I don’t know about you, but I needed a distraction this week so I made this quiz. I hope you enjoy it.
What kind of snake is this?
A. It’s not a snake, it’s a legless lizard
B. Gardener snake
C. Garter snake
D. Lined Snake
E. Wet Banded Snake
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What is a better name for the lined snake in the above photo?
A. Gerald
B. Stripy Snake
C. Hang on, is it spelled ‘Stripy’ or ‘Stripey’?
D. Both, apparently
E. Weird
What kind of plant is shown above?
A. False gromwell
B. Western marbleseed
C. Onosmodium molle
D. Onosmodium bejariense DC. ex A. DC. var. occidentale (Mack.) B.L. Turner
E. Good grief
F. All of the above, depending upon who you ask
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What is a better name for the plant above that goes by all those names?
A. Phillipa
B. Tongueflower
C. It’s not a plant, it’s a legless lizard
D. Onosmodium bejariense DC. ex A. DC. var. occidentale (Mack.) B.F. Turner
E. Wait, isn’t that the same as one of the actual names?
F. Nope. How much time are you willing to waste finding the difference?
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What species of plant is shown in the above photo?
A. Canada wildrye
B. Canada goldeneye
C. Green Foxtail
E. Foxtail Barley
F. Barely Foxtail
G. Foxy Oats
H. Isn’t goldeneye a duck?
I. Yes, and a plant and a James Bond movie
J. Good grief
K. Also, you skipped D
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In many plant texts, foxtail barley (pictured above) is described as being found in many habitats, including roadsides, pastures, and ‘waste areas’. What are ‘waste areas’?
A. Dry wetlands
B. Flood-prone sites
C. Anywhere foxtail barley and other cool opportunistic plants are found
D. Dynamic and interesting ecological sites that we should stop denigrating with lazy nomenclature
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We can all agree the answer to the above question is D, right?
A. Right
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In the above photo, there are four insects. What is the total number of wings on those four insects? You can click on the photo to see a larger version of it.
A. 3
B. 12
C. 14
D. 8
E. 10
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Isn’t it fun that only the plains lubber (grasshopper) in the above photo has two wings and all the others have four wings each?
A. Yes
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Look at the above photo. What the heck??
A. No kidding
B. Whoa!
C. It sure is fuzzy
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What is a better name for the Pearly Wood-Nymph Moth shown in the above photo?
A. Shaggy Dream-Haunter Moth
B. Gizmo
C. Sweetums
.
This grasshopper is really well camouflaged.
A. Wow
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What is the most logical explanation for why this dead cicada is stuck to this barbed wire fence?
A. It was put there by a loggerhead shrike
B. It’s not a cicada, it’s a legless lizard
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Wouldn’t it be appropriate to end this quiz with a photo of an actual legless lizard?
A. Yes
The Prairie Ecologist 
If a chicken-and-a-half lays an egg-and-a-half in a day-and-a-half, how long does it take a grasshopper with a wooden leg to kick the seeds out of a pickle? Please show your work.
A day and a half if you give it a leg up.
Thanks Chris for the fun!
I needed this. Thank you!
HEY! I got’em all correct! Do I win the all expense paid trip to see your prairie? After all, I listened to your presentation for “The Prairie Enthusiusts” a couple weeks ago. Ya done good there too.
Harold
Ha! Was that fun or what!? A. YES!!!
Enjoyed this Chris! Thank you!
Thanks! Entertaining and educational and a great diversion.
Thanks, that quiz made my day.
Chris-what a great “distractionary” post at this time in history. Am so enamored with lubbers as well as loggerhead shrikes (hopefully you are in contact with David Leatherman, retired Forest Entomologist with the Colorado State Forest Service-they ae one of his favorites!) here in eastern CO.
Keep up the good posts as so many of us value your photos (many are on my ever-changing screen savers) and your insightful commentary.
Many thanks.
Megan Bowes Restoration Plant Ecologist [OSMP_lockup_COBLogo] C: 303-906-6486 bowesm@bouldercolorado.gov
Open Space and Mountain Parks 2520 55th St. Boulder, CO 80301 http://www.osmp.org
Thanks Chris!
Best start of the day in a long time!!! Appreciate the time you spent to tweak the brain and give us something to laugh about. Good for our brains and feel goods.
Enjoy the day 😊
Becky
Thanks!
best quiz ever
Did you hear about the wildfire that started in eastern Washington a few years ago which the fire investigators concluded was started by a grasshopper flying into an electric fence?
No joke.
I think that it was a failed fire investigator that has it in for grasshoppers.
Thank you for making me smile! I LOVE bugs
You were having too much fun. Me too…Hahahahaha
Well that made my brain tickle. Really makes me want to get out and look closely at the prairie nearby.
This sounds so like my own meanderings through the natural world, lol. I love your playfulness. If you ever want to come visit Cape Breton we will give you a place of your own to stay and treat you like royalty.
Wow, that’s a very generous offer! You never know… Also, thanks for those kind words.
Your work is greatly appreciated…been following you for years. My husband and I would be thrilled!
This quiz should make you laugh. Look at all of it. Martha
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