FREE! Click here to Join FunTrivia. Thousands of games, quizzes, and lots more!

Whales and Whaling Trivia Quiz

Before petroleum was discovered, the world depended on whale oil for its needs. See how much you know about whales and whaling.

A multiple-choice quiz by tjoebigham. Estimated time: 3 mins.

Author
tjoebigham

Time
3 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
30,425

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
15

Difficulty
Average

Avg Score
9 / 15

Plays
2278

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 15

1. Which whale is the largest animal on earth? Hint

Sperm

Blue

Humpback

Bowhead

NEXT>

Question 2 of 15

2. How did the sperm whale get its name? Hint

From its promiscuity

From the dominance of males

From its massive amount of sperm

From the substance in its head

NEXT>

Question 3 of 15

3. What is baleen made of? Hint

Real bone

Hair

Cartilage

Keratin

NEXT>

Question 4 of 15

4. What kind of whale was Melville's Moby Dick? Hint

Beluga

Albino Sperm

Gray

Right

NEXT>

Question 5 of 15

5. During the nineteenth century which of these products did not come from whales? Hint

Candlewax

Corset stays

Lubricating oil

Fertilizer

NEXT>

Question 6 of 15

6. Which whaling ship was sunk by a whale? Hint

Acushnet

Wanderer

Essex

Charles W. Morgan

NEXT>

Question 7 of 15

7. What is the name of the art of carving pictures on whales' teeth? Hint

Etching

Scratching

Dental Work

Scrimshaw

NEXT>

Question 8 of 15

8. What cetacean substance was used in perfumes? Hint

Ambergris

Sperm oil

Whale waste

Scent glands

NEXT>

Question 9 of 15

9. What did whalers call being towed by a harpooned whale? Hint

Whale haul

Nantucket sleigh ride

Riding the flukes

Whale ride

NEXT>

Question 10 of 15

10. Where did whaleships extract the oil? Hint

Stoves

Tanks

Refineries

Try-works

NEXT>

Question 11 of 15

11. Dolphins belong to the same order as whales.

True

False

NEXT>

Question 12 of 15

12. What behavior are humpback whales best known for today? Hint

singing and breaching

bashing in ships' bows

butting heads

slapping their flukes together

NEXT>

Question 13 of 15

13. What are the two halves of a whale's tail called? Hint

Rostrum

Flukes

Fins

Flippers

NEXT>

Question 14 of 15

14. Whales are mammals.

True

False

NEXT>

Question 15 of 15

15. Who invented a special harpoon? Hint

John Ericcson

Lewis Temple

Thomas Edison

James Watt

(Optional) Create a Free FunTrivia ID to save the points you are about to earn:

Select a User ID:

Choose a Password:

Your Email:

Most Recent Scores

Nov 01 2024 : jackslade: 15/15
Oct 23 2024 : Guest 98: 11/15

Score Distribution

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Which whale is the largest animal on earth?

Answer: Blue

The largest blue whale recovered was 110 feet long, longer than a 737 jetliner!

2. How did the sperm whale get its name?

Answer: From the substance in its head

The substance in the head, from which came the oil and wax, looked like human sperm, thus the name.

3. What is baleen made of?

Answer: Keratin

The same substance your nails are made of! Baleen whales use the baleen in their mouths to strain out water as they feed on tiny crustaceans.

4. What kind of whale was Melville's Moby Dick?

Answer: Albino Sperm

Moby was an all-white sperm, very rare.

5. During the nineteenth century which of these products did not come from whales?

Answer: Fertilizer

Whale waste was not used for whaling initially, but have been used for fertilizer since the twentieth century.

6. Which whaling ship was sunk by a whale?

Answer: Essex

Melville shipped on the 'Achusnet', but the story of the 'Essex' and its tragic aftermath inspired his 'Moby Dick'.

7. What is the name of the art of carving pictures on whales' teeth?

Answer: Scrimshaw

Whalers also carved whale teeth into little statues, kitchen utensils, etc.

8. What cetacean substance was used in perfumes?

Answer: Ambergris

Found mostly in sick sperm whales, ambergris was invaluable to perfumiers.

9. What did whalers call being towed by a harpooned whale?

Answer: Nantucket sleigh ride

Nantucket was once the capital of whaling.

10. Where did whaleships extract the oil?

Answer: Try-works

'Trying out' the whale was cooking the oil out of a dead whale's flesh on board the ship.

11. Dolphins belong to the same order as whales.

Answer: True

Dolphin are a part of the order of cetaceans, but do not belong to the whale family.

12. What behavior are humpback whales best known for today?

Answer: singing and breaching

Most whales 'sing', that is, communicate through complex sound patterns with others of their kind, but humpbacks were the first discovered to sing, by scientist Roger Payne. And humpbacks have been seen breaching for many, many years. (No humpback has ever been known to bust open a ship's bow, unlike the sperm whale that sank the whaleship "Essex".)

13. What are the two halves of a whale's tail called?

Answer: Flukes

The whale's flukes are horizontal, whereas a fish's is vertical.

14. Whales are mammals.

Answer: True

Whales live in the oceans but breathe air and bear young.

15. Who invented a special harpoon?

Answer: Lewis Temple

Temple was an Afro-American blacksmith who designed the toggle-headed harpoon to hang on to a whale when {harpooned;} it revolutionized whaling.

Source: Author tjoebigham

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor crisw before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.