Night Time is the Right Time Trivia Quiz

Answer: Honey badger

The honey badger (Mellivora capensis) is a member of the Mustelid family which includes stoats, badgers and otters. The name means "honey eater of the Cape" from the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa where it was first described. The name also reflects its habit of raiding the hives of African bees. The highly nutritious "bee brood", the beeswax structure in which queen bees lay their eggs, forms a large part of the honey badger's diet. However, although they have long been associated with honey, the honey badger has a wide-ranging diet which includes snakes and scorpions. In the Kalahari Desert, up to sixty species of prey have been recorded in the diet of the honey badger population.

Although solitary and reclusive by nature, these mainly nocturnal creatures have developed a well-deserved reputation as fearsome and tenacious hunters. They are considered, pound for pound, to be the most deadly of hunters and have been known to face off large predators such as lion. Although protected by their thick, loosely hanging coats, it is also thought that honey badgers have developed an immunity to the venom of prey such as snakes, scorpions and bees. Instances of honey badgers recovering after bites from such highly venomous snakes as the puff adder and king cobra have been recorded. It is small wonder that the "Guinness World Records" accorded the honey badger the title of the "world's most fearless animal".

Honey badgers are also highly intelligent animals. The BBC Two "Natural World" episode entitled "Masters of Mayhem" which details the antics of a honey badger named Stoffel playing Houdini from his enclosure at the Moholoholo Wildlife Sanctuary is an eye-opening example of the cunning and adaptability of the honey badger. It's well worth a watch if you can find the clip online.

Answer: Brown hyena

Smaller than the more common spotted hyena, the brown hyena (Hyaena brunnea) is one of the three bone-crushing species of hyena. It is found mainly in the arid parts of southern Africa including the coastal desert areas. The rarest of the four known species of hyena, the brown hyena is dark brown in colour with a white mane behind the ears. It sports a distinguishing dorsal crest which becomes a long haired mantle over the shoulders. It has a nearly black face and horizontal stripes on its legs.

The brown hyena is a consummate scavenger who is an opportunistic and omnivorous feeder with a wide-ranging diet. Its digestive system has adapted to cope with items not normally eaten by other mammals. The name "strandwolf" or "beach wolf" stems from its habit of scavenging for dead seal pups along desert beaches. Although it is solitary when hunting or scavenging, it lives in small families called clans, each with its own territory. The size of these territories as well as the size of the clan is determined by the availability of food. Secretive and nocturnal in behaviour, brown hyenas have been known to cover up to 32 kilometres in a single night while foraging.

Although the reclusive nature and wide-ranging territories of the brown hyena make accurate figures difficult to establish, it is estimated that the total population of the species is only some 5000-8000 individuals.

Answer: Primate

Bushbabies or galagos are nocturnal primates found in Africa and are the continent's smallest primates. In South Africa, they are also known as "nagapies" which means "little night monkey" as they are almost always only seen after dark. The exact number of species is open to debate by scientists, but they are all characterised by their small size which ranges from the size of a mouse to that of a cat. They all have large eyes to aid nocturnal vision, ears which are oversized for their body size and long tails. They also have strong back legs which enable them to make long leaps between trees without them having to come down to the ground.

Bushbabies are more often heard than seen as they are exceedingly vocal animals. The most common call is a haunting and repetitive wail which has been described as "the squalling of a baby having a tantrum". However, up to 18 different vocalizations that are used depending on the circumstances have been identified. Bushbabies are omnivorous with tree gum and insects making up the majority of their diet.

Answer: True

It is a myth that owls can rotate their heads 360 degrees. However, it is true that they are able to turn their heads about 270 degrees in each direction. It is also true that their necks have developed special adaptations to ensure that these rotations don't cause damage to their bodies. In order to give them the best possible vision for hunting at night, owls have eyes so large that they cannot move in their sockets and are set forward in their heads. To compensate for this, they make use of rapid turns of their heads to either side to scan their environment.

Scientists at the John Hopkins School of Medicine conducted a study where they examined the neck structure of snowy, barrel and great horned owls. This study showed that there are four physical adaptations which allow this rapid head rotation. The birds' heads are only connected to the neck by one bone socket pivot and not two as is the case in humans and other birds. There are also vascular connections between the carotid and vertebral arteries in the neck which swell to collect blood when an artery is constricted by the rotation movement. A third adaptation is the size of the openings in the vertebrae through which the blood vessels pass. In owls, these are approximately ten times wider than the width of the blood vessel itself. This allows for air pockets to form which cushion the arteries and prevent crushing when the neck is rotated. The fourth adaptation they found was that the vertebral artery enters the neck far higher up than is the case in other birds to minimize the effect of rotation. The wonder of Mother Nature at work never ceases to amaze.

Answer: Hippopotamus

The hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibious) is a large semi-aquatic mammal which spends most of its days submerged in water and mud. However, between dusk and dawn, these portly, short legged animals leave the water and follow recognized and well-worn paths to graze on grasses. It is during this time that the hippo is best given a wide berth. Naturally aggressive by nature in order to reduce predation, the hippo is also unpredictable and is known to charge at anything it finds between it and where it is going. It is surprisingly nimble of foot despite its barrel-like shape and has been known to reach speeds of up to 30 kilometres per hour. Couple this with the sizeable incisors it possesses and it becomes a formidable foe. They are widely considered to be responsible for more deaths annually in Africa than any other large animal. Zulu warriors considered it more of a compliment to be compared to a hippo than to a lion because of its courage and aggression.

It was originally thought that the hippo's nocturnal feeding behaviour was to avoid sunburn during the daytime. However, scientists now believe that it has developed as a way to avoid predators such as man. Studies in areas where the hippo has no or very limited contact with man has shown them feeding during the day and even sunbathing on river banks.

Answer: Aardvark

The strange looking aardvark (Orycteropus afer) is a solitary, nocturnal mammal which is highly adapted to hunting and eating the ants and termites which form its diet. It has a long pig-like snout with a bulbous end that has a highly developed sense of smell. Its elongated tubular ears afford the animal an acute sense of hearing which allows it to detect and avoid predators. It also has a highly muscled, long tail reminiscent of that of a kangaroo. The feet resemble small spades with large flat claws. These enable the aardvark to dig into anthills and termite mounds and create underground burrows in which it rests during daylight hours. It has been recorded that an aardvark can dig up to two feet in 15 seconds. This burrowing habit has made the animal highly unpopular with farmers as it excavates holes in the walls of earthen farm dams. It has a long, sticky tongue which can measure up to 12 inches in length and which is used for scooping ants and termites from the mounds. The aardvark also has the ability to close its nostrils while burrowing to prevent insects and dust from entering. It is believed that aardvarks can eat up to 50,000 termites or ants in one sitting.

The aardvark is found across most of Africa south of the Sahara and is not related to the South American anteaters. In fact, its closest living relatives are elephants, shrews and hyraxes.

Answer: Leopard

The "Big Five" is a term first coined by hunters in Southern Africa to designate those animals that they deemed to be the most dangerous to hunt on foot. The leopard (Panthera pardus), although not as large as the other cat on the list, the lion, gains its place on this list for its cunning and strength. Classified as a "big cat" in the panthera genus, the leopard is the most secretive of the large predators. It is a powerfully built cat with relatively short legs and a large head. With excellent camouflage provided by its coat which is spotted with dark rosettes and its nocturnal habits, the leopard is also both a good climber and swimmer. Although it prefers thick bush and riverine forest, it is also highly adaptable to different habitats and is an opportunistic hunter with a wide-ranging diet. These attributes make it a formidable foe and it is one of the most successful of the large predators.

The leopard is highly territorial with the territory of a single male overlapping with that of several females. It is usually solitary and highly mobile throughout its range, seldom remaining in one place for any length of time. The leopard is mainly nocturnal, doing most of its hunting at night. It has the habit of dragging its prey into trees, out of the reach of other predators such as lions, hyensa and jackals, where it can feed at its leisure.

Answer: True

It is a myth that the porcupine is capable of shooting or throwing its quills when attacked or threatened. The belief stems from the fact that porcupines are aggressive when threatened and will turn sideways or run in backwards towards their aggressor. This enables the easily detached quills on their backs and rear ends to become embedded in the attacker. They also have the defensive habit of hiding in underground holes facing inwards and raising their quills so that they cannot easily be dislodged from the hole. A further defence mechanism is to rattle their hollow tails quills to try and frighten off predators. The quills are made of hair coated in a keratin plate. It is estimated that a single porcupine can have up to 30,000 quills. Baby porcupines, which are called porcupettes, are born with soft quills which harden quite quickly upon contact with air after their birth. A fact I'm quite sure is a relief to their mothers!

The name porcupine arises from the Middle French term "porc espin" which means "spined pig". They are rodents and the Cape or South African porcupine (Hystricomorph africaaustralis) is the largest rodent found in Southern Africa. Porcupines are mainly solitary and nocturnal, although monogamous breeding pairs can be found. They rest in underground burrows or caves during the day, emerging at night to forage on bulbs, roots, tubers and tree bark.

Answer: Civet

Civets are small nocturnal mammals found in the tropical parts of Asia and throughout Africa. The best known of over a dozen species is the African civet (Civetticus civetta) because of its value to the perfume industry. The secretion from its anal glands produces a musky aroma which is highly prized as both a base and a fixative by perfume manufacturers. Mainly solitary and usually only active for a few hours before midnight, the cat-like civet has a small head, raccoon like face and overly long hindquarters. With its grey fur covered in black markings, the civet is quite distinctive in appearance. It is an omnivore with a wide-ranging diet that includes birds, eggs, reptiles, fruit and rodents.

The luwak or common palm civet (Paradoxorus Hermaphroditus) of Asia has had quite an impact on the coffee industry. Also known as the coffee civet, this small creature feeds on coffee beans, digests the pulp and then excretes the stones. These stones or "beans" are imbued with a distinctive aroma from their journey through the civet's digestive tract and are used for the making of the highly expensive "kopi luwak" or civet coffee. I think I'll stick to tea!

Answer: Mosquito

It is estimated that annually malaria is responsible for over one million deaths worldwide. Only the female of the Anopheles genus of mosquito is able to transmit the deadly Plasmodium parasite which causes malaria to humans. This makes her the deadliest animal known to man.

The female Anopheles (the name means "useless" in Greek) mosquito requires blood in order to produce eggs. In order to draw blood, the female has two specially adapted cutting stylets at the end of her proboscis with which to penetrate the skin of her victim. After the skin has been broken by the stylets, the proboscis searches for a blood vessel. It contains two hollow tubes, one which injects saliva into the wound and one which withdraws the blood. It is during this process that the parasite is transferred from one victim to the next. The mosquito only plays host to the malaria parasite and seems to suffer no adverse effects herself from the presence of the parasite. The mosquitoes are found wherever there is an abundance of water as the female lays up to 200 eggs at a time on the surface of the water. The male, not requiring blood, feeds on plant nectar. Mosquitoes are most active from around midnight and in the early hours of the morning. The female Anopheles mosquito is truly one nocturnal animal that one would be happy to miss seeing while on safari!