You're Grounded!: A Quiz About Flightless Birds
Written by Tom Cohen
Last updated · 10 min play time
What a cruel joke: you're a bird but you can't fly! For about 60 species of our feathered friends, this is their reality. They have the feathers, the beak and the bird feet, but they just can't get airborne. In this quiz, we'll find out how much you know about these grounded animals.
From penguins to ostriches, there are many flightless birds all around us. Well, maybe not all around us, but they're there! For whatever reason, evolution led these birds down a path they wouldn't have chosen for themselves. All the trappings of birds without the ability to lift off . They're either too heavy, their wings are too short, or it just wasn't meant to be.
In this quiz, we'll see if your knowledge of these flightless creatures can take flight. Hopefully, with your knowledge, you can do the flying for them! Begin flapping and start answering!
Quiz written by
Tom CohenI'm a 3-time Emmy-winning game show producer, writer, director and published author. I dig traveling, watching hockey, photographing wildlife and exploring the cultural and social fabric of society.
Flightless Bird Quiz Questions
20 Questions · 882 Plays · 3 Comments
Question 1
This Flightless Cormorant is quite unique, as it's the only known cormorant that has lost the ability to fly. Where is the only place in the world that you can find this species?
-
AAustralian coast
-
BEast Africa
-
CGalapagos Islands
-
DCalifornia coast
Galapagos Islands
The Flightless Cormorant is also known as the Galapagos Cormorant because that's the only place where they're found, on just two islands: Fernandina, and the northern and western coasts of Isabela.
Question 2
In addition to Dodos, Moas were flightless birds that once roamed their way into extinction. Some were 12 feet tall, others were turkey-sized, but all of them lived in what modern country?
-
ASouth Africa
-
BNew Zealand
-
CChina
-
DBrazil
New Zealand
There were nine species of Moas, and speculation about how many used to roam New Zealand varies from 58,000 to over 2.5 million. Their skeletons are usually reconstructed to suggest they stood upright like dinosaurs, but upon more study, it's thought that maybe they walked with their heads forward like kiwis.
Question 3
In the canon of flightless birds, the penguin is the superstar. In which of these countries would you NOT find colonies of native penguins?
-
ASouth Africa
-
BArgentina
-
CRussia
-
DNew Zealand
Russia
There are 17 different species of penguins, and they can be found on every continent in the Southern Hemisphere. They live in Africa, Antarctica, Australia, and South America, but NOT in Russia (which is in the Northern Hemisphere). Penguins aren't always in cold climates, either. They've been found in Brazil and the Galapagos Islands, not too far from the equator.
Question 4
Though not really flightless, these birds are often thought to be because they stay mainly on the ground, scurrying away from predators. Name these small denizens of South America.
-
AQuail
-
BRoadrunners
-
CTinamou
-
DJuncos
Tinamou
Tinamous are partridge- and quail-like, but are a different species. With a limited flight capability, they choose mostly to run rather than to take to the air. They're found mostly in the forest, but are also sometimes seen in open fields. There are 47 species of Tinamou found in Central and South America.
Question 5
A big bird from South America, the flightless Rhea comes in two species: the American or Greater Rhea, and the Lesser Rhea (seen here), also named after what scientist?
-
AAudubon
-
BLinnaeus
-
CDarwin
-
DWilson
Darwin
Darwin's Rhea is is found in Patagonia in South America, and is smaller than his cousin, standing at only about 3 feet tall. In its native environment, it also goes by other name, such as "suri" and "choique".
Question 6
There is only one species of parrot that can't fly, the one pictured here. Native to New Zealand, what is this species called?
-
ABourke's parrot
-
BKakapo
-
CGalah
-
DCockatiel
Kakapo
The Kakapo is also called an "owl parrot" and is nocturnal and ground-dwelling. Endemic to New Zealand, its numbers dropped down to a low point of only about 50 birds in the 1990s. Fortunately, moving some populations to islands with no natural predators has helped them to rebound.
Question 7
With 16 extant species and 15 extinct ones, what country in the world is home to the most flightless birds?
-
AArgentina
-
BTanzania
-
CNew Zealand
-
DAustralia
New Zealand
As an island isolated from the world, New Zealand has unique fauna. In particular, because there are very few ground predators there, many of the nation's birds lost their ability to fly over the years. As a result, they thrived in a land of plentiful food, warm weather, and very few threats.
Question 8
The kiwi is flightless, and has some other strange features as well. Which of these statements is NOT true about this New Zealand bird?
-
AIt has no wings at all
-
BIts loose feathers are more like fur
-
CFemales have two ovaries
-
DNostrils are at the end of its beak
It has no wings at all
It goes without saying, but the kiwi is a strange little bird. With tiny wings that are no good for flying, the kiwi has no tail feathers, but does have whiskers like a cat. The kiwi is also the only bird in the world with nostrils at the end of its beak, making it exceptionally skilled at smelling.
Question 9
The third-tallest and second-heaviest bird on earth is also a flightless bird. Name this species that's known for its blue neck and helmet-like casque that sits above its eyes.
-
APeacock
-
BEmu
-
CGreater Rhea
-
DCassowary
Cassowary
The Cassowary, found mainly in New Guinea and Australian rainforests is one of the world's largest birds. There are three species of cassowary: the Southern Cassowary, the Northern Cassowary, and the Dwarf Cassowary. Most scientists agree that the cassowary is the most dangerous bird in the world, with strong feet and hidden spikes on its wings.
Question 10
When it comes to penguins, the most famous flightless bird, there are 18 different species, only 8 of which live in Antarctica. Which species does NOT live on that continent?
-
AGentoo
-
BAdelie
-
CHumboldt
-
DEmperor
Humboldt
The penguins that live in Antarctica are: Emperor, Adelie, Gentoo, Chinstrap, Macaroni, Rockhopper, Magellanic, and King. The Humboldt penguin is a species that lives only on the west coast of South America from Chile to Peru.
Question 11
Technically, Big Bird from Sesame Street is a flightless bird, and the biggest bird you'll ever see. How tall does Big Bird stand?
-
A6'8"
-
B8'2"
-
C7'2"
-
D5'11"
8'2"
Big Bird, formerly voiced by Caroll Spinney and now by Matt Vogel, stands a whopping 8'2" tall and can roller skate, ice skate, sing, draw, speak English, make jokes, and has been known to sing the alphabet as one long word. Not bad for a bird that can't fly.
Question 12
The myth that ostriches bury their heads in the sand to avoid danger is just that: a myth. What is the common explanation for this alleged behavior?
-
AThey clean their eyes out in the sand
-
BThey lay eggs in holes in the sand to lay eggs
-
CThey touch their heads to the ground when mating
-
DThey search in the sand for food
They lay eggs in holes in the sand to lay eggs
Ostriches lay their eggs in holes in the sand, so when they rotate them with their beaks during incubation, it can appear as though they're burying their heads in the sand, which is a common misconception.
Question 13
While most of us are familiar with the common - and very flightless - ostrich, scientists labeled what second type of ostrich as a distinct species as recently as 2014?
-
AReticulated ostrich
-
BSnub-nosed ostrich
-
CEgyptian ostrich
-
DSomali ostrich
Somali ostrich
The Somali ostrich was, until 2014, thought to be a subspecies of the common ostrich but was named its own species in 2014. The Somali ostrich is also known as the blue-necked ostrich due to the distinctive hue of its neck. It lives in the Horn of Africa, while the common ostrich is more widespread on the continent.
Question 14
These extinct flightless birds were members of the family Aepyornithidae, and once lived on Madagascar. Name this species of giant avian.
-
ARhinoceros bird
-
BLeopard bird
-
CGiraffe bird
-
DElephant bird
Elephant bird
Scientists believe that the elephant bird became extinct around 1000–1200 CE, most likely because of human activity. Believe it or not, their closest living relatives are kiwi, even though the elephant bird lived in Madagascar and stood almost 10 feet tall.
Question 15
In the world of science, there's a name for everything. As defined on Wikipedia, what is the term for "any of a diverse group of flightless and mostly large and long-legged birds of the infraclass Palaeognathae"?
-
ARatites
-
BTectites
-
CZaratites
-
DTroostites
Ratites
Next time you see an ostrich at the zoo, you can say "hey look, a ratite!" and really impress your friends. By definition, a ratite has no keel on their sternum, meaning they couldn't have flown even if they had the right wings. The word "ratite" is derived from the Latin word "ratis," or a raft, i.e. a vessel with no keel.
Question 16
While most flightless birds are fairly large, this little guy is the smallest flightless bird in the world. Found in the South Atlantic Ocean, what family of birds does he belong to?
-
ARails
-
BGrebes
-
CCranes
-
DPuffins
Rails
This is the Inaccessible Island rail, so-named because it lives in an isolated place called "Inaccessible Island" in the Tristan Archipelago in the south Atlantic. Hard to believe anyone ever found it, but it was first described way back in 1923 by Percy Lowe, although it had already been discovered some 50 years earlier.
Question 17
Related to the ostrich, the flightless birds called the Rhea and the Emu are similar, but different. Which of these is NOT a difference between the two?
-
AEmu eggs are black, rheas are not
-
BEmus live in Australia; Rheas are South American
-
CEmus have no nostrils; rheas do
-
DThe emu has a tuft of hair on its head
Emus have no nostrils; rheas do
Of course, both the Rhea and the Emu have nostrils. Emus are native to Australia, but Rheas live in South America. Yet another difference between the two are their eyes - typically the Emu has orange-brown eyes, while the Greater Rhea has blue or brown eyes.
Question 18
Just because you're flightless doesn't mean you can't be beautiful. What species of penguin features blue and white feathers instead of black and white?
-
AMacaroni penguin
-
BChinstrap penguin
-
CWaitaha penguin
-
DLittle penguin
Little penguin
Not surprisingly, the little penguin is the smallest penguin in the world, standing at just about a foot tall, and weighing only about 2 pounds. Little penguins breed in colonies in southern Australia and New Zealand. The island called Phillip Island in Victoria is home to the largest colony, at over 30,000.
Question 19
Not only is the Dodo flightless, but it's also non-existent, having gone extinct hundreds of years ago. On what island were Dodos found before their disappearance?
-
ACyprus
-
BMauritius
-
CZanzibar
-
DMadagascar
Mauritius
Dodo birds were endemic to the island of Mauritius, which is east of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. In its various depictions, the dodo is depicted as having brownish-grey plumage, yellow feet, a naked head like a vulture, and a multi-colored beak.
Question 20
No, Rodrigues Solitaire is not a lonely man's card game, but rather an extinct flightless bird once native to the island of Rodrigues, near Madagascar. What family of birds did it belong to?
-
ADoves
-
BEagles
-
CGulls
-
DStorks
Doves
Much like its nearby cousin, the Dodo, the Rodrigues Solitaire was genetically within the family of pigeons and doves. Rodrigues solitaires were the size of swans, and were known for having males that were much larger than the females.
Comments (3)
We want to hear your feedback! Share your scores and discuss the quiz, but keep it civil.
Hard but easy 2nd time.
@criss
It sucked big-time