Legs Eleven! Trivia Quiz

Answer: Aye-aye

Did you use your middle finger to pick something today? You did? Euww. Aye-ayes sound cute, don't they? Sadly, the babies might look cute but the adults... not so much. They can actually pick their noses because that middle finger of theirs has a special joint that will let it go through the nostril to the throat, a neat trick if you want to do it.

As you may have guessed, aye-ayes are omnivores, eating fruit, nuts, insects, fungi, etc., not to mention larvae that bore into wood. Aye-ayes start foraging around sunset and continue for most of the night. When they are trying to find larvae they will tap on wood about eight times per second; if there's a hollow inside the tree it will produce an echo, the location of which prompts the aye-aye to chew into the wood. Once they break through the aye-aye will poke into the hollow with the middle finger and use its claw to extract a larva.

Unfortunately for the aye-ayes, native Madagascans think they are evil and will kill them, putting the species in danger. There are two other species who catch food using a similar method, in New Guinea and in Australia, but both of these are marsupials rather than primates.

Answer: Sea robin

Sea robins develop three 'rays' from the pectoral fins on either side of their bodies which lift the front of the fish off the sea floor and propel them along as though they were walking. Typically, gurnards are carnivores and will eat many things although crustaceans are their favourite. Equally typically, almost anything will eat them, including humans.

The gurnard shown in the photograph didn't walk fast enough and looks destined for someone's bouillabaisse, a dish in which gurnards have long been a traditional ingredient. Less traditional, but more and more commonplace, gurnards are found in fish and chips, though most British people would get very upset if you told them they'd just eaten a robin.

Answer: Cassowary

I hope Kipling spared a thought for this Oceanic bird when he said that "the female of the species is deadlier than the male" because in this species - the southern cassowary - the female is also larger and brighter, at least in appearance. On each foot, their toes have long, strong, nails approximately 12.5 cm (5 ins) long and they will kick and claw you without fear or hesitation.

Cassowaries are dangerous because they just don't like other creatures, particularly those seen as threats, in their space so they will attack you first and think about it later. Indeed, some reports claim that the cassowary may take a look at you, go off to think about it, and then attack you anyway - which, given that a pretty average female cassowary weighs about 55-60Kg (130lb), and has several sharp instruments at the end of her legs, means that you will be lucky to escape death or serious injury one way or another.

Cassowaries do, however, lack something which other birds possess - a tongue. I don't know if I should be happy that at least they can't lick me to death!

Answer: Daddy long-legs

First, let's take the harvestmen. No, wait, you take them, I'd rather not. They're in the Order 'Opiliones' and are arachnids. Arachnids with a penis, a small factoid that makes them unique amongst arachnids. They are also not spiders - the sections of their bodies are fused and they have only one pair of eyes (though there are fossils with two pairs). They do have, however, very long-legs in relation to their body size, hence the nickname daddy long-legs. In south-east Asia, for example, harvestmen may have a body length of only 3-7mm (roughly a quarter of an inch) but their legs can be 340mm (13 ins) long. While harvestmen might find it difficult to get a pair of trousers to fit, they do pay attention to their limbs and clean them after every meal, by passing each leg through their mouths. Imagine having to take a few delicious bites and then having to suck your own ankles.

Then there are the Pholcidae; usually known as cellar spiders but often called daddy long-legs, Pholcidae build their webs in a variety of dark places including cellars, hence that nickname. They have the reputation of being the most venomous spider of all, largely because their prey includes such spiders as the black widow spider and the redback, both of which can be deadly; in fact while the bite of the daddy long-legs spider may not be pleasant it doesn't appear to be toxic to humans. Scientists still aren't sure about this though so don't try it!

Meanwhile, back in my dining-room, an insect flies and walks around in a jerky, unpredictable fashion that makes me think it's going to land on me even though it's probably content to meander on the wall over there. The European daddy long-legs is actually a crane fly (see image). It has a small body and disproportionately long legs which often come off, dangling in a cobweb as evidence that it was once here but might now be anywhere. However, its worst habit comes when it's a larva and chews through the roots of your lawn leaving patches of dead grass behind. They must hate that at Wimbledon!

Answer: Walking on water vegetation

The jacana is a type of waterbird found mainly, although not exclusively, in the southern hemisphere. It preys on insects found on vegetation that grows in or on water, such as grasses or lilies, and the elongated feet help the bird spread its weight across the plant so that it can stand on floating stems and leaves while it feeds.

The birds are often seen walking across waterlilies, with their weight supported by the lily pads; as the lily might not be visible from the shore, the birds may look as though they are walking on water, giving rise to the bird being called 'the Jesus bird' or, more mundanely, the 'lily trotter'.

Apart from the lesser jacana, where both parents are involved, the young of most jacana species are reared by their fathers while the females take many mates and lay as many eggs as can be raised by the males, which is usually four per batch. The eggs are laid in floating 'rafts' which makes them safe from most predators.

Answer: Legless lizards

In 99% of cases you can tell lizards from snakes because lizards have eyelids, and you can tell them from earthworms because the latter don't have eyes at all. (Note the word 'earth' - sea worms do their own thing!) Not only do slow worms have eyes, and eyelids, they also have another lizard characteristic - they can lose their tails if attacked. They just don't have legs.

Slow worms can be quite long-lived; even in the wild they can live for thirty years so it's entirely possible that in the depths of darkest Wiltshire, somewhere near Stonehenge, there are slow worms whose grandma was chased by a small girl with curly blond hair. Look, I'm sorry, okay?

Answer: Their stomach

Snails are 'gastropods', part of the mollusc phylum. They're called that not because some snails are edible but because their stomach is on their foot. There are vast numbers of gastropods worldwide, found in almost all environments including the Arctic and Antarctic where there are often thermal vents in the neighbourhood. In fact the only creatures that outnumber gastropods on planet Earth are the insects.

Let's assume that you have snails in your garden because, frankly, it's almost guaranteed. As well as the detritus they're supposed to eat, they start eating your favourite petunias. What can you do? One answer often given in the UK is "chuck them over the neighbours' fence" which is actually not a bad idea except for the minor detail that you probably can't throw such a small creature far enough - snails have a homing instinct! However, there's only so far a snail can walk, er, squelch. Take it over 20 metres (approx. 65 feet) away and it will probably get lost. However, before you do a victory dance, remember how many relatives that snail has, all waiting to take its spot.

Answer: Rodentia (rats, mice, etc.)

Jerboas are rodents but they have specialised features that have adapted to meet specific needs. Not all jerboas have long ears but most do; they use them to capture the sound of distant predators which gives them extra time to escape by either racing for cover and/or digging a burrow. Their short front legs do most of the digging work but their long hind legs kick the sand/soil backwards, in case the predator tries to get into the burrow.

If they have to make a run for it, jerboas use their hind legs to hop, often in a zigzag pattern at 25k/h (15mph). Jerboas only have an average body length ranging from 4cm (1.5ins) to 26cm (10ins) but if they're chased it's not unknown for them to jump up to 3m (10ft), either forwards in a bound or straight up in the air. They also have long tails - longer than their bodies - that they use for balance.

The jerboa's long hind legs have another function. When there's no predator around and the jerboa is just going from one place to another, it walks using its hind legs. In fact, jerboas rarely use their front legs for locomotion, they stand up and walk - in much the same way as humans.

Answer: Two

As camelids, the llama family do not have cloven hooves. Their feet have two toes, each with a nail, and a soft pad underneath. This is the main reason why llamas aren't regarded as kosher, which is probably a relief to them. It also makes walking on rocky and hard ground easier - a significant factor in the use of llamas as pack animals in the Andes.

The species to which they all belong is the Lama glama, which always makes me wonder if the scientist who called them that had a thing about eyelashes (for which camelids are renowned). While it is true that in modern times, the llama is the largest, their wild ancestors are the guanaco, a group of smaller animals that are now endangered. Similarly, the small vicuna is the wild ancestor of the alpaca but is now the smaller of the two.

There is no such thing as a wild llama or a wild alpaca; both of these subgroups are now fully domesticated. However, if they're unhappy, or nervous, or threatened then llamas can get very cross indeed; if they do, they may spit; you have been warned!

Answer: Western Australia

With 1306 legs this is the first millipede, indeed the first creature, that actually has more than 1000 legs. The previous record-holder, also a millipede, was found in California but that only (!) has 750 legs. The discovery of eight of the 'new' milllipedes was made in drill holes during environmental impact studies for mining companies in Western Australia looking for minerals. The millipedes were found at depths of up (or down) to 60m (200ft) and have been named 'Eumillipes persephone' after Persephone, the Greek goddess of the underworld.

The females of this species seem, on the basis of small numbers, to be larger, longer, and, er, leggier than the males. However, typical of creatures living underground, both sexes are blind and pale with a thin body. Their bodies have 300 or more segments and the more segments there are, the more legs as millipedes have two legs per segment while centipedes only have one.