2014 kqa yell iruve - annual quiz on plants, animals and insects

RESEARCH BY: V IVEK KARTHIKEYAN AND VENKATESH SRINIVASAN

Yell Iruve!T H E A N N U A L Q U I Z O N

P L A N T S , A N I M A L S , I N S E C T S A N D O T H E R L I F E F O R M S

Rules

Written quiz for teams of 2

40 questions

*-marked questions to resolve ties

1 point per answer

For questions with multiple parts, 1 pt for each part

Top 3 teams get prizes

First conducted at the KQA session on Apr 26, 2014 for 2-member teams

Total Points: 61Highest Score: 44

Which bird can be added to this list, and what is this

a list of?

1.

Answer…

The Indian Roller / Blue Jay

State symbols of Karnataka

What 4-letter word is used to refer to the

ingredients prepared from processing the outer skins

of citrus fruits like orange and lemon, which is also

used to refer to the flavour which these skins impart

to food items?

2.

Answer…

Zest

The smallest member of the camelidae family, it

produces some really fine wool and is found only in

high alpine areas in one part of the world. An

ancient civilisation valued the animal for its wool,

and decreed that only royals could wear clothes

made of this wool.

A protected species, and the national animal of a

country, identify the animal and the country from

this coat of arms.

3.

3.

Answer…

Peru

Vicuna / Vicugna

Seen in this stamp is a bug from the family Reduviidaethat injects its victim with a special enzyme that dissolves and softens the guts so they can be easily sucked out.

And once all that's left is the insect's empty shell, the bug attaches those exoskeletons to its back using a sticky secretion, piling them high to create a thick layer of protective armour that also serves to confuse its enemies (as seen in pic 2).

Due to its dramatic and planned manner of killing, what appropriate name is it given?

4.

4.

Answer…

Assassin Bug

Seen here are different pieces of which place, the

largest collection of living plants in the world?

* 5.

5.

5.

Answer…

Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew

Southwest London

6.

A famous person, showing off

his catch. His fishing passion

would go on to inspire him to

come up with an outstanding

work. Name him and the

species.

Answer…

Ernest Hemmingway

Sailfish

7.

A minor deity named Kroncha once accidentally stepped on the toes of a sage called Vamadeva. The irate sage cursed him to become a ______, and realising he had over-reacted sent him to go and see a god.

On earth, where this god was staying, there was a huge commotion. He came out to see a _______ the size of a mountain scaring the daylights out of everybody. He sent his divine noose flying in Kroncha’s direction. The radiant lasso whizzed through the air, looped itself tightly around Kroncha.

The story of which animal becoming the mount for which god?

Answer…

Mouse / Mooshika

Ganesha

8.

Rufus’ owners are the Davis family, who own many other such creatures; their business model is to use these creatures to contain a particular menace in London in various prominent places, including Westminster Abbey.

Rufus’ predecessor was Hamish, who lived to be 18. Rufus is best described with an alliterative two-word name, and the category was named by James Audubon after his friend, financial supporter and companion.

Why does Rufus hog the headlines every year for about a fortnight?

What family/category does he belong to?

Answer…

The designated hawk to keep away pigeons at Wimbledon

Harris Hawk

9.

What’s common and what record-breaker is missing from this list?

Latticed butterfly fish

Olive-backed Woodpecker

Red-crowned barbet

A species of pitcher plant

A species of ant

A spider from Sumatra

Answer…

All named after Sir Stamford Raffles

Rafflesia

Chaetodon rafflesii – Latticed butterfly fish

Dinopium rafflesii – Olive-backed Woodpecker

Megalaima rafflesi – Red-crowned barbet

Nepenthes rafflesiana – a species of pitcher plant

Protanilla rafflesi – a species of ant

Theridion rafflesi – spider from Sumatra

* 10.

A painting by a famous Flemish painter titled,

________ on the Gallows. The title alludes to the

belief that _______ are gossips, and that gossip

leads to hangings. Frequently depicted in medieval

art, name this talkative bird, and the painter.

9.

Answer…

Magpie

Pieter Brueghel the Elder

11.

The phrase was first recorded in the late 18th

century, when it was used to mean ‘something very

small and insignificant’. Its current meaning dates

from the 1920s, at which time a whole collection of

American slang expressions were coined with the

meaning ‘an outstanding person or thing’. It possibly

alludes to the fact that “corbiculae”, or pollen basket,

is located on the tibiae of these insects. What

phrase?

Answer…

Bee’s Knees

12.

What gastronomic quality do these plants share?

12.

Answer…

Carnivorous plants

Clockwise from top left – corkscrew plant, bladderworts, rainbow plant and butterworts

13.

There is no known reason why this word is used in

the name of this fruit whose leaves and rind are food

additives.

Due to its racially offensive connotations (possibly

originating from the original meaning of infidel), The

Oxford Companion to Food recommends using the

word makrut instead.

Common In SE Asian and creole cuisines, identify

this plant with the genus name Citrus hystrix.

13.

Answer…

Kaffir Lime

14.

Identify the species. Also for all sports fans, tell us

what this action is called!

Answer…

Adelie Penguins

Toboganning

* 15.

Identify the creature being seen extracted in this

picture. Its Latin name is Dracunculus medinensis

reflecting the fact that which group of people were

afflicted by this?

Answer…

Guinea Worm

Hajj Pilgrims

16.

Quoting The New York Times: “Zookeepers around the world, facing limited capacity and pressure to maintain diverse and vibrant collections of endangered species, are often choosing between two controversial methods: birth control and _________.”

The other method is essentially to kill the animals, who are otherwise healthy.

What is this other method informally called – a portmanteau word?

Answer…

Zoothanasia

17.

1988-1992 – A Springer Spaniel and a puppy

1992-2000 – A cat and a Labrador Retriever

2000-2008 – A female English Springer Spaniel, a

Scottish Terrier, a cat and a Longhorn cow

2008 till date - _____________________

Fill in the blanks and tell us what this list is about –

something that’s usually widely reported in the press

Answer…

Portuguese Water Dog

US Presidential Pets

18.

Aptly named for the colour of its wings, what is this

butterfly called?

Answer…

Dead Leaf Butterfly

19.

Engraving by Gustave

Doré for an 1876

edition of a famous

work of writing from

1798.

What is the engraving

called, and what was

the original work

called?

Answer…

The Albatross

Rime of the Ancient Mariner

* 20.

On the Eastern side, the Atlantic has only one such,

and that too from another country. The Central

region has two such names, as do the South East. On

the Western side, the Southwest has two names, the

Northwest one, and the Pacific, none. This makes a

total of 8 such names out of a total of 30.

What are we talking about?

Answer…

NBA teams with animal/bird names

1. Toronto Raptors

2. Chicago Bulls

3. Milwaukee Bucks

4. Atlanta Hawks

5. Charlotte Bobcats

6. Memphis Grizzlies

7. New Orleans Pelicans

8. Minnesota Timberwolves

Both males and females have one, so it is unlikely

that it is an ornament to attract the opposite sex. It

is also clear that it is not used in fighting, because

the weapon of choice (among these creatures) is a

pair of tusk-like teeth protruding from the lower jaw.

Its actual natural purpose is unknown.

What is this, that’s coveted by Yemeni men, among

whom it is a sign of manhood and devotion, and is

used as handles of curved daggers called jambiya?

21.

Answer…

Rhinoceros Horns

This full colour, large format title is published in

association with the Zoological Society of London

and its much-acclaimed Evolutionarily Distinct and

Globally Endangered program.

What is the title of the book, a subtle modification

of a headline that often accompanies bucket lists?

22.

22.

Answer…

This word was possibly first used as the name for the season when a particular type of waterfowl was a favourite dish. It was also during this time of the year that a filmy substance was seen on bushes or floating in the air in the calm weather, and it in turn took on the same name.

The current usage spans ‘something very flimsy or delicate’, to ‘a delicate variety of cloth used to make veils’.

What’s the good word?

23.

Answer…

Gossamer, from the Middle English gosesomer or Goose + Summer

Isadore of Seville in Etymologies said that these

mythical creatures pursued herds of cattle, attacked

their udders and drained them of milk.

Later, in his 1758 publication Systema Naturae

Linnaeus chose to name a genus of real creatures

with the same name.

What creatures that also lend their name to the

fashion accessory (in the picture)?

24.

24.

Answer…

Boa, from ox killer

Interestingly, Boa Constrictor has the same common name and scientific name!

The man on the left is an English naturalist who

suggested stuff about how some butterflies had

evolved. The phenomenon is named in his honour.

The man to the right, a German, identified a

situation a little different from what the former had

theorised. The German’s theory involved two

noxious species, one aping the other, providing

predators with a universal ‘stop sign’.

For a point each, name both theories.

* 25.

25.

Answer…

Batesian Mimicry (after Henry Walter Bates, where the mimic resembles a noxious model, like the Viceroy and Monarch butterflies)

Mullerian Mimicry (after Friedrich ‘Fritz’ Müller, in whose theory both the model and the mimic are toxic)

The Chinese made jade models of this creature’s likeness and placed them on a corpse's tongue before burial, as it was believed that it preserved the corpse.

The Greek symbol for music was this creature sitting on a harp. It is said that two rivals, Enomus and Ariston were contending for a prize. One of them broke a string on his harp. This creature settled on the instrument, and substituted for the missing string so effectively, and that person won.

Which insect?

26.

26.

Answer…

Cicadas

In plants such as Myosotis sylvatica, Nyssa sylvatica,

Fagus sylvatica, Rana sylvatica and so on, what does

‘sylvatica’ mean?

27.

Answer…

In the wild / of the woods / from the forest

… from the Latin sylva meaning forest

Belonging to the Brassica family, the edible part is

the stem, which looks like a turnip with cabbage-like

leaves. Of the several varieties, the commonly grown

ones in India are white Vienna with light green skin

and purple Vienna, with a purplish skin.

The common name for it is a combination of the

Swiss-Austrian-German names for cabbage and

turnip. What is it?

28.

Answer…

Kohlrabi (known as knolkhol in India)

These peppers Capsicum annuum make a sound

when they dry up and the seeds inside start shaking.

The common name for these peppers is therefore

also used by Spanish speakers across the Americas to

refer to a species that advertises its presence rather

loudly.

What is the pepper called? Spanish speakers liken

them to what species, the large majority of which

are found in the American Southwest and Mexico?

29.

29.

Answer…

Cascabel

Rattlesnake (the diamondback, for example, is called Cascabel Diamantada)

It is the principal crop in the area where the author

comes from. In the narrative of this work by Mo Yan,

it is a symbol of indifference and vitality. Amidst

decades of bloodshed and death, it grows steadfast

to provide food, shelter, wine and life.

What crop?

* 30.

30.

Answer…

Sorghum

The Criollo has a distinctly reddish colour, and an

equally distinctive complex taste. It is quite rare

because of the tree’s lack of resistance towards

disease. The more robust Forastero dominates the

market.

What are these?

The fact that these are predominantly grown in the

Chuao region of Venezuela make what 2011 ad

campaign that ran in India sound quite silly?

31.

Answer…

Cocoa varieties

The best cocoa today comes from Venezuela and the surrounding regions. Cadbury’s Bourneville campaign on Ghana was a fail.

The gular is chiefly used for holding catch, although

some inflate it as an attraction in courtship displays.

Some have also evolved a behaviour where a flutter

of the gular helps evaporate moisture from their

respiratory tract. You might ask how does the tract

get wet. The answer leads us back to the first point.

Where do we see a gular in action?

32.

Answer…

As a sac or pouch in birds like pelicans, cormorants and frigates

Once upon a time Okinawa was overrun by vicious, surly

critters called habus. So in 1910, someone who had

probably read Kipling’s Rikki-Tikki-Tavi had the bright

idea of importing a ‘solution’ (X). The only problem was

that the habu is a nocturnal and X is a diurnal, so their

paths never really crossed. Instead of fighting habus, X

started eating other creatures, and Okinawa is still left

with the old problem, and a new one in X (which have

since multiplied from 17 to 30000).

What were they trying to solve, and what is X?

33.

Answer…

They had a problem with snakes and they introduced the mongoose to help fight them

It is known as Elang Bondol in Indonesia. A

Malaysian island is named after the bird with the

second part of the island’s name denoting an ochre-

like stone used to decorate pottery, and a reference

to the bird's primary plumage colour.

Which bird that is also seen as the mount of

Vishnu?

Which island?

34.

Answer…

Brahminy Kite

Langkawi, ‘kawi’ denoting the colour

Found in and around Tirunelveli, Pollachi, Kovilpatti,

Sivakasi, and Madurai, this breed was given as gifts

to the bridegroom before weddings, and was on

dowry lists for a long time. Now a rare breed, its

name is a reflection on the special value placed on a

quality of the bride. What is it called?

* 35.

35.

Answer…

Kanni, meaning a virgin girl

They were colloquially known as Lapps although today the term is deemed somewhat derogatory. Lapp means a patch of cloth used for mending, suggesting poverty and tattered wear. Sami is the acceptable term to use today. They live in traditional dwellings called goahti, shaped like a Native American tepee.

There are about 7000 of them living today, looking after something that number close to 300,000.

What do the Sami do for a living?

36.

Answer…

They breed reindeer

Their relatives we see at home are usually noted as a

pesky irritant, and while structurally this creature is

quite similar to them, it is distinguished by its folded

wings and long proboscis. It bites.

Name this creature.

It kills around 300,000 people every year. How?

37.

37.

Answer…

TseTse Fly, that causes sleeping sickness

These last words

“Crito, we owe a

cock to Asclepius.

Pay it and do not

neglect it.” should

help you identify

this plant Conium

maculatum.

38.

Answer…

Hemlock

39.

It started shortly after 1945. It was persisted with during the Cold War, when peace-minded activists and scientists spread it far and wide, presumably as a cautionary tale of destruction more than anything else.

Scientifically, 100 Sieverts is an acceptable limit. So with the developments that have taken place in recent years, with potential going up manifold, it is safe to say it will not happen.

What am I rambling about?

Answer…

Cockroaches can/cannot survive nuclear explosions

* 40.

These creatures all have the same genus and species

name. 1 (one) point for each (answer in order pls)

Example: Bison bison

40.

A

B

40.

C

D

40.

E

Answer…

Iguana iguana

Hyaenahyaena

Gecko gecko

Lynx lynx

Cygnus cygnus

A

B C

DE

Final Results soon…