Safari So Good Trivia Quiz

Answer: Snow leopard

All of the choices are animals found in Afghanistan and a number of them are on the endangered species list. The IUNC lists the snow leopard on its Red List of vulnerable species. According to a Dec. 11, 2020 CNN news item snow leopards are susceptible to the Corona Virus. This makes it the 6th animal species as of that date to have this particular liability.

Answer: Giant panda

All of the choices are again found in China. China also lists a dragon as a national animal, although it is mythological. There is also a national bird called the red-crowned crane. The giant panda or panda subsists primarily, if not exclusively, on bamboo and is again an endangered species.

The World Wildlife Foundation uses a symbolic panda drawing as its logo owing to the animal's fame as an endangered species.

Answer: Lion

A number of other countries use the Lion as a national animal, including Bulgaria, Ethiopia, Iran (specifically the Asiatic lion), Kenya, Libya, Luxembourg, North Macedonia, Morocco (specifically the Barbary lion), Netherlands, Singapore, Togo and England.

In addition, the Czech Republic names a mythical double-tailed lion as its only national animal. European nations generally get the lion from heraldic symbols, while African nations base their choices on actual inhabitants. Singapore most likely made its choice based on heraldry, since no actual lions ever inhabited this location.

Answer: Italian wolf

The Eurasian lynx is likely the most dangerous animal, along with the aforementioned bear, but it is endemic to many other countries which probably decreased its likelihood for getting this position. There are more than 4500 endemic species of animals in Italy from which to choose.

The Italian wolf is a subspecies of the grey wolf. It weighs slightly less and has a lesser length of body than the much more common grey wolf. The Italian wolves do not tend to unite in larger packs, which is common in the grey wolf, although the smaller, most often familial hunting coalitions usual in the Italian wolf.

In grey wolfs mated pairs with and without offspring that hunt alone often are more successful hunters than the larger packs frequent in the grey wolf population.

The wolf may have been chosen to represent Italy due to the ancient tale of twins Romulus and Remus being raised by a she-wolf before founding Rome. It is still an unresolved question as to whether this tale has any basis in fact or is just a fanciful myth.

Answer: Red deer

There are 3 answers that partially meet this criterion: the correct one is the largest deer. The Connemara is the largest pony, and the great elk WAS the largest elk, but is now extinct and has been for many years. The Galway sheep is a medium to large breed developed in Galway. They are mainly bred for meat, but do have lots of white wool, including on their legs.

Answer: Striped hyena

All of the choices can be found in Lebanon. The striped hyena can be found in Africa and throughout the Middle East and Indian subcontinent. The hair on its pelt stands up on end when something alarms it. It is the smallest of all the hyenas and is predominantly a scavenger, but is also known to hunt upon occasion.

Answer: Cow

All of the animals listed can be found in Nepal, along with many other majestic and larger animals that would seem more striking choices for representative animal, including Bengal tiger, Asian elephant, Indian rhinoceros and elephant, gharial, Himalayan tahr, and pangolin to name a few. Due to the predominance of the Hindu religion, most Nepalese venerate the cow. To a Hindu, the cow is the symbol of the Goddess Laxmi or Laksmi who presides over prosperity, fertility, luck, youth, joy and beauty among similar attributes.

Answer: Vicuna

Again, all of these animals are found in Peru. Three of these animals are related in some degree: the llama, alpaca, and vicuna. These all have woolly coats that can be used for clothing, although llamas haven't been used for their wool since the pre-Spanish Andean people.

The vicuna has exceptionally fine and silky wool which is considered better than the alpaca's or any other fleece in the world. The tapir is a non-meat eating mammal that somewhat resembles a pig with a short trunk and is found in southeast Asia in addition to Central and South America.

The three camelids live in mountainous terrain, while the tapirs prefer jungles.

Answer: American bison

Once again all of the listed mammals are indigenous to the U.S. The American bison is also known as a bison or buffalo. Their numbers have been greatly reduced from the enormous herds that once covered the Great Plains before the advent of the white settlers. Prior to the late 18th century there were more than 60 million of these heaviest mammals of North America.

They nearly became extinct by 1890 with less than a thousand. Due to conservation efforts, they now number in the 30,000's.

Answer: European bison

While all of the choices can be found in Poland, the vulnerable (but increasing in numbers) European bison represents the country. Once extinct in the wild, the undomesticated population is now increasing. It isn't as heavy as the American bison, but it is often taller.

Although there used to be more species of bison, only these two remain. The Polish bison is also called a zubr or wisent.