Q 01/05

What makes up the bulk of most dolphins' diet?

A) Krill and plankton

B) Fish and squid

C) Crabs and sea urchins

D) Seals and seabirds

Answer · why

B) Fish and squid

Fish and squid make up most dolphins' diet; a group will herd a school into a tight 'bait ball' and take turns charging through it.

Q 02/05

Which of these senses are dolphins thought to lack altogether?

A) Smell

B) Touch

C) Hearing

D) Balance

Answer · why

A) Smell

Smell is the missing sense: dolphins have neither olfactory nerves nor the brain lobes that process scent, so they are thought unable to smell at all.

Q 03/05

Which dolphin, the only cetacean endemic to New Zealand, is also among the smallest?

A) Dusky

B) Hector's

C) Spinner

D) Commerson's

Answer · why

B) Hector's

Hector's dolphin lives only in New Zealand's coastal waters, and keeping so close to shore puts it in the path of fishing nets: entanglement in gillne...

Q 04/05

What is the thick layer of insulating fat under a dolphin's skin called?

A) Blubber

B) Baleen

C) Ambergris

D) Spermaceti

Answer · why

A) Blubber

Blubber does more than keep a dolphin warm: it stores energy for lean times and smooths the body's outline, which makes swimming more efficient.

Q 05/05

What is a typical group of dolphins called?

A) Flock

B) Troop

C) Colony

D) Pod

Answer · why

D) Pod

A pod can merge with others where food is plentiful: common dolphins sometimes gather in 'mega-pods' of thousands of animals.