What’s Your Biodiversity IQ?

Your chance to find out what you know about the world’s diverse

plants, animals and natural places.

1. Which of the following could the fastest human outrun in a 100 yard race?

a. Cheetah

b. Wart hog

c. Three-toed sloth

d. Domestic cat

e. Wild turkey

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/42438000/jpg/_42438108_09cheetah300.jpg

http://www.foxandstephens.com/africa/2001AfricaEclipse05_files%5CWart_Hog.jpg

http://www.utmb.edu/ctd/archives/1998/three-toed-sloth.jpg

http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/staticfiles/NGS/Shared/StaticFiles/animals/images/800/domestic-cat.jpg

http://www.gotpetsonline.com/pictures-gallery/bird-pictures-breeders-chicks/wild-turkey-pictures-breeders-

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Wart HogWild Turkey

Domestic Cat CheetahThree-Toed Sloth

Answer:

• Lots of animals are quick on their feet (or wings, or scales, or fins), but speed doesn’t necessarily count much these days in the race for survival.

• Cheetahs, for example, are the fastest land animals in the world – but they’re also among the most endangered.

2. Which of the following actually exist?

a. Ants that “herd” aphids for food

b. Slime molds that creep across the ground

c. Flowers that “trick” insects into mating with them

d. None of the above

Answer:

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• Ants eat the sugary substances excreted by aphids (insects that suck plant juices).

• Ants herd colonies of aphids by moving them from place to place & protecting them from enemies.http://pubs.caes.uga.edu/caespubs/pubcd/

images/B999images/B999-1.jpg

• Some slime molds have 2 phases in life cycle:

• In reproductive stage, they are stationary with a stalk that produces spores.

• Also exist as amoeba-like organism that feed by engulfing material and moving up to several feet per day.

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• The bee-like flowers of the orchid Ophrys speculum attract male bees that are so deceived by the resemblance to female bees that they attempt to mate with the flowers.

• In the process, the males bring pollen from other “females” (flowers).

3. What does a large adult bluefin tuna have in common with a Porsche 911?

a. Ability to go from 0 to 60 MPH in 4.7 seconds

b. Big finsc. A sticker

price of about $60,000

http://images.automobilemag.com/multimedia/photo_gallery/

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http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/staticfiles/NGS/Shared/StaticFiles/animals/images/primary/

bluefin-tuna.jpg• Both can cost at least $60,000.

• Overfishing has made this tuna extremely rare.

•And, you could say that both the car and the fish have big fins …

Answer:

4. Which of the following best describes the word biodiversity?

a. Endangered speciesb. Different kinds of

planets in the solar system

c. The variety of life on Earth

d. A bunch of biographies about famous biologists

• The variety of life on Earth includes plants, animals, microorganisms, ecosystems, genes, cultural diversity and more.

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5. U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service agents and U.S. Custom officials in Los Angeles, CA,

once found which of the following strapped to a man’s arms & legs?

a. 18 California king snakes

b. 45 pounds of elephant ivory

c. 16 sea turtle eggs

d. 16 vampire batsCalifornia King

Snakehttp://www.reptilesncritters.com/images/regular/choc-cal-king-

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Answer:

• The man planned to sell the snakes in Taiwan; instead, he was prosecuted & sentenced to 6 months in jail.

• Although this is an unusual story of illegal trade, annual trade in wildlife is estimated at $10 billion & up to 25% is illegal.

• If this illegal trade did not exist, the future of African elephants, rhinos, Asiatic bears, and many more species would be much brighter.

6. Scientists studying bug zappers have learned some interesting facts. Which of

the following are among them?

a. Insects are attracted to bug zappers because of the zappers’ smoky smell.

b. Bug zappers are great for ridding summer nights of mosquitoes.

c. Bug zappers could be bad news for certain birds, fish, bats, and

flowers.d. There are more than 4 million

bug zappers being used in the U.S.

Answer: • Many species of mosquitoes are not attracted to bug zappers at all.

• Instead the zappers’ blue light attracts harmless insects, many of which are food for birds, bats & fish.

• Some of these insects are important to plants, which need them for pollination.

http://www.jaygaulard.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2007/05/bug-zapper.jpg

7. Blackpoll warblers are tiny birds that migrate between North America & South America each year. Which of

the following statements about them are true?

a. They use the stars for navigation.

b. They make frequent pit stops at fast-food restaurants.

c. They don’t need to migrate.

d. If they burned gasoline instead of body fat for fuel, they’d get 720,000 miles to the gallon.

http://sdakotabirds.com/species/photos/blackpoll_warbler_male.jpg

Answer:

• Migrating animals often use sun, stars, & land patterns to reach their destinations.

• Many migrators are able to get where they’re going with little fuel.

• Migrating animals are threatened by habitat destruction.

• International efforts to conserve habitat are very important.

8. Which of the following can be considered an enemy of coral reefs?

a. Starfish

b. Jewelry

c. Sunken treasure

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http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44617000/jpg/_44617052_laurentic512av.jpg

Answer:

• Coral reefs are very diverse – supporting more than 3000 species of fish and other life.

• Outbreaks of predatory crown-of-thorns starfish are natural, but

• Human activity reduces corals ability to recover from damage.

http://static.howstuffworks.com/gif/great-white-shark-1.jpg

9. What’s the most serious threat to biodiversity?

a. Sharks

b. Habitat loss

c. Tourists

d. Pollution

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http://www.danheller.com/images/LatinAmerica/Cuba/Photogs/photo-tourist-big.jpg

http://kassandraproject.files.wordpress.com/

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Answer:

• Worldwide, habitats are lost to agricultural land, harvested for wood & fuel, destroyed or changed for roads, schools, malls, housing, etc.

• Human population is growing so quickly & consuming so many natural resources that habitat loss is occurring at a rapid rate.

10. The items on the left have been (or are being) developed into important medicines for humans.

Match each item with the medicine it inspired.

___ bread mold

___ white willow tree

___ vampire bat saliva

___ wild yams

___ Caribbean coral

a. Anti-inflammatory

b. Antibiotic

c. Pain reliever

d. Medicine to unclog arteries

e. First-aid ointment

Answers:

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• More than ¼ of the drugs commonly used today were originally derived from plants.

• Animals are a potential source too.

• Medical research looks to areas with high biodiversity to find treatments & cures for human diseases.

11. Which of the following are true statements about camels?

a. They store water in their humps.

b. During cooler weather, they can go up to two months without drinking.

c. They played a key role in opening up trade across the deserts of Asia and Africa.

d. They provide people with milk, meat, cooking fuel (in the form of dried dung), wool and leather.

http://fohn.net/camel-pictures-facts/the-pictures/Arabian-Camel-800x600.jpg

Answer:

• Camels store fat – not water – in their humps.

• In cooler months, they can actually go for up to three months without drinking.

• Camels have been important to desert peoples for thousands of years.

• Camels are a good example of the many creatures around the world that have helped shape human culture.

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b. Bake breadc. Live in a world free of dead things

lying all over the placed. Put blue cheese dressing on your

salad.

12. Without fungi, which of the following would you not be able to do?Answer:

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• While some forms of fungi may seem less than noble (like Athlete’s foot fungus), the world could not function long without fungi.

• Fungi play a key role in breaking down organic matter & recycling it back into useable nutrients.

13. Which of the following statements are true?

a. Potatoes originated in Ireland.

b. The U.S. grows most of its baking potatoes in Washington.

c. More than 5,000 different kinds of potatoes have been identified in South America’s Andes Mountains.

d. The French fry, invented by Madame Bonaparte during the French revolution became one of Napoleon’s favorite snacks.

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• The potato originated in South America.

• In Peru, some families grow dozens of varieties of potatoes.

• Most U.S. potatoes are grown in Idaho. Washington is the 2nd largest producer of potatoes in the U.S.

14. Which of the following are real species of animals?

a. Vampire moths

b. Tasmanian devils

c. Komodo dragons

d. Werewolves

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/images/thumbs/081027-vampire-

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Answer:

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• As far as we know, werewolves are just fiction!

• Vampire moths pierce the skin of mammals to drink their blood.

• Tasmanian devils are the largest carnivorous marsupials.

• Komodo dragons grow up to 10 feet long and weigh up to 300 pounds.

15. If you decided to throw a party to celebrate the diversity of life on Earth and wanted to send an invitation to

each species, how many invitations would you need?

a. 150

b. About 3,000

c. 652,983

d. More than 1.5 million

http://mauimoeparty.com/catalog/images/invitation.jpg

Answer:

• Scientists have estimated more than 100 million species may actually exist on Earth.

16. Which of the following statements about ostriches are true?

a. They hide their heads in the sand.

b. Their meat is so tasty that some people are choosing it over beef for burgers.

c. They fly when no one is looking.

d. They can outrun a lion or hyena.

http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/staticfiles/NGS/Shared/StaticFiles/animals/images/primary/

ostrich.jpg

Answer:

• It’s a myth that ostriches hide their heads in the sand.

• Actually, they’re lying with their necks flat against the ground to hide from predators.

17. If the number of species on Earth was represented by physical size, which of the following would most accurately

illustrate the proportion of insects to mammals?

a.

b.

c.

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http://www.blm.gov/or/resources/recreation/tablerock/images/anthro/grasshopper_lg.jpg

Answer:

• Bugs rule!

• There are 250 insect species to every one mammal species – and that’s only the insects we know about.

• Scientists think there are millions more insects yet to be discovered.

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18. Biodiversity includes

a. The color of your eyes

b. The creatures in your neighborhood soil

c. Antarctica

d. Your classmates

Answer:• Biodiversity describes the incredible variety of life on Earth.

• Genetic diversity could include inherited traits.

• Species diversity could include the variety of organisms surrounding us.

• Ecosystem diversity could include the range of habitats found worldwide.

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19. If there were a prize for “the strongest creature for its size,” which of the following would win?

a. Gorillas

b. Chickens

c. Ants

d. Turtles

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Answer:

• An ant can carry a load up to 50 times its body weight.

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20. Which of the following would people have to do without if there were no bees?

a. Almonds

b. Honey

c. Cucumbers

d. Apples

e. Celery

http://www.goldenwoodsoap.com/fpdb/images/almond.jpg

http://www.justorganic.co.nz/images/honey.jpg

http://img.alibaba.com/photo/11137272/Organic_Celery.jpg

Answer:

• Bees are worth billions of dollars to the agriculture industry.

• Bees pollinate millions of acres of many of our fruits & vegetables.

http://www.nwfsc.noaa.gov/research/divisions/fed/

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21. Which of the following is an example of an ecosystem service?

a. A ladybug that protects your garden by eating aphid pests

b. A company that rakes people’s yards

c. A wetland that filters dirty water

d. An ocean that controls the Earth’s climate

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee206/MDatTheG/ladybugAphid.jpg

Answer:

http://www.seenobjects.org/images/mediumlarge/2004-12-10-wetland-3.jpg

• Ecosystem services are the “free” services provided by ecosystems.

• Wetlands control floods, filter pollutants & provide habitat for many organisms.

• Ladybugs eat aphids, which are common garden pests.

• Oceans & atmosphere interact to control climate.

http://www.marietta.edu/~biol/biomes/images/

grassland/white_rhino_4482.jpg

22. Some of the world’s most fascinating creatures live in really unusual places. Which of the following is

sometimes a home for another living thing?

a. A lobster’s mouth

b. A termite’s gut

c. A rhino’s gut

d. A human’s forehead

Answer:

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Lobster’s mouth:

Termite’s gut:

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Many (if not most) organisms have symbiotic relationships with other organisms. Often the microscopic protozoans, bacteria & mites help the host creature.

23. If you had a job that put you in charge of saving all the species on the edge of extinction in the U.S., about how many endangered species would you need to save

(based on what we know today)?

a. 12

b. 250

c. 517

d. 1,082

Answer:

• This is the number of plants & animals listed as threatened and endangered in the U.S. by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.

• Some scientists estimate that up to 27,000 species go extinct each year.

• And, we never even knew that most of them existed.

24. A small population of beluga whales lives in Canada’s St. Lawrence River. Which of the following

explains why they are threatened?a. In winter the river freezes,

making it nearly impossible for the whales to surface for air.

b. Beluga steaks are considered a delicacy in many parts of the world.

c. The areas of the river where the whales feed are heavily polluted, and as a result the whales are contaminated with toxins.

d. The river’s water is really too shallow for such large mammals.

http://aura0.gaia.com/photos/20/197066/large/Beluga.jpg

Answer:

• Belugas have died from eating too many contaminated fish.

• Belugas that die and wash up on the river banks are actually classified as “toxic waste”.

25. Which of the following environments on our planet are too harsh to support life?

a. Boiling sulfur springs

b. Deep-sea hydrothermal vents called “smokers”, where the temperature can reach 662 degrees.

c. The frigid ice of the Arctic & Antarctic

d. All of the above

e. None of the above

Answer:

Life has been discovered in all of these harsh locations.