Q 01/05

Which African big cat, the fastest animal on land, has claws that it can only partly retract?

A) Leopard

B) Cheetah

C) Serval

D) Caracal

Answer · why

B) Cheetah

Cheetahs can run at 93 to 104 km/h. The dark tear streaks that run from the corners of their eyes down to the mouth are found on no other cat.

Q 02/05

Despite looking like giant pigs, hippos have which sea mammals as their closest living relatives?

A) Manatees

B) Seals

C) Whales

D) Walruses

Answer · why

C) Whales

Whales, dolphins and porpoises share an ancestor with hippos; the two lines split about 55 million years ago. The likeness to pigs is only skin deep.

Q 03/05

Which flightless African bird, the largest alive, sprints on feet that have just two toes each?

A) Kori bustard

B) Marabou stork

C) Guineafowl

D) Ostrich

Answer · why

D) Ostrich

Ostrich feet have two toes where most birds have four, and the nail on the larger toe resembles a hoof. A sprinting bird can exceed 70 km/h.

Q 04/05

Which collective noun names a group of giraffes, whose males duel by swinging their necks?

A) Tower

B) Parade

C) Troop

D) Leap

Answer · why

A) Tower

Tower is the word, apt for the tallest of all land animals. A necking duel between two well-matched males can go on for more than half an hour.

Q 05/05

Simba, the hero's name in Disney's The Lion King, is the word for 'lion' in which language?

A) Zulu

B) Swahili

C) Amharic

D) Yoruba

Answer · why

B) Swahili

Swahili, spoken widely across East Africa, supplied other names in the film as well: Rafiki, for one, means 'friend'.