Fun with Quizzes

Are you a Cetacean expert?

Instructions
To pass the test you must answer correctly at least 7 questions out of 10. For each question, one or more answers can be correct and you need to select all the correct options to score a point. Test evaluation is immediate and does not require you to provide any personal data.

1.

Which of the following assertions about the Sperm whale are true?

Its blow is unique in being projected forward and on the left

It belongs to the suborder Odontoceti

It can dive as deep as 2000 metres (6000 feet)

There is an organ in its head called Spermaceti, containing huge amounts of a waxy substance (which has nothing to do with sperm, though)

2.

Which of the following assertions about the Humpback whale are true?

It is the most acrobatic of all baleen whales (Mysticeti)

It only inhabits the Northern Hemisphere

It has unusually long, very distinctive flippers (pectoral fins)

Its songs (only males sing) are well known for their complexity and variety

3.

The number of blowholes in Mysticeti is:

Two

One or two, depending on the species

One

Always two, except for the Bowhead whale which has only one

4.

The Gray whale was nicknamed Devilfish by whalers because:

Gray whales are naturally extremely aggressive

A Gray whale mother can become particularly aggressive if someone is harming her baby

They thought the evil would eventually get them for their practices

They regularly mistook Gray whales for Marlins

5.

The Whale Shark is a shark, not a whale. It follows that:

It is not a mammal

It is a fish

It is not an air breather

It does not suckle its young

6.

Which of the following cetaceans belong to the Delphinidae family?

Orca

False killer whale

Cuvier's Beaked whale

Manatee

7.

Which of the following species are known to sometimes kill other marine mammals?

Sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus)

False killer whale (Pseudorca crassidens)

Humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae)

Orca (Orcinus orca)

8.

Some tourists tell you they have seen a mother and calf Gray whale pair in Patagonia:

It could be, but only during the Southern Hemisphere winter

It is impossible, because the Gray whale only inhabits the West coast of South America

It is impossible, because the Gray whale only inhabits the Northern Hemisphere

It is very possible, since the Gray whale is the most sighted cetacean in Patagonia

9.

Feeding cetaceans in the wild can:

Have a negative impact on their feeding behaviour

Help them survive

Negatively alter their social behaviour and interactions, for example with males harassing females for a longer time, which they should rather spend searching for food

Help genuine friendship between cetaceans and humans

10.

What is echolocation?

A natural occurring sonar system, extensively used by toothed whales

It is synonym with radar

The ability to locate a prey using natural biomagnetism

The use of electric fields to locate both preys and predators