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Echinoderms (Starfish, Sea Urchins, Etc.) Trivia Questions and Answers
Fun Facts & Interesting Information
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1. Are sea cucumbers animals or plants?
Answer: Animals
Interesting Information:A sea cucumber is certainly not a protist. Protists are single-celled organisms with a nucleus, such as algae, some forms of aquatic slime, and protozoic organisms. In reality, they are animals, and they live as animals with the several functions that qualify animals, including the lack of cell walls and the lack of special substances which allow the sustained life of the organism.
Difficulty: Average.
From Quiz: The Sea Cucumber
Some incorrect choices:
Plants, Neither, they are fungi, Neither, they are protists
2. Under what phylum is the sea star listed?
Answer: Echinodermata
Interesting Information:In addition to sea stars, brittle stars, sea urchins, sand dollars and sea cucumbers are also a part of this conglomerate. Among the many things they share in common are reproducing asexually and being capable of regenerating tissue within the body.
Difficulty: Hard.
From Quiz: Classification and Anatomy of Sea Stars
Some incorrect choices:
Arthropada, Porifera, Cordata
3. What does the word "echinoderm" mean?
Answer: spiny skin
Interesting Information:An interesting group including starfish, sand dollars, and sea cucumbers.
Difficulty: Average.
From Quiz: Starfish and Sand Dollars
Some incorrect choices:
smooth skin, grooved skin, no skin
4. Which phylum do sea cucumbers belong to?
Answer: Echinodermata
Interesting Information:Chordata are chordates, or organisms with spinal cords, or techically notochords. Hemichordata are acorn worms, marine invertebrates that technically have no notochord, but are stable and flexible. Nematoda are roundworms. Sea cucumbers instead follow the characteristics of echinoderms, including bilateral symmetry, tube feet, and external protective wall.
Difficulty: Hard.
From Quiz: The Sea Cucumber
Some incorrect choices:
Chordata, Hemichordata, Nematoda
5. The sea star has which type of skeleton?
Answer: Flexible
Interesting Information:A flexible skeleton helps the sea star survive in the wild. It allows it to more effectively regrow lost tissue around its body, and also to handle adverse weather conditions more easily. A sea star has an endoskeleton, inside the body like that of humans, enabling it to freely bend and maneuver its limbs at will.
Material found within the sea star is generally thin, silky and, upon death, will decay very quickly.
Difficulty: Hard.
From Quiz: Classification and Anatomy of Sea Stars
Some incorrect choices:
Exoskeleton, Green, Tough
6. What is the name for the dead 'shell' of a sand dollar when you find it washed up on the beach?
Answer: test
Interesting Information:A beach comber's treasure.
Difficulty: Hard.
From Quiz: Starfish and Sand Dollars
Some incorrect choices:
shell, bones, skeleton
7. What type of breathing system does the sea star have?
Answer: Water Vascular
Interesting Information:In general, the alignment of a sea star consists of a few different canals that it absorbs nutrients and, in this case, breathes from. Water that it uses to breathe enters from the madreporite, the main 'entrance system' of the water vascular system.
If looking at a sea star right-side up, this would be around the "head" area.
Difficulty: Hard.
From Quiz: Classification and Anatomy of Sea Stars
Some incorrect choices:
Gills, Lungs, Air vital
8. The sea star has the ability to do what with most body parts?
Answer: Regenerate
Interesting Information:Sea stars can regenerate entire limbs if given the time to do so. That said, regrowth can take several months and, if a sea star is in a vulnerable position following a conflict or other damaging accident, it could have difficulty doing so.
Difficulty: Average.
From Quiz: Classification and Anatomy of Sea Stars
Some incorrect choices:
Reproduce asexually, Reproduce sexually, Attach and detach seamlessly, at will
9. If a starfish loses one or more of its arms, what can happen to the center piece?
Answer: It can regenerate the arm(s)
Interesting Information:Starfish can regenerate missing parts. An injury such as this may leave the animal susceptible to infection so regeneration can't be guaranteed.
Difficulty: Average.
From Quiz: Starfish and Sand Dollars
Some incorrect choices:
Turn into an oyster, Turn into a barnacle, Come back together
10. What is the life span of a sea cucumber?
Answer: 5-10 years
Interesting Information:The life span will vary slightly from type to type of sea cucumber, as there are about 900 different kinds, but the general life span for the class of sea cucumbers is 5-10 years.
Difficulty: Hard.
From Quiz: The Sea Cucumber
Some incorrect choices:
1-2 years, 4-7 months, 30-40 years
11. The eye spot is located where on each ray?
Answer: Tip
Interesting Information:Sea stars often maneuver about by turning the tips of their arms up, to best maintain awareness of their surroundings. These eye spots do not, however, respond very well to light. Sea stars will aim to use them as a means to gain external stimuli, explaining why they may seem to travel in spinning motions.
Difficulty: Hard.
From Quiz: Classification and Anatomy of Sea Stars
Some incorrect choices:
Midpoint, Bottom, Inside
12. About how many species are in the phylum Echinodermata?
Answer: about 6000
From Quiz: Starfish and Sand Dollars
Some incorrect choices:
about 2000, about 3000, about 5000
13. What form of joint are the spines on an urchin attached to?
Answer: Ball and socket joint
Interesting Information:The spines are attached to ball and socket joints, thereby giving them the ability to move in almost any direction.
Difficulty: Hard.
From Quiz: The Mysterious (Yet Pointy) Sea Urchin
Some incorrect choices:
Hinge joint, Pivot joint, Saddle joint
14. What can the sea cucumber do if threatened?
Answer: Violently launch its insides at the threat
Interesting Information:This is seen as projectile vomit, but it is not actually vomit at all. I don't know how much receiving this unpleasant reception would hurt, but it would certainly be disgusting.
Difficulty: Hard.
From Quiz: The Sea Cucumber
Some incorrect choices:
Scurry away from the threat, Attempt to dig its way to safety, Explode, killing itself and the threat
15. Where can you find most of the animals in the phylum Echinodermata?
Answer: Sea
Interesting Information:Found only at sea and cannot be found in freshwater or land.
Difficulty: Hard.
From Quiz: Starfish and Sand Dollars
Some incorrect choices:
Fresh water, Land, All of the above
16. Where in the world is sea cucumber commonly considered a delicacy?
Answer: Eastern Asia
Interesting Information:More specifically, it is most commonly eaten in China, Japan, and Taiwan.
Difficulty: Average.
From Quiz: The Sea Cucumber
Some incorrect choices:
Northern Africa, Canada, The Middle East
17. Which class contains the brittle stars and the basket stars?
Answer: Ophiuroidea
From Quiz: Starfish and Sand Dollars
Some incorrect choices:
Asteroidea, Echinoidea, Holothuroidea
18. The surrounding areas in over-populated sea urchin environments are typically devoid of or severely lacking what?
Answer: All of These
Interesting Information:It is a biological condition called "urchin barren sea". It commonly occurs when the otter population, which is highly responsible for keeping urchin populations down, is lacking. The problem is fairly easily restored by adding otters or other common predators of the urchin to the area.
Difficulty: Hard.
From Quiz: The Mysterious (Yet Pointy) Sea Urchin
Some incorrect choices:
Kelp, Otters, Mollusks
19. Sea urchins cover themselves with small rocks, algae, and bits of shell to do what?
Answer: Hide from predators
Interesting Information:Urchins will pick up bits of things they find on the seafloor and carry them to hide from predators.
Difficulty: Average.
From Quiz: The Mysterious (Yet Pointy) Sea Urchin
Some incorrect choices:
Attract mates, Form shelter for the young sea urchins, Provide more surface area for the algae to form
20. Sea urchins have what form of symmetry?
Answer: Radial
Interesting Information:Bilateral symmetry is where one half is a mirror image of the other. Radial symmetry on the other hand is when the object is divided into one or more sections which resemble each other. Think of it as a pie being divided into separate, yet equal portions.
Difficulty: Hard.
From Quiz: The Mysterious (Yet Pointy) Sea Urchin
21. Most of the creatures in the phylum Echinodermata have a _____ part radial symmetry.
Answer: five
From Quiz: Starfish and Sand Dollars
Some incorrect choices:
six, ten, three
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