Earwig - Quiz
Earwig
  • 1. What is the typical size range for most earwigs?
A) 7–50 millimetres (1⁄4–2 inches)
B) 10–100 millimetres
C) 5–30 centimeters
D) 1–3 inches
  • 2. Which species is the largest extant earwig?
A) American burrowing earwig
B) European common earwig
C) Australian giant earwig (Titanolabis colossea)
D) Saint Helena earwig (Labidura herculeana)
  • 3. What is the maximum recorded length of the possibly extinct Saint Helena earwig?
A) 100 mm
B) 60 mm
C) 78 mm (3+1⁄16 inches)
D) 50 mm (2 inches)
  • 4. What are the forceps-like pincers on an earwig's abdomen called?
A) Antennae
B) Ovipositors
C) Tegmina
D) Cerci
  • 5. What is the primary use of the pincers in earwigs?
A) For digging burrows
B) To capture prey, defend themselves and fold their wings under the short tegmina.
C) For sensing vibrations
D) For mating rituals
  • 6. How do the antennae of earwigs appear?
A) Feathered and multi-segmented.
B) Thread-like with at least 10 segments.
C) Spike-like with over 20 segments.
D) Clubbed with fewer than 5 segments.
  • 7. Which families of earwigs have males with paired penises?
A) None of the above
B) Only Karschiellidae and Pygidicranidae
C) All earwig families
D) Karschiellidae, Pygidicranidae, Diplatyidae, Apachyidae, Anisolabisidae, and Labiduridae.
  • 8. In which family are both penises symmetrical in males?
A) Labiduridae
B) Apachyidae
C) Pygidicranidae and Diplatyidae.
D) Karschiellidae
  • 9. What is the role of forewings in earwigs?
A) For sensing light
B) To cover the hindwings like the elytra of a beetle.
C) For flying long distances
D) For swimming
  • 10. Which suborders of earwigs are wingless and blind?
A) Neodermaptera
B) Dermaptera
C) Pygidicranidae
D) Arixeniina and Hemimerina.
  • 11. What is unique about the wings of earwigs?
A) They are brightly colored
B) They have scales like butterflies
C) Their venation and pattern of folding that requires the use of the cerci.
D) They can regenerate if damaged
  • 12. What is a typical feature of the earwig's neuroendocrine system?
A) It consists of a brain, subesophageal ganglion, three thoracic ganglia, and six abdominal ganglia.
B) It lacks any ganglia
C) It has only one large central ganglion
D) It is similar to that of mammals
  • 13. What do earwigs lack in their digestive system?
A) Gastric caecae.
B) A midgut
C) A hindgut
D) An esophagus
  • 14. Where is the gonopore located in female earwigs?
A) Behind the seventh abdominal segment.
B) At the front of the abdomen
C) Near the antennae
D) On the thorax
  • 15. What type of ovaries do earwigs have?
A) No ovaries
B) Monotrophic
C) Diploid
D) Polytrophic, with nurse cells and oocytes alternating along the length of the ovariole.
  • 16. Which continents do not have earwigs?
A) Australia.
B) Antarctica.
C) North America.
D) Africa.
  • 17. How many molts do earwigs undergo before becoming adults?
A) Five molts.
B) Seven molts.
C) No molts, they hatch as adults.
D) Three molts.
  • 18. When did the suborder Neodermaptera first appear?
A) In the Jurassic period.
B) In the Paleozoic era.
C) In the Triassic period.
D) During the Cretaceous period.
  • 19. Which major grouping does Dermaptera belong to?
A) Orthoptera.
B) Polyneoptera.
C) Hemiptera.
D) Coleoptera.
  • 20. What is the origin of the scientific name 'Dermaptera'?
A) Greek, meaning 'skin wings'.
B) Latin, meaning 'winged insects'.
C) French, meaning 'ear bugs'.
D) German, meaning 'pincer creatures'.
  • 21. Where was the common earwig introduced in North America?
A) Brought over by early settlers from Asia.
B) Native to North America.
C) From Europe in 1907.
D) Introduced from Australia.
  • 22. How many species of earwigs are found in North America?
A) Over 100 species.
B) Less than 10 species.
C) About 25 species.
D) Exactly 50 species.
  • 23. How many earwig species occur in Europe, including Great Britain?
A) 25 species.
B) 45 species.
C) 100 species.
D) 60 species.
  • 24. Which family of earwigs is found in North America and includes the genus Forficula?
A) Forficulidae.
B) Spongiphoridae.
C) Labiduridae.
D) Anisolabididae.
  • 25. What is the scientific order name for earwigs derived from?
A) 'Pincer insects'.
B) 'Nocturnal flyers'.
C) 'Skin wings'.
D) 'Ear bugs'.
  • 26. What type of metamorphosis do earwigs undergo?
A) Incomplete metamorphosis
B) No metamorphosis
C) Complete metamorphosis
D) Hypermetamorphosis
  • 27. Where do earwigs create their chamber for reproduction?
A) In open fields
B) Underwater
C) Debris, crevices, or soil
D) On tree leaves
  • 28. What is the shape of earwig eggs when they are first laid?
A) Triangular
B) Oval-shaped
C) Square
D) Round
  • 29. What type of insect species show maternal care similar to earwigs?
A) Solitary
B) Communal
C) Social
D) Non-social
  • 30. Do earwig mothers immediately recognize their own eggs?
A) After the first molt
B) Yes
C) No
D) Only after hatching
  • 31. What is the typical behavior pattern of most earwigs?
A) Crepuscular
B) Nocturnal
C) Cavernicolous
D) Diurnal
  • 32. Which species of earwig is known to squirt a foul-smelling liquid?
A) Forficula auricularia
B) Anisolabis maritima
C) Labidura riparia
D) Doru taeniatum
  • 33. What maneuver does Doru taeniatum use to aim its defensive discharge?
A) Jumping
B) Revolving the abdomen
C) Flicking its tail
D) Spinning in circles
  • 34. What type of habitat is associated with cavernicolous earwigs?
A) Forests
B) Grasslands
C) Caves
D) Deserts
  • 35. What unusual behavior can earwigs exhibit under exceptional circumstances?
A) Migrating long distances
B) Building nests
C) Forming swarms
D) Hibernating
  • 36. Where did a significant swarm of earwigs occur in August 1755?
A) Near Stroud, Gloucestershire, UK
B) On the island of Hawaii
C) In the Amazon rainforest
D) In the Sahara Desert
  • 37. Which of these animals is known to prey upon earwigs?
A) Fish
B) Birds
C) Dogs
D) Cats
  • 38. What type of larvae are endoparasites that primarily target earwigs?
A) Tachinid flies
B) Flea larvae
C) Grasshopper larvae
D) Maggots
  • 39. Which species of tachinid fly has been used as a biological control for earwigs for almost a century?
A) Triarthria setipennis
B) Ocytata pallipes
C) Mermis nigrescens
D) Vespula maculifrons
  • 40. Which type of wasp preys upon earwigs when they are abundant?
A) Cicada killer
B) Paper wasp
C) Yellow jacket (Vespula maculifrons)
D) European hornet
  • 41. What type of worm occasionally parasitizes earwigs?
A) Roundworm (Mermis nigrescens)
B) Fluke
C) Tapeworm
D) Hookworm
  • 42. How many species of parasitic fungus have been found on earwigs?
A) 50
B) 100
C) 26
D) 10
  • 43. Which type of mite is observed on common earwigs and feeds on their cadavers?
A) Histiostoma polypori
B) Dust mites
C) Tyroglyphoid mites
D) Scarlet acarine mites
  • 44. What is the extinct suborder of early earwigs called?
A) Archidermaptera
B) Neodermaptera
C) Hemimeridae
D) Arixeniidae
  • 45. What is a unique feature of earwigs not found in other insects?
A) Wings
B) Compound eyes
C) Antennal heart
D) Pincers
  • 46. How many segments do the tarsi of adults from the earliest earwig fossils have?
A) Five-segmented
B) Four-segmented
C) Six-segmented
D) Three-segmented
  • 47. Which order is considered a possible close relative of Dermaptera according to a 2012 study?
A) Blattodea
B) Plecoptera
C) Notoptera
D) Dictyoptera
  • 48. Which living order is found to be the closest relative of earwigs in a 2018 phylogenetic analysis?
A) Embioptera
B) Zoraptera
C) Notoptera
D) Phasmatodea
  • 49. What type of organ is the antennal heart in earwigs?
A) Digestive
B) Circulatory
C) Reproductive
D) Respiratory
  • 50. Which order do earwigs belong to?
A) Orthoptera
B) Coleoptera
C) Hemiptera
D) Dermaptera
  • 51. What type of mouthparts do earwigs have?
A) Biting-type
B) Siphoning-type
C) Piercing-sucking-type
D) Chewing-type
  • 52. Are ocelli present in earwigs?
A) Variable presence
B) Partially present
C) Present
D) Absent
  • 53. Which suborder includes the majority of earwig species?
A) Hemimerina
B) Neodermaptera
C) Forficulina
D) Arixeniina
  • 54. What type of species were the first epizoic earwigs?
A) Living in South American jungles
B) Found in African deserts
C) Discovered on a Malaysian hairless bulldog bat
D) Native to European forests
  • 55. Which taxonomist described the first epizoic earwig species?
A) Charles Darwin
B) Carolus Linnaeus
C) Alfred Russel Wallace
D) Karl Jordan
  • 56. What type of parasites are Hemimeridae?
A) Viviparous ectoparasites
B) Free-living and non-parasitic
C) Endoparasites with segmented cerci
D) Oviparous ectoparasites
  • 57. How many families are included in the Dermaptera order, including extinct ones?
A) 10
B) 15
C) 5
D) 20
  • 58. What kind of damage do earwigs cause to plants?
A) Circular holes in leaves
B) Stem girdling
C) Root rot
D) Cup-shaped bite marks
  • 59. In James Joyce's novel Finnegans Wake, what do the initials 'HCE' primarily stand for?
A) Henry Charles Ewing
B) Harold Chester Evans
C) Hugh Calvin Edwards
D) Humphrey Chimpden Earwicker
  • 60. Which short story by Oscar Cook involves the use of an earwig as a murder instrument?
A) "The Caterpillar"
B) "Boomerang"
C) "Switch On The Light"
D) "A Century Of Creepy Stories"
  • 61. Which TV series adapted Oscar Cook's story 'Boomeranger'?
A) Alfred Hitchcock Presents
B) Tales from the Crypt
C) Night Gallery
D) The Twilight Zone
  • 62. What is the alternative name for earwigs in some parts of rural England?
A) "Fighting-antenna"
B) "Battle-twig"
C) "Combat-bug"
D) "War-worm"
  • 63. In which poem by Alfred, Lord Tennyson is the term 'battle-twig' mentioned?
A) The Spinster's Sweet-Arts
B) Ulysses
C) The Lady of Shalott
D) In Memoriam A.H.H.
  • 64. Who is the Japanese cultural entomologist that inferred the meaning of earwig names in Japan?
A) Kenta Takada
B) Yasuo Tanaka
C) Takashi Sato
D) Hiroshi Nakamura
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