Lesson 5 Marsupials

Question 1

What do most female marsupials have that other female animals do not?

Answer 1

They have a pouch in which their young develop.

Question 2

Where do most marsupials live?

Answer 2

Australia

Question 3

What was Pangaea?

Answer 3

It is a possible supercontinent in which all of earth’s current continents fit together.

Question 4

Name some of the animals that are marsupials.

Answer 4

kangaroos, koalas, wombats, possums, opossums, marsupial moles, bandicoots, bilbies, sugar gliders, Tasmanian divels, Moito del Montes

Question 5

What are marsupial young called?

Answer 5

joeys

Question 6

What is the difference between a wallaby & a kangaroo?

Answer 6

The only real difference is size – wallabies are smaller.

Question 7

Do animals that are herbivores always stay herbivores?

Answer 7

No. We have already observed some change their eating habits over time.

Question 8

Why is it wrong to refer to the cute Australian animals as “koala bears”?

Answer 8

They aren’t bears.

Question 9

What do koalas do most of the day?

Answer 9

sleep

Question 10

How is the Tasmanian devil like a hyena?

Answer 10

They are scavengers that consume every part of an animal.

Question 11

How many species of marsupials live in North America?

Answer 11

only 1 - the Virginia opossum

Question 12

Explain the defense mechanism of the Virginia opossum.

Answer 12

It “plays dead” hoping most animals will think it has been dead too long to be a healthy meal.

Question 13

How can some marsupial joeys develop without a pouch?

Answer 13

They live in warm areas and just cling to the mother to develop.

Question 14

Many scientists put all marsupials into this single order.

Answer 14

Marsupialia

Question 15

Animals with round, fuzzy ears. They stay up in trees, rarely coming down to the ground.

Answer 15

koalas

Question 16

All the animals in this order have two front teeth that stick almost straight out from their lower jaw.

Answer 16

diprotodontia

Question 17

Animals that look like kangaroos but are smaller in size.

Answer 17

wallabies

Question 18

The word “koala” comes from the language of these native Australians.

Answer 18

Aborigines

Question 19

Rat-sized macropods that have prehensile tails.

Answer 19

bettongs

Question 20

A term used to refer to many male animals, including male kangaroos.

Answer 20

bucks

Question 21

What the koala eats.

Answer 21

eucalyptus leaves

Question 22

special milk a mother kangaroo makes

Answer 22

pap

Question 23

Its name means “big foot.” A kangaroo is considered one of these.

Answer 23

macropod

Question 24

this describes mammals in which the baby develops inside its mother and gets everything it needs from her.

Answer 24

marsupium

Question 25

kangaroos form these large groups

Answer 25

mobs

Question 26

little trails of land that once connected the continents together.

Answer 26

land bridges

Question 27

The Australian name given to the mostly tree-dwelling marsupials of the land.

Answer 27

Possums

Question 28

A term used to refer to many female animals, including female kangaroos.

Answer 28

Doe

Question 29

Joeys develop and find protection inside this special pouch.

Answer 29

marsupium

Question 30

These "rat kangaroos" are becoming endangered in Australia.

Answer 30

potoroos

Question 31

These animals have the appearance of extremely furry pigs.

Answer 31

wombats

Question 32

this marsupial looks like a rat & lives alone, building its nest in shallow holes in the ground.

Answer 32

bandicoot

Question 33

a marsupial that looks like a cross between a rat & a rabbit, having a long nose & long ears. It lives in tunnels & is considered endangered.

Answer 33

bilby

Question 34

These blind marsupials have fore-claws that look like miniature spades. Their noses are covered with a horny shield that protects them as they push through the dirt.

Answer 34

marsupial moles

Question 35

A species of possum that eats sugar, glides through the air and can be lured to feeding places.

Answer 35

sugar glider

Question 36

The place where an animal or human embryo grows until it is born.

Answer 36

womb

Question 37

This fierce flesh-eater was once common in Australia, but it went extinct in the 1930's.

Answer 37

Tasmanian Tiger

Question 38

A wombat-looking creature with jet-black fur. The name of its genus means "flesh lover," and it produces terrifying screams when defending its food.

Answer 38

Tasmanian Devil

Question 39

This possum has fur on its tail.

Answer 39

brushtail possum

Question 40

The only North American marsupial.

Answer 40

Virginia Opossum

Question 41

What the American version of a possum is called.

Answer 41

opossum

Question 42

One of the two possums that are considered Australian pests, moving into attics and awakening sleepers with their raucous sounds.

Answer 42

ringtail possum

Question 43

Its name means "little mountain monkey," and it lives in the mountains of Chile and Argentina.

Answer 43

Monito Del Monte