What’s an orca’s eye patch for, and what underpants did pirates wear? Try our kids’ quiz

1. The creature pictured above is a beautiful orca. Why does it have a white patch by its eye?

   1. To attract and impress female orcas

   2. It has sensors on it that can detect changes in the water

   3. To reflect light away from its eyes

   4. For protection

2. What type of underpants did pirates wear?

   1. Pirate-y pants

   2. Normal pants with anchors on

   3. They didn’t wear underpants

   4. They wore boxer shorts, sometimes with pictures of treasure on them

3. What is the world’s smallest bat?

   1. The little brown bat

   2. The common blossom bat

   3. The Kitti’s hog-nosed bat

   4. The Honduran white bat

4. How many times can a honeybee sting?

   1. Twice

   2. As many times as it likes

   3. Only once

   4. Nobody knows for sure

5. In humans, the appendix is a thin tube attached to the gut. What is it for?

   1. Digesting apple pips you swallow by accident

   2. Helping fight infection

   3. It doesn’t do anything any more

   4. For breaking down chewy food

Solutions

1:D - We think an orca’s patch protects its eye by giving a false target: if a creature attacks, it’ll hit the patch., 2:C - Pirates wore baggy trousers so they could jump around ships and fight in battles. They didn’t want anything tight underneath, so didn’t wear pants! In the US, “pants” means trousers, which pirates did wear., 3:C - The smallest bat is the Kitti’s hog-nosed, also known as the bumblebee bat – it weighs just 2 grams., 4:C - Honeybees usually die after stinging once, because their stinger is barbed, so it gets stuck and torn off. Bumblebees and solitary bees can sting more than once, as they can pull their stingers out smoothly and fly away., 5:B - The appendix is left over from when we needed an extra organ to break down tough food. Now scientists believe that the appendix could help fight infections. It can get a disease called appendicitis. Explorers or astronauts often have theirs removed, so they don’t get this when far away.

Scores

1. 5 and above.

2. 4 and above.

3. 3 and above.

4. 2 and above.

5. 0 and above.

• Molly Oldfield hosts Everything Under the Sun, a weekly podcast answering children’s questions, out now as a book. Does your child have a question? Submit one here