Weird wildlife news quiz 2013

31 December 2013 Last updated at 11:06

Nature's weird wildlife news quiz 2013

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Weird Wildlife

Chris Packham returns to examine the world's freakiest phenomena in Nature's Weirdest Events on BBC Two, Tuesday 31st December at 2000 GMT. Find out how much attention you've paid to the weird wonders of nature in 2013 with our quick news quiz.

1.) Question 1

Which false widow species hit the headlines as "Britain's most venomous spider" this year?

1. Steatoda nobilis
   
2. Steatoda bipunctata
   
3. Steatoda grossa
   

2.) Question 2

Which of the following attackers do penguins in Peru deal with?

1. Venomous snakes
   
2. Poisonous toads
   
3. Vampire bats
   

3.) Question 3

Ancient * -shaped worm described

1. Umbrella
   
2. Phallus
   
3. Triangle
   

4.) Question 4

A lost elephant seal caused havoc on a Brazilian high street in March. Where are they usually seen on land?

1. Antarctica
   
2. Australia
   
3. Argentina
   

5.) Question 5

A new species of hero shrew was described but is it true their name comes from a 'special power'?

1. True
   
2. False
   

6.) Question 6

Scientists studied a caterpillar that wraps itself in a leaf and leaps to safety, but how does it navigate?

1. By the sun
   
2. By following water
   
3. By the Milky Way
   

7.) Question 8

Name this mammal which was 'discovered' among museum specimens:

1. Olinguito
   
2. Oblongata
   
3. Oligopod
   

8.) Question 7

Too much sex kills male *

1. marsupials
   
2. meerkats
   
3. mice
   

9.) Question 9

What species is this unusual two-headed snake photographed in North Yorkshire:

1. Grass snake
   
2. Smooth snake
   
3. Adder
   

10.) Question 10

Male koalas have high voices because of a special organ in their throat. True or false?

1. True
   
2. False
   

Answers

1. Concern grew over the noble false widow spider when a school was closed following an 'outbreak' but experts say the spiders are not aggressive and bites are rare.
2. The first recorded footage of bats feeding on juvenile penguins featured in BBC One series Penguins: Spy in the huddle.
3. Spartobranchus tenuis, a phallic-looking species from the Cambrian period, was found at a fossil site in Canada.
4. The animals breed on the Antarctic coast but can travel as far north as the equator to forage.
5. Their spine is four times more robust than a human's relative to their size. Scientists suggest this super-strength helps them move rocks and logs to find food.
6. Experts found the Vietnamese moth larva Calindoea trifascialis uses a piston-like motion to jump away from strong sunlight.
7. The olinguito is the first new species of carnivore to be identified in the Western hemisphere in 35 years.
8. A study revealed that males of some species of small, insect-eating marsupials mate with such vigour and intensity that it quite literally kills them.
9. Experts described the adder as a juvenile conjoined twin and were surprised it survived beyond hatching.
10. The animals have an "extra pair of vocal folds" outside the larynx, which they use to make low, rumbling mating calls.

Your Score

0 - 3 : Normal newt

4 - 6 : Odd olinguito

7 - 10 : Weird whale shark!

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