African Extremes

15 Points Per Correct Answer - No time limit  

1. Wetting its feet in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, Mediterranean and Red Seas, the African continent has more than its share of coastline. Somalia with the Horn of Africa has the longest coastline at 3035 kilometres. What country has the shortest coastline? Benin Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) Togo Gambia

2. The highest point on the African continent is Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, towering 5892 metres above sea level. Djibouti boasts the lowest point on the continent, with Lake Assal being 156 metres below sea level. Name the interesting country with its lowest point at 1400 metres ABOVE sea level. Who is so high in the clouds? Burkina Faso Mali Burundi Lesotho

3. Algeria is the largest country in Africa, covering 2,381,741 sq km or 919,595 sq miles. Many small islands surround the continent, but what is the smallest country on the mainland? Morocco Rwanda Swaziland Gambia

4. On the whole, Africa is the hottest continent. Calculated at the yearly average temperature, many countries on the Equator score almost 30 degrees Celsius. However, in 1922 what country set a record for the highest recorded temperature on earth? Djibouti Libya Niger Algeria

5. For people who love rain, a year in Egypt with only 25mm precipitation must be torture. In the tropical rainforests, the situation cannot be more different. While countries such as DRC, Congo and Gabon do well, one country on the west coast out-rains them all. What country is the recordholder of the annual average? Equatorial Guinea Ghana Liberia Nigeria

6. Everyone knows that the Nile is Africa's longest river, flowing into the Mediterranean Sea 6,695 km later. Another major river, starting in Angola, never reaches the sea. What river simply dies in the Kalahari desert? Lunge-Bungo Okavango Zambezi Cuanza

7. The southernmost point of Africa is at Cape Agulhas in South Africa, where the Atlantic and Indian Oceans meet violently. The continent's northernmost point lies in what country? Morocco Egypt Libya Tunisia

8. There is no question about the Horn of Africa being the easternmost point of the continent. Cape Guardafui forms the apex of the horn. Moving to the west of the continent, the Cape Verde peninsula projects into the Atlantic Ocean. As the westernmost point of Africa, what is the capital city of Senegal? Saint Louis Dakar Diourbel Thies

9. As the fourth largest island in the world, Madagascar is known for its incredible fauna and flora diversity. Of the fifty types of lemur apes originally found there, the largest weighed about the same a gorilla (about 100 kg) while the average mouse lemur weighs in at how much? 10 kg 60 gram 2 kg 8 gram

10. Although world-renowned, the Victoria Waterfall in Zimbabwe is neither Africa's biggest nor highest waterfall. True, it has the world's largest continuous water curtain and is twice as high as Niagara Falls but what African country boasts the two waterfalls with the highest volume of water? Zambia Sierra Leone Angola Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)

11. Africa's largest freshwater Lake Victoria, shared by Kenya and Uganda, is only slightly smaller than Ireland. It has a circumference of 3220 kms. Even so, it is not the deepest lake. What is the name of the deepest lake in Africa? Tanganyika Upemba Ntomba Niangay

12. Large parts of Africa are desert or semi-desert. The continent contains a third of the world's driest areas. The Namib Desert broods in west Namibia, along the Atlantic coast. The coastal strip is known by a rather grisly name. Dead Man's Alley Skeleton Coast Nemesis Death-by-thirst

13. Africa is richly blessed with minerals. South Africa and Nigeria contribute to more than half the continent's mineral production in gold and diamonds. Nigeria drills for oil. Tanzania is the only country in the world in which a certain type of gemstone was discovered. What is its name? Sodalite Moonstone Tanzanite Peridot

14. Being the only continent sporting the Tropic of Cancer, the Equator and the Tropic of Capricorn, the Prime Meridian (0 degrees longitude)also cuts through Algeria. Name the mountain range closest to the spot where the Tropic of Cancer and Prime Meridian meet. Ahaggar Tassili-n-Ajjer Chech Erg Tanezrouft

15. When rounding the south-western extreme of the continent, a flat-topped mountain, called Table Mountain, can be discerned as far as 200 kms out at sea. The formation on its one side is called Devil's Peak - what is the name of the one on the other side? Umlindi Peak Cutley Peak Lion's Head Baboon's Cliff