When Meat Loaf Meets a Manatee Quiz

Answer: The black robin

Found on the Chatham Islands of New Zealand, the black robin has made a remarkable recovery from being on the verge of extinction. In 1980, only five individuals and one fertile female (Old Blue) survived. A controlled breeding programme meant that in 2010, the population stood at over 250.

One of the drawbacks of this story is that there now exists a marked lack of genetic variability within the black robin population, making them more vulnerable to being wiped out by disease.

Answer: Jumping spiders

This family (Salticidae) includes 5,000 species, making it the largest of all spider families.

These impressive (and surreal) displays are viewed by other jumping spiders, which possess some of the most advanced eyes of all arachnids. If a male jumping spider's dance fails to impress the female, he will be her next meal.

Answer: Beachmasters

Many species of seal, such as fur and elephant seals, congregate in huge numbers when mating. The huge males will compete, often violently, for the right to mate will all females within a given area. These skirmishes often result in serious injury to one or both of the males involved, and the occasional pup is crushed to death along the way.

Answer: The world's largest known pile of guano

Guano is a term used to describe bat (and other animals') droppings, and this 100 metre pile in Deer Cave is the world's largest. These droppings are key links in the food chain of this cave. Hundreds of thousands of cockroaches congregate on the mound and will eat both bat droppings and any bats which lose their footing.

Answer: Fungus gnat

Whilst in its larval stage, the fungus gnat is capable of reproducing asexually, producing offspring from unfertilized eggs. These will erupt from their mother's body after feasting on her internal organs.

Answer: The oogpister

This black and white beetle feasts on ants, grasping them in its huge mandibles. The acid released by the the oogpister seems to be the logic behind the name, "eye-pisser". The acid is formic acid (methanoic acid) and it is acquired by the oogpister by eating ants and storing it to be used later as a weapon.

Answer: By pecking her vaginal opening to remove any other sperm

The male hedge sparrow, or dunnock, pairs with a female and will keep a close eye on her. However, other males may intrude and mate with the female. In this situation, the paired male will peck his female until she ejects all of the intruder's sperm.

Answer: Larvae

There are two strains of foul brood, the European and the American, both of which affect larvae whilst still in their cells. Workers of some species of honeybee are able to tell if a larva has been infected and will break into its cell and throw it from the hive, preventing foul brood from spreading to a larger portion of the larvae.

Answer: It is a rat

The viscacha is a rodent, though it is a member of the chinchilla family, and is therefore not a rat.

Most higher animals are diploid (2n), possessing two copies of each gene (one copy from each parent). The plains viscacha rat possesses four copies of each gene (4n) and is thought to have arisen due to a mistake in mitosis/meiosis in the reproductive organs of an ancestor, probably the mountain viscacha rat.

Answer: The pygmy chimp

Pygmy (or dwarf) chimpanzees have a smaller range than the Pan troglodytes chimp, only living wild in central Africa.

Despite its name, the pygmy chimpanzee is only slightly smaller than its cousin (the chimpanzee).

In their large social groups (up to 80), sexual relations are frequent and indiscriminate of age or gender.