Who's for Dinner? Trivia Quiz

Answer: No, jaguars are opportunistic predators who stalk and ambush their prey.

Jasper the jaguar: "Before I put each of you in the hot seat, I should say a little about myself and why you are all here. I am usually a most solitary beast, and I hunt by roaming my territory. I often spend more than twelve hours a day prowling for food, and I sometimes cover more than three kilometres in that time. I'm an excellent predator, if I do say so myself, and my victims rarely see me coming before I pounce on them. I enjoy variety in my diet - there are more than 85 species which I might dine upon in the wild - and being a particularly cerebral jaguar, I hatched this plan to lure you all here to be part of this delightful diversion which will inevitably service my palatal pleasure.

There will be, of course, no roast chicken, but I promise nobody will LEAVE with an empty stomach."

Answer: Thailand

Fah the frog: "In 2008 David McLeod of the University of Kansas published a paper announcing that he and his researchers had found a new species of big-headed, fanged dicroglossine frog in Eastern Thailand. That was me. He announced that examples of my kind, Limnonectes Megastomias, were found in three locations in 2003-2004. I can tell you I was absolutely petrified when the scientists captured me, but they treated me well.

They became quite fond of me and really admired my disproportionately large mouth and powerful jaws which help me eat birds as well as other frogs and insects. Of course, my fellow frogs and I have been living anonymously in Thailand for a long time, but those scientist types are pretty excited about finding us, and I don't think you want to be answering to them if you eat me.

They think I'm some frog."

Answer: Exceptionally large eyes that help her see even in very low light

Wendy the western tarsier: "Although I, along with my fellow western tarsiers, am usually found in rainforests on islands in the vicinity of Sumatra and Borneo, the offer of sampling a finely roasted chicken tempted me here this evening. It would have been a welcome change from my standard diet which is primarily composed of insects. I also enjoy birds (though not usually roasted), lizards, crustaceans, scorpions and snakes. I'm starting to regret my decision. I may be just a small primate but I have some very large attributes. We tarsiers all have very long tails (they can be anywhere from 135 to 275mm) while our bodies are usually between 80 to 165mm long. Western tarsiers are, perhaps, best known for our enormous eyes, which are usually about 16mm in diameter.

This may not sound particularly impressive, but should be considered relative to my size - together, my two eyes have a volume greater than that of my brain or stomach. These enormous eyes help me to see in the dark, which is important since I am primarily nocturnally active. Mr. Jaguar, I would guard your affairs vigilantly if you were to spare my life."

Answer: in Africa, Europe and the Middle East

Corey the common genet says: "Many of you may look at my spotted coat and banded tail and think I must be some sort of cross between a cat and a ferret, but I'm actually a genet. We genets are members of the viverridae family which also includes the binturong, linsangs, and most of the civets. Most genets are indigenous to Africa only, but I am a common genet and we are more widespread. Be warned, if any of you make me too nervous I will release a musky odour - I might even stand on my front legs to help direct my scent in the right direction! Genets are carnivores and we eat birds, small mammals, lizards, amphibians, insects, eggs and even fruit.

Despite the diversity of my diet, I was tempted here tonight because the honourable Jasper the jaguar has a reputation as an extremely generous, not to mention handsome, host."

Answer: Great horned owls are known to fight with and eat each other.

Garry the great horned owl: "It's all very well for you to laugh, but that was some big bird I thought I saw looking menacingly at me. Great horned owls are the largest of the American owls. I have virtually no natural predators that specifically hunt me as food, but many of my friends have been killed when in combat with other birds, most frequently other great horned owls. When two of our kind fight, the victor often eats the loser. Following the popularity of the Harry Potter books, there has been a dramatic rise in people wanting to own owls as pets. This is generally not a good idea. My friend Alice the great horned owl lives with Karla Kinstler, Director of the Houston Nature Center, to help the director with her work. Alice's owner gives a long list of reasons for not choosing an owl as a pet. These include destruction of the home, owl droppings everywhere, imminent physical injury caused by 'playing' with the owl and also, says Karla: 'Alice the Great Horned Owl EXPECTS me to hoot with her every night during mating season. If I don't, I REALLY get hooted at! So what's mating season? For Alice, the hooting goes on about nine months of every year.'"
Quote about Alice from:
http://www.owlstuff.com/Pet Owls.htm

Answer: He injects digestive juices into his prey to dissolve it from the inside out.

Barry says: "We Queensland bird-eating spiders are not as big as the goliath bird-eating spiders of South America, though we are amongst Australia's largest spiders. I usually eat small birds, crickets, small lizards and small baby mammals. I have no teeth, but inject a powerful digestive juice into my prey.

This dissolves almost everything, including bones and scales. I'd like a generous portion of whoever is served for dinner. I'm sure all of you feel the same way, and as I have already said, this is the very reason for which my life should be spared. I would barely make a mouthful for any one of you. If you want to leave here tonight with full bellies, you should not choose me as the main course."

Answer: Honey badger

Kylie says: "We kinkajous are very distinctive creatures, being one of only two carnivores with a prehensile tail (the other is the binturong), but people do not always know what they have seen when they spot us. We are indigenous to central and South America and are sometimes mistaken for ferrets or monkeys, though we are related to neither. To complicate matters further, we are known by a number of different names. We acquired the names honey bear and sugar bear due to our love for consuming honey. In the wild kinkajous mainly eat fruit, nectar and foliage, but we also eat insects, frogs, eggs and birds when we can. In captivity we can get our hands on honey and we love it! The Spanish name la llorona, which translates to crying or weeping woman, relates to the fact that one of our calls resembles a woman screaming. I don't want to be a bad guest, but I promise you that if you choose to serve me for dinner I will use all my skills to conceal my identity and escape your chef. If you want to eat on time, don't serve me."

Honey badger is an alternate name for the ratel.

Answer: Any of these

Terrance the tayra adds: "Like Kylie the kinkajou, my species is native to the rainforests of South America. I see Kylie isn't sitting too close to me, and I'm not surprised. We tayras have been known to feast on a kinkajou from time to time. Also like kinkajous, tayras may also be known by multiple names, including tolomuco or perico ligero. Being an omnivore, I am quite happy eating plants and animals. I'm also very hungry right now, and I know that I will thoroughly enjoy any meal that might be served and give our host a fantastic review. Mr. Jaguar, I will help promote your reputation as an excellent host, so please don't serve me for dinner."

Answer: alligator

Buster: "You might all look at me and think I look awfully like an alligator, and that's because I am closely related. As a male I expect to grow to roughly 5m, but there have been reports of black caiman as large as 10m in length. There are few black caimans left in the wild because humans hunted us nearly to extinction to secure our valuable skin. Mr. Jaguar, please let me and my species live long and prosper."

Answer: Canidae, like wolves, domestic dogs and foxes

Blanche the bush dog: "Although some of you may think my face looks a little like a bear, I am actually classified as a canid, as my name suggests. I am a very adaptable creature, and although habitat loss is somewhat of a threat to my species, I have proven very capable of feasting upon domestic animals such as chickens. I am native to Central and Southern America, and some people there have even kept some of my kind as pets. We bush dogs often have two litters of pups a year, and our offspring sometimes live with us for several years. I myself am currently raising twelve pups, and so I am very experienced at procuring large numbers of chickens to feed the many mouths for which I am responsible. Send me out into this dark night and we will all shortly feast on the delicious dish we came seeking."