Q 01/05

The black mamba is usually grey or brown, so which inky part of its body gives the snake its name?

A) Inside of its mouth

B) Its forked tongue

C) Rings around its eyes

D) Tip of its tail

Answer · why

A) Inside of its mouth

Inside of its mouth, the black mamba is blue-black to inky black, and it gapes to flash that lining as a warning when it feels cornered.

Q 02/05

Which five-time NBA champion with the Lakers gave himself the nickname Black Mamba?

A) Shaquille O'Neal

B) Magic Johnson

C) Kobe Bryant

D) LeBron James

Answer · why

C) Kobe Bryant

Kobe Bryant borrowed the name from a film assassin's codename, and his relentless approach to training became known as the Mamba mentality.

Q 03/05

The black mamba is the world's second-longest venomous snake, beaten only by which species?

A) Inland taipan

B) King cobra

C) Bushmaster

D) Boomslang

Answer · why

B) King cobra

King cobra is the only venomous snake that grows longer, yet black mambas commonly reach three metres and outstretch every other venomous snake in Afr...

Q 04/05

Field guides describe the black mamba's long, narrow head as being shaped like which object?

A) A lance tip

B) A spade

C) An arrowhead

D) A coffin

Answer · why

D) A coffin

A coffin is the standard comparison for the black mamba's head, a grimly fitting shape for the snake most feared across Africa.

Q 05/05

Which member of the weasel family has some resistance to black mamba venom?

A) Striped polecat

B) Honey badger

C) Clawless otter

D) Pine marten

Answer · why

B) Honey badger

Honey badger muscle receptors are thought not to bind the snake's paralysing toxins, which is why the venom has far less effect on it than on other ma...