespread at one time, with the dachshund dog bred for the purpose of hunting badgers. Badgers are still hunted in China for their hair which is prized for making shaving brushes.
3. Catching up with Dora in the morning, you find that she has been out for a spot of night fishing at the local pond. She proudly displays her whiskered catch. "What have you got there?", you ask. "I was playing a bit of a 'cat and mouse' game except this time the fish was the mouse", said Dora laughing. What nocturnal fish is Dora likely to have caught for breakfast?

Answer: Catfish

It is actually their skull features and swim bladder which helps to classify a fish as a catfish, rather its 'whiskers'. Not all catfish have whiskers although the whiskers give rise to the name. They are generally bottom feeders and appear on all continents except Antarctica, although they used to be there as well. There are over 2,000 species ranging in size from a centimetre with some specimens over two metres in length. Most are harmless although the striped eel catfish has poisonous spines. Catfish are one of the more important aquaculture fish farmed for human consumption.
4. "Look what I found!", said Dora coming into the kitchen one dark Virginia evening. "I was having a look around when I came across this dead animal. It is still warm but maybe that is due to its fur." You point out that this white-faced animal is actually only playing dead and that it would be a good idea to put it outside before it comes to. What has Dora found?

Answer: Opossum

Thanatosis is the name given to the animal behaviour of pretending to be dead, typically in order to avoid the unwelcome attention of a predator. The Virginia opossum (often called a possum) is well-known for this behaviour and gave rise to the term 'playing possum'. It may remain rigid and motionless for as much as four hours. Dribbling saliva and a foul smell help to put off potential predators.

The true possum is actually a different animal found in Australasia. Opossums and possums are both nocturnal.
5. Dora was hunting around outside the house last night and found an interesting creature. She last saw it scurrying away under the house. "But", said Dora, "I am not sure what it was. I'm sure it had eight legs but it didn't look like a spider. It had claws and its tail curved back over its body. What could it be?"

Answer: Scorpion

Scientifically scorpions are part of the same class as spiders, namely Arachnids, although they are in a different order. They both feature eight legs unlike insects which have six. They can be found on all continents except Antarctica. Most have poisonous stings but perhaps 25 out of over 1,700 species have venom powerful enough to kill people. The venom is used to kill or paralyse its prey. Scorpions are nocturnal.
6. Dora was talking about a recent trip down under where she came across a type of possum during one of her night-time rambles. Thumbing through a book, she read: "This squirrel-sized possum glides from tree to tree and has a liking for the sweet sap of certain gum trees amongst others. These habits are reflected in its name." Can you work out what its name might be?

Answer: Sugar glider

Being squirrel-sized is more of a feature than a habit so the hint for the name is directed towards its flying and eating preferences. All four of these animals exist and are types of possum apart from the flying squirrel which is a squirrel. The flying mouse is an alternate name for the feathertail glider. All glide using flaps of skin to support themselves. The possums all eat nectar and sweet sap however it is the sugar glider that gets 'sugar' in its name.

The sugar glider was introduced into Tasmania and is found up the east and northern coasts of Australia as well as Papua New Guinea and some nearby islands.
7. During a trip to Kenya with her parents, Dora got to go on a ballooning trip. This involved a pre-dawn start and, once in the air, a chance to spot animals from the air. She watched a couple of spotted dog-like animals chase and catch a wildebeest, and then make a laughing sound. They were soon joined by others. What hunting and scavenging animal has Dora seen?

Answer: Spotted hyena

Hyenas are mainly nocturnal although they can found out and about in early morning. Although dog-like in appearance and behaviour, they are more closely related to the cat family.

A spotted (or laughing) hyena will use its 'laugh' to attract other hyenas to recently caught prey. The number of hyenas in a hunt varies according to what is being hunted. They are also scavengers and may compete with lions for their kills. Living in groups of up to eighty animals, the female hyenas dominate the social hierarchy.
8. Dora is talking to her mother: "Do you see this insect I found in the wood stack. I put it in a jar in order to show you but then forgot about it. I guess it must have been a couple of weeks ago and it is still alive." "Yes, I've also heard that they can live without their heads for a couple of weeks as well. But I don't think we want that pest in the kitchen. They are a real health hazard and leave potentially harmful bacteria wherever they go", her mother replied. What night shift creature could this be?

Answer: Cockroach

If they have water, some types of cockroach can survive for up to six weeks without food. Without water, they die after a week or two. If they are headless then they cannot drink and so die of thirst.

Cockroaches have been around for hundreds of millions of years so they are survivors. Only thirty or so of the 4,000 or so species are in the pest category with most living outside the home environment. They have a symbiotic relationship with bacteria which manufacture all the vitamin needs of the cockroach in exchange for a safe haven. Unfortunately the bacteria they shed as the walk or leave droppings or regurgitate food can cause a number of different diseases in people.
9. "Describe what you found last night, Dora", you say. "Well, it was a big hairy spider as big as my hand. It didn't have a web but I saw it ambush a cricket. The cat appeared and got a bit close so the spider reared up on its legs. The cat then ran off." What is Dora describing?

Answer: Tarantula

Tarantulas are interesting creatures. When attacked, the tarantula will throw barbed hairs at the attacker and this is what is likely to have discouraged the cat mentioned above. They do not spin webs to catch prey, preferring to hunt instead. They do spin silk but not for trapping purposes. They have retractable claws for grip and are able to regenerate lost legs. Some female tarantulas can live as long as thirty years. There are some 900 species of tarantula distributed across most of the Southern Hemisphere as well as parts of Europe and southern parts of North American. All have venom but are unlikely to cause human fatalities through the venom alone.

Wolf spiders are also hunters rather than web-makers but only have a 3-30 mm body length, compared to a 25-100 mm body length and 80-300 mm span for a tarantula. Wolf spiders do not throw barbed hairs although they do have a venomous bite.
10. Visiting some farming cousins in Australia allows Dora to seek out this interesting nocturnal tunnel-dwelling marsupial. With a backwards facing pouch and a penchant for going through fences and other obstructions rather than around them, Dora discovers that they are not her cousins' favourite animal. What animal could this be?

Answer: Wombat

Growing up to a metre long and with its incisor teeth and claws, this herbivore is good at burrowing. It lives in tunnels up to thirty metres long. The female has a backwards-facing pouch for its young which lessens the chance of collecting dirt from its digging. Dingos and foxes are the main predators. When a predator follows it down a tunnel, its toughened backside (made mostly of cartilage) is difficult to get a grip on. It may also crush the predator's skull against the tunnel roof if the predator's head gets past the animal's rump. The koala is its nearest relative.
Source: Author suomy

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