Fun Trivia » Animals » Animals by Region » UK

Badgers belong to the Mustelidae family which also includes otters, weasels and ferrets. They are Britain's largest land predator. They have distinctive black and white stripes and a stocky body with short legs and sharp claws which help them to dig their burrows and find food underground. They dig burrows underground, called setts, which consist of tunnels and chambers. Badgers are omnivores which means they eat a wide range of food. Around 80% of a badger's diet consists of earthworms. A male badger is called a boar, a female is a sow and the babies are called cubs. Difficulty: Average.

 

Drey, Warren, Lodge

As roe deer don't require large areas of woodland, these deer are quite happy to frequent any green spaces in the city, usually at night. Cemeteries are proving popular haunts as there is a constant supply of fresh flowers to go with the grass. The deer are also found in several other cities and this can cause problems as The Deer Initiative estimate that up to 74,000 road traffic accidents are caused annually by the animals. Difficulty: Hard.

 

European Elk, Fallow Deer, Chinese Water Deer

"Tarka the Otter" was published in 1927 and was a tale of a river otter, born the River Torridge in North Devon.

The book "Ring of Bright Water", although about an otter and it's owner, was a short-haired otter that was brought back from Iraq by the book's author, Gavin Maxwell.

Although the European otter (Lutra lutra) that are found UK were under threat from hunting and pollution, their numbers are climbing once more and they are beginning to spread back through the rivers systems in many areas. In Scotland, a large number of otters can be found in the Shetland Islands. Difficulty: Easy.

 

European badger, Red squirrel, Capybara

The wall lizard and its various subspecies inhabit the entirety of mainland Europe, with introduced populations in southern England, as well as a large introduced population in north America. There are some worries that the wall lizard may infringe on the habitat of the native sand lizard, which is relatively uncommon over most of England. Difficulty: Hard.

 

European rock lizard, Northern clawed lizard, Slender lizard

Lutra lutra, the European otter, was at one time in serious decline throughout Britain, but in the last couple of decades it has made something of a comeback. Stricter regulations designed to improve the cleanliness of Britain's rivers have played a major part in this, making them more attractive not only to the otter itself but to the fish that form the major part of its diet. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Badger, Fox, Weasel

The moorhen (Gallinula chloropus) is a common pond, marshland and wetland bird - it swims well, despite the fact that it doesn't have webbed feet. It's related to the gallinule (Gallinula chloropus) in the US and to the common coot (Fulica atra), all of which species belong to the rail family, the Rallidae.

I have the good fortune to live in a house beside the Lancaster Canal and there's a pair of moorhens nesting in the reeds on the other side of the Canal from me. The males fight noisily and vigorously during the breeding season! Difficulty: Hard.

 

A type of heron, A type of gull, A type of goose

Bats are nocturnal creatures who generally come out of their roosts around 20 minutes after sunset and fly up to ten metres (32 feet) in the air looking for food. When they fly they are fast and jerky as they search for insects to eat. The technique they use to catch their food is known as "aerial hawking" as they catch and eat their food on the wing. Most bats in the UK are quite small with a wingspan about the same size as a sparrow (about 24cm or 9.5 in) but the noctule bat has a wingspan of up to 50cm (20 in). Difficulty: Hard.

 

Common pipistrelle bat, Serotine bat, Daubenton's bat

In 1970, two red necked wallabies escaped from Curraghs Wildlife Park and their population now numbers over 100. The UK also has populations of the red necked wallaby near Loch Lomond, as well as on Lambay Island and in Ashdown Forest. A walking club has also reported a pair of wallabies in a country park in Birmingham, but this has not been confirmed by authorities at the time of writing this quiz. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Lemur, Badger, Raccoon

In June of 2013, two pilot schemes began to cull badgers in an attempt to stop the spread of bovine tuberculosis, drawing much opposition from animal welfare groups. The controversial plan has sparked much debate as to its effectiveness since other animals such as dogs, cats, horses and goats can spread the disease amongst cattle.

The common European badger (Meles meles meles) found in the UK is a wide spread across Europe up to the Arctic Circle, and is the UK's largest carnivore, although it will eat vegetation such as root tubers.

Badgers live in communal underground burrows they sometimes share with the likes of foxes and rabbits, and are mainly nocturnal animals. Badgers are also very fussy about the cleanliness of their burrows, often bringing in fresh bedding and defecating in special latrines dotted around their territory. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Red fox, Brown rat, American mink

The rabbit is native to Spain and Portugal, and was only introduced to England in the 12th century. The rabbit has also been introduced to Australia with devastating effects on indigenous (an organism which is native to a given region or ecosystem) wildlife. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Fox, Badger, Hedgehog

At the last census, in 2008, the grey seal colony numbered some 6,000. The Farne Islands, which have no full-time human inhabitants, are also an important breeding site for seabirds, especially guillemots and puffins. Difficulty: Average.

 

Red Deer, Otter, Rabbit

The last pairs of kites nested near to where I live. A committee was established to protect them and the army posted Gurkhas to mount an armed guard on the nest sites to keep egg thieves away. There's a happy ending to this story as the population recovered to a safe level. French and Spanish kites were brought in to diversify the bloodlines and kites have now been spread to all Welsh counties. Welsh kites have since been exported to England, Scotland and Ireland, and are now being used to shore up populations in France and Spain.

Ospreys have returned to Wales having been driven to extinction.

The (common/Eurasian) buzzard is probably the most numerous large raptor in Wales, and is often seen perching on telegraph poles along the roadside. Golden eagles do not (yet) nest in Wales, although they have in the past. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Buzzard, Osprey, Golden eagle

Bullheads are small fish which require fast-flowing and well-oxygenated water to live in. They are sometimes called miller's thumbs because of their tapering body shape.

Shovelers are dabbling ducks and get their name from their shovel-like beak. Goldeneye are diving ducks. Some breed in Scotland and Wales but they are mostly winter visitors to the UK. Shelduck are large ducks, almost the size of geese. They often feed on land, particularly around estuaries. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Goldeneye, Shoveler, Shelduck

The black redstart (Phoenicurus ochruros) was at one time a migrant species, just calling in on the south and east coasts during the spring and autumn. Very few birds stayed around to breed, but those that did were mainly to be found at rocky coastal sites in Kent. This all changed during WWII when black redstarts rapidly and extensively colonised bomb sites in London and then became an established breeding species throughout much of south-east England. Perhaps the redstarts saw similarities between cliffs and the remnants of bombed-out buildings.

The males are more-or-less all black apart from a white wing panel and a red tail, while females are grey with less red on their tail. The male has a distinctive and attractive song, the last phase of which sounds like a handful of metal balls being shaken together. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Robin, Nightingale, Peregrine Falcon

Rabbits are not native to the British Isles but were brought over either by the Romans in the first century or, more likely, by the Normans in the twelfth century as their fur and meat were much prized. Rabbits live in large groups in underground burrow systems called warrens. Male rabbits are called bucks, female rabbits are called does and baby rabbits are called kits. A female rabbit can have a litter of between three and seven kits every month during the breeding season (mid February to late summer) which is where the phrase "breeding like rabbits" comes from. Natural predators of the rabbit include the red fox, stoats and owls which is why it is important for them to have a warren to hide in. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Dinky, Winky, Hinky

It must be a heck of a good day/bad day scenario when you can confirm the animal is back after 40 years, but it's dead. Following this confirmation though, 20 pine martens were captured in Scotland and released in mid Wales in the hope of building a thriving community. Pine martens are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and the Environmental Protection Act 1990. Difficulty: Easy.

 

Dormouse, European Dragon, Irish Hare

Not to be confused with the edible dormouse (Glis Glis), the hazel, or common dormouse (Muscardinus avellanarius) is a separate subspecies and is restricted mainly to southern England and the whole of Wales, as well as a small enclave in the northwest of England. It is more wide spread throughout Europe from France in the west, through to Germany, central Europe and northern Turkey.

An arboreal mammal, the hazel dormouse eats mainly fruits and nuts found in woodland and tall hedges. The food is used to fatten up before going into hibernation over the winter and early spring.

Even though the hazel dormouse is relatively secure in Europe as a species, it has protected status in the UK where it under threat because of the disappearance and pruning of hedgerows from farms, and the loss of habitat such as woodlands. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Wood mouse, Edible dormouse, Harvest mouse

The other three toads mentioned are all real species in the genus Bombina. The yellow-bellied toad grows to a maximum length of 55mm, which is also the maximum length of the tadpole. The yellow-bellied toad lives throughout Europe, and was introduced to southern England around 1954. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Giant fire-bellied toad, Oriental fire-bellied toad, Appenine yellow-bellied toad

The red-necked wallaby can be found on the island of Inchconnachan, which is situated in Loch Lomond in Scotland. There are also small populations in Cumbria and elsewhere, though these are sighted only occasionally. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Red kangaroo, Eastern quoll, Bilby

Only two species of seal are commonly seen in British waters, the grey seal (Halichoerus grypus) and the common seal (Phoca vitulina). As a general rule, common seals are found mostly along the east coast and grey seals mostly along the west. The female grey seals on Skomer usually give birth in August. About 100 pups are born most years making Skomer the second most productive site for grey seals in Wales (only nearby Ramsey Island has more).
Common seals are known as harbor seals in the USA. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Common seal, Leopard seal, Harp seal

Meles meles, or Brock, is our old friend the badger. Wrongly (in my opinion) blamed for spreading bovine tuberculosis (there's a clue in the name, surely?), badgers were persecuted during the 20th century but are now protected under various legislation.

The hedgehog (draenog) is an occasional prey item for badgers, and is a good friend to gardeners as it enjoys nothing better than a meal of big, fat, juicy slugs.

The woodlouse (mochyn coed) is a smooth-on-the-inside-crunchy-on-the-oustide crustacean which needs no introduction. Despite the resemblance between the two, woodlice are not related to armadillos. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Hedgehog, Wild boar, Woodlouse

Grey (Atlantic) seals are mostly found along western coasts of Britain. The females give birth on deserted rocky beaches and offshore islands. Common seals are mostly, but not exclusively, found along North Sea coasts. Their young are usually raised on sandbanks. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Otter, Dolphin, Porpoise

The killer whale or orca (Orcinus orca) is a large toothed whale of the dolphin family. It is found in UK waters, especially in northern areas. They are highly social apex predators with sophisticated hunting techniques; like wolves, they hunt in groups. Difficulty: Hard.

The Eurasian beaver (scientific name Castor fiber) was widespread in England, Scotland and Wales until the sixteenth century when they became extinct after being hunted for their fur, meat and "castoreum" which is a secretion from beavers that was used in the perfume industry and also in food and medicine. The first official reintroduction took place in the county of Kent in 2002 and since then many approved animals have been introduced to enclosures across the UK.

The beaver is known as a "keystone species" as they have a positive effect on their environment. They gnaw on trees such as rowan, hazel and willow and "coppice" them. When the trees regrow they provide valuable habitat for many insects, birds and smaller mammals. Beavers are protected by law as a European Protected Species. This ruling has been in place since 1st May 2019. Difficulty: Average.

 

Stoat, Weasel, Otter

Although the south of England is certainly not famed for its mountainous terrain, the yellow-necked mouse seems to also like established woodland and is an expert climber, feeding mainly on tree seeds, fruits and invertebrates. Their range extends across Dorset, Kent and Suffolk, and also parts of the Severn basin from Gloucestershire to Staffordshire. The mouse takes its name from the complete band of yellow fur found across the neck area. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Rice Mouse, Wood Mouse, Mickey Mouse

There are 18 species of bats that live and breed in the UK. These include the rare Bechstein's bat, and the common pipistrelle. The greater mouse-eared bat, which although facing extinction, is sometimes found in isolation. This suggests some are migrating from Europe or a colony still survives in the UK.

Due to the rarity of some species of bats, they are a protected species in the UK, given special status making it a criminal offence to harm them. In addition, given that bats frequently roost in man-made building and structures, certain planning rules are in place to protect these bat roosts. Difficulty: Hard.

 

deer, mice, squirrels

The first successful release of little owls took place in Kent, 1874. The first nest was seen in 1879, and the population grew from there. Another successful introduction occurred in Northamptonshire in 1889, where forty owls were released, and breeding occurred in the same year. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Dwarf owl, Small owl, Tiny owl

The other three newts are in the genus Notophthalmus, and are found in North America. The Alpine newt is a European species found in central and southern Europe, but in the UK colonies can be found from southern England right up to central Scotland. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Black-spotted newt, Striped newt, Eastern newt

At present trappers are working to eradicate mink from Scottish islands, and it is possible that within a few years a program will start that will attempt to eradicate all the mink in the UK. Mink have caused water voles and sea birds to become increasingly rare. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Stoat, Weasel, Polecat

The St Kilda field-mouse is twice the size of the mainland species, and is believed to have been transported to the islands by Norse invaders in the 8th and 9th centuries AD. A similar subspecies, the St Kilda house-mouse, became extinct when the last human residents of St Kilda left the islands in the 1930s. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Orkney, Skye, Mull

The chough (Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax) is a striking bird with glossy black plumage and bright red legs and bill. The bill is quite long and down-curved, the chough uses it to find insects and other invertebrates on the grassy tops of cliffs. The cliffs around Pembrokeshire are ideal for choughs to nest and feed on. They are frequently seen on Skomer. Other members of the crow family often get a bad press as nest-robbers but choughs are blameless in this respect. To see a party of choughs playing in the breeze and making their evocative calls is one of my favourite bird-watching experiences. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Gull, Auk, Falcon

Myrddin, also known as Merlin, was Arthur's chief adviser and merlin (Falco columbarius) is a small falcon.

A sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus) is another small bird of prey, often seen around bird tables.

Excalibur was Arthur's sword in the later retellings of the legend, and the Camelot falcon is a figment of my fevered imagination. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Excalibur, Sparrowhawk, Camelot falcon

Common lizards are often seen in areas of upland moorland. They are very nervous and run away very quickly when disturbed.
Sand lizards are very scarce and are confined to very few sites in southern England.
The third lizard found in Britain is the slow-worm, which is legless and often mistaken for a snake. It is common in and around hedges and rough pastures. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Frog, Newt, Toad

Zander are not a native British species but have established themselves in many river systems. They are voracious predators of other fish species and there has been concern about their effect upon fish stocks.
Eider, long-tailed duck and scoter are all sea ducks often spending time far out in the oceans. They return to land to breed. Eider feathers are collected from their nesting sites to be used in bedding and other soft furnishings. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Eider, Long-tailed duck, Scoter

The large blue butterfly (Phengaris arion) became almost extinct in the UK in the late 1970's, but has been successfully reintroduced in some areas as the strange details of its behavioural ecology have become clear.

Large blue butterflies are brood parasites, relying on other insects to raise their young. Their eggs hatch into larvae that resemble a myrmica ant, and after a short period feeding on thyme leaves they drop off the plants and start emitting pheromones that will attract these ants. The ants then pick up the larvae and take them back to their nests. Here the larvae will either behave like ant larvae and beg for food (the "cuckoo strategy") or they will actively predate the ant larvae; the latter is the more common option for the large blue larvae. Eventually, having decimated the population of the ant nest, they will pupate. The adult butterfly hatches the next spring. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Bluebell leaves and flowers, Rocket leaves, Rose petals

The fox belongs to the Canidae family of mammals. They resemble a small slender dog and have russet red fur, pointed ears, a long snout and a bushy tail, called a brush, with a fluffy white tip. They can survive in a great variety of environments and, as well as being found in the countryside, a large number live in towns and cities. Foxes are omnivores and eat a wide variety of food. Their diet can include insects, earthworms, berries, fruit, smaller mammals and birds. They are also scavengers and eat carrion and scraps left by humans. They tend to live in family units consisting of one male, (dog) one female (vixen) and a number of cubs. The home of a fox is called a den. Difficulty: Very Easy.

 

Squirrel, Hedgehog, Stoat

The red fox started colonising UK cities in the 1930s and by the 1940s there were considerable populations in Bristol, Cambridge, Norwich and London. By 2006, there were an estimated 10,000 red foxes in London, probably due to the many opportunities there are for scavenging food. Difficulty: Very Easy.

 

Grey Wolf, Whiskered Bat, Walrus

All of the other newts mentioned are newts in the genus Triturus. The Italian crested newt has been found breeding in Surrey and Birmingham, and can hybridise with the great crested newt, which threatens the purity of the gene pool. Italian crested newts can grow up to 16cm long. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Danube crested newt, Southern marbled newt, Southern crested newt

The Orkney vole is a subspecies of the common vole, which is found on mainland Europe, but is absent from the rest of the UK. The Orkney voles are thought to have been introduced around 5000 years ago. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Shetland mouse, Highland shrew, Northern mole

Despite his name, Ratty isn't a rat at all. Tragically, the species is now close to extinction in Britain, owing to a combination of habitat loss and the fact that it makes a tasty snack for American mink, large numbers of which have taken up residence in its habitat having been released into the wild from fur farms by animal rights activists. Some may wish to consider the irony in this. Difficulty: Hard.

 

Brown Rat, Black Rat, Field Vole