Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. Sharks have been around for the past 400 million years. Their reign over the ocean began at the end of the Mesozoic era, when they developed the features of modern-day sharks. Which was their superlative representative, an underwater terror gone extinct only 1.6 million years ago and regarded as the largest ever predatory fish?
2. The crocodile is yet another creature that sends chills up the spine when thinking about it. Despite the sheer strength and deadliness of modern-day crocodiles, they are still overshadowed by some of their ancestors, at least in regards to size. Which was one of the gargantuan crocodiles that roamed the Mesozoic, its name meaning "terrible crocodile"?
3. Perhaps the most successful group of land predators in Earth's history were the bipedal, meat-eating theropod dinosaurs. Although its reputation as a deadly hunter may have been tarnished by recent theories suggesting it was in fact a scavenger, this Cretaceous monster still endures, at least in popular culture, as the image of the ultimate carnivore dinosaur.
4. During the Mesozoic, the reptiles ruled both on land and underwater. While on land, meat-eating dinosaurs were the dominant predators, the seas were disputed by several distinct groups of reptiles. Out of these, the most ferocious were the serpent-like mosasaurs. Which was one of their largest and most vicious exponents?
5. While some predators rely on strength and size, others compensate by speed and agility to make exceptional hunters. And when the latter are moreover endowed with terrible weapons, like for instance sickle-shaped talons on the hind limbs, they definitely make some of the most deadly and vicious killers around. These were the Dromaeosaurid dinosaurs, generally known as the raptors. Which was one of their prominent representatives?
6. Following the extinction of the dinosaurs, the reign over the terrestrial ecosystem was taken by the mammals. Yet, nothing much changed in places like Patagonia, where bipedal creatures were still the ones to terrorize the lands with their meat-hook-like claws and massive beaks. This time round it was the giant flightless predator birds, whose best known representative was...
7. Eventually, birds became masters of the skies. Relying on surprise attacks upon unexpecting land/water targets, the large birds of prey are some of today's most efficient predators. Which was the largest eagle to have ever lived, which only went extinct 500 years ago?
8. Following the dinosaurs' good old habit of growing to immense proportions, the mammals also kept this tendency when the stage was finally set for them. Part of the Pleistocene megafauna, this creature was the largest land predator during the Ice Age in North America.
9. Felines are the most strictly carnivorous mammals of the nine families in the order Carnivora. Extremely agile and deadly, the members of the cat family are some of the most skilled predators ever. This family also included the now extinct saber-toothed cats. Which is the most famous representative of these fierce and ferocious Cenozoic felines?
10. Although not naturally equipped with any special hunting weapon, humans are the definitive super-predators. Superior intelligence is the single, most important feature that separates humans from other predators. Which was the first hominids to organize in hunter gatherer societies, making use of hand-made crafted tools and weapons in order to become predators instead of prey.
Source: Author
Mr5
This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor
crisw before going online.
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