Game of Zoos: Fractured Rare or Endangered Animals Quiz

Answer: Giant Panda

Recognised for its distinctive black and white colouring, the giant panda, also known as the panda bear, is a large creature native to the central parts of China. Though its diet is usually thought of as being 100 per cent bamboo, this lovely animal will also occasionally eat small rodents or birds and grasses in the wild. In a zoo, however, it is positively spoiled rotten with extra treats such as honey, fish, eggs, oranges and even bananas given to it on a regular basis.

There are only approximately 2,000 of these beautiful creatures left in the wild in the early 21st century, with another forty-nine living in eighteen different zoos throughout the world. Such is its appeal to man, particularly the famous Chi-Chi who resided in the London Zoo for many years, that the Giant Panda has become the recognised symbol for the World Wildlife organisation. Say chi-chi-cheese, Chi-Chi.

Answer: Crocodile

Crocodiles certainly aren't endangered in Australia, although they are in various other countries in which they are found. The northern parts of Australia are loaded with the alarming creatures that are extraordinarily difficult to see when lurking in waters. Found also in Asia, Africa and parts of the Americas, and in a different classification to alligators, crocodiles are classed as reptiles. You can tell the difference between the two creatures by the shape of their heads - if you're ever foolish enough to get that close to them. The crocodile's snout is longer and more narrow than its distant cousin, and when its mouth is fully closed, all its hungry looking teeth are still visible. They're also a LOT more aggressive as well.

Crocodiles will eat just about anything - including humans. All their senses are extremely well developed which makes them even more dangerous than they appear. They strike with ferocious speed when they locate a prey and kill by going into a death roll so that their prey usually drowns. With advanced thinking patterns, crocodiles are so clever that they can even disguise themselves with sticks in order to get closer to prey. They have an incredibly powerful bite as well and can easily digest the toughest of materials, such as hooves and horns. Possibly the most famous zoo for housing these creatures was Steve Irwin's Australia Zoo in Queensland. This held daily displays of crocodile feeding as well, and, on more than one occasion, the lack of vigilance on the part of the handlers almost resulted in their ending up on the menu instead. Did you know that when crocodiles are courting, prior to mating, they rub their snouts together?

Answer: Emperor Penguin

Penguins are flightless birds found almost entirely in the colder regions of the southern hemisphere. The Galapagos penguin is the one exception to this as it lives up near the equator. These cute little creatures whose colouring and stance make them appear as if they're dressed for a society event, come in several different sizes. The largest is the emperor bird, reaching a height of just over three and a half feet, while the delightful little fairy penguin only reaches a height of some sixteen inches.

In water, the penguin is a swift and graceful swimmer, but on land the little fellows do a type of waddle to get along, or, fed up with the slowness of that, slide along on their bellies instead. It was once thought that after their eggs are hatched, the male bird did the incubation duties over many long weeks, but in fact, apart from the emperor bird, both parents share this task. The emperor penguin, apparently with the common touch, does this duty solely on his own. One of the most famous zoos for housing and breeding these birds is the Edinburgh Zoo in Edinburgh, Scotland. Indeed, it was the first zoo in the world to attempt this.

Answer: Lemur

Lemurs, which are native to the island of Madagascar are threatened with extinction because of habitat loss and hunting by man. They come in several different family groups with the most recognisable perhaps being the famous ring-tailed one. That lemur, unlike the others, is most active during daylight hours, and is noted for its omnivorous diet. Most lemurs today are small creatures, with the ring-tailed being the largest, but many centuries ago, before humans landed on their lovely island, lemurs once grew as large as gorillas. In spite of their delightful startled looking appearance, always reminding one of children caught at the cookie jar, lemurs are somewhat on the nose. In short, they smell. Females rule the roost with these animals and it is the ladies who defend the troop's territory. They have VERY sharp teeth and claws to do so. If the males have a stoush, they do so via a method of stink fighting, whereby they douse their tails with oils from their foul smelling glands - and then flick them at their adversaries.

There are more than 2,000 lemurs held in zoos around the world, and, because hunting of these fascinating creatures still continues in the wild, their natural numbers are fast approaching dangerous levels, lower than those held in captivity. One of the most famous of these zoos is Cincinnati's Zoo and Botanical Garden. In 2017, this zoo marked the birth of three of its ring-tailed lemurs in three days - after more than thirty years with no births at all. It was worth the wait.

Answer: Tufted Deer

A tufted deer is a petite animal that looks a little like a cross between Kramer from "Seinfeld" and a vampire. Native to the centre of China and parts of Tibet, this little creature has a heaped up pile of fur on the top of its head, and, in the male of the species, two fang shaped canine teeth protruding from the sides of its mouth. Standing only between 20-28 inches in height, and weighing between 37-66 lbs, the tufted deer has tiny antlers, but these are usually hidden in its Kramer-like head fur.

Usually timid, in spite of its alarming fangs, this animal will hide whenever it can from predators, but if discovered, will let out a sound like a bark before fleeing. Then, when it runs away, it does so like a cat jumping. It's as though Mother Nature had a lot of spare parts left over and created the beautiful little animal from them. Oh, and the male also barks when mating as well. Very distracting to his lady of choice one would think. The tufted deer can be seen in selected zoos around the world, but China, as a rule is reluctant to allow the release of any of its endangered animals and has very strict protocols for doing so. The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium in Ohio, though, home to more than 7,000 animals, features this unique creature.

Answer: Flying Foxes

Flying Foxes, a genus of bats, are also known as fruit bats. Found in different areas of the tropics, there are at least sixty species of bats left in the world. Their preferred food of choice is, of course, fruit, but also small insects. Unlike most bats they cannot fly by echolocation, but use their keen eyesight instead. Unfortunately, this creature's reproduction output is very low as they only produce one offspring annually. Over the years, because of intrusion by man into their home territories, and even hunting, this has made this bat, along with others, vulnerable.

One of the rarest of this family is the little bumblebee bat, also known as Kitti's hog-nosed bat, found in the limestone caves of west Thailand and the south-east of Myanmar. It is just over an inch in length and weighs as little as 1.171 of an ounce, making it not only the smallest bat in the world, but also the smallest mammal. This little endangered creature is in dire danger of complete extinction because of habitat loss and the disturbance of its nesting sites by tourists. The National Park of Thailand is doing its best to protect the bumblebee bat from extinction, but sadly, it appears to be a losing battle.

Answer: Angora Rabbit

Believed to have originated in Ankara, Turkey, there are eleven different families of the Angora rabbit in the world. Thought to have existed for over 1,000 years, this unique breed eventually made its way into France by the early 1700s. By the end of that century, it became known to other parts of Europe, and from there, the rest of the world. These lovely little creatures are bred for their fine, soft wool, which is similar in texture to cashmere. They are plucked, combed, or even sheared regularly to harvest same, as it grows at the rate of just over an inch per month. It's quite amazing isn't it, to think you can get wool from a rabbit?

Angora rabbits have to groomed regularly to prevent their precious wool from knotting. When shearing is carried out, the rabbit is placed on a turntable and spun around carefully to allow the shearer to remove the wool in a set pattern, before being flipped over to do their underside. They do not look happy at all when the process is complete - dizzy and indignant, in fact. The largest of the Angora breeds is the Giant angora. It's just a little bit comical looking, but adorable all the same. Angora rabbits can be found in various zoos around the world - at the Houston Petting Zoo in Texas, for example, which also houses the French Lop rabbit as well, another beautiful little creature.

Answer: Tarsier

The delicate tarsier looks a little like Yoda from the "Star Wars" series of films. Classed as a primate, all species of this animal live in the islands of south-east Asia. The eyes of this little creature are so large that they're actually bigger than their brains, but this gives them the advantage of acute vision. Their hearing is also highly developed.

Unlike the broader diets of other primates, tarsiers are entirely carnivorous. Their diet consists of snakes, lizards and birds. Bats are an additional treat when they can capture these as well. Their long, rather creepy looking fingers are an asset in this regard. Amazingly so, baby tarsiers are able to climb within a day of their birth, but the little animal is considered an endangered species. The town of Corella on the island of Bohol in the Philippines has a large Research and Development park and breeding centre which is open to visitors. Its sole purpose is to try to increase the tarsier population. In the famous words of Yoda, succeed they must. "Do or do not. There is no try".

Answer: Platypus

When scientists from overseas were first shown examples or images of the Australian platypus, they indignantly supposed their collective legs were being pulled, such is the strange design of this little Australian creature. Described as an egg-laying mammal - a fascinating combination all on its own - the platypus has a bill like a duck, a tail like a beaver, feet like an otter, it can actually growl when it's upset, it walks on its knuckles when on land but spend most of its life in water, even though it is covered in fur instead of scales or feathers. Alas however, this shy little creature, though now protected, is considered vulnerable, mainly because of the effects of pollution.

An even more fascinating fact about the platypus is when its young hatches from its eggs, it is fed milk by the mother, NOT through the mammary glands with which she's been endowed, but through the pores of her skin instead. She somehow forces the milk through those pores into grooves on her belly, and her babies lap it up from there. So valued is this little creature in Australia, its image appears on one of our most used coins, and it is considered the state animal symbol for New South Wales. Bred in various zoos throughout the country, one of the most famous of these is the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary in Brisbane, Queensland.

Answer: Pink Fairy Armadillo

The smallest of the armadillo breed, the pink fairy truly looks like something from another planet. This enchanting little creature, which comes with a pink shell attached to its back, only grows to approximately four inches in length and weighs as little as four ounces. Found living in grassy and sandy areas in South America, this little animal basically pines away and dies in captivity when removed from its natural home. It now considered extremely endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

Most of its food in the wild consists of ants, worms and insects, but if it does manage to survive for a short time in captivity, its rather partial to watermelon and avocado. Completely vulnerable in the wild to domestic dogs and cats, habitat loss to farmlands, and pesticide, this beautiful little animal is also a victim of man's culinary fancies and is hunted for human consumption. Attempts are now being made by scientists to prevent the complete extinction of the little creature. Several of their breeding areas are now protected, including the Linhue Calel National Park in Argentina.