---
title: How animals defend themselves — how Mova does on the tests · Biology
description: Lesson 53 of the biology course of Mova's primary school: 8 of 12 tests right, exam 2 of 4, every question with the options, the student's choice, the right answer and why it chose.
---

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# How animals defend themselves

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**Tests:** 8 of 12 right · **Exam:** 2 of 4 right · **Kind:** plain · **Understood:** 13 of 16 · **Run:** 2026-10-18, commit `f3c23ea72`

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Lesson 53 of the biology course of Mova's primary school, as Mova's small model took its tests: it had read this lesson and the ones before it and learned from their exercises. Each test shows the options in the order the student saw them, its choice, the right answer, the score of every option and why it chose. The lesson itself, sentence by sentence with trees and pragmatics: [the lesson in the corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/53-how-animals-defend-themselves/).

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Every question of this lesson and each of its options parsed by Mova, with trees and pragmatics: [the lesson's questions in the corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/53-how-animals-defend-themselves/).

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### Test 1 · right ✓ {#t1}

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in the cartoon the porcupine fires its quills like a machine gun. can they actually?

- **1.** No, quills just come off easily when touched — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 11
- **2.** Yes, but only at night — no support
- **3.** No, porcupines have only soft fur — no support
- **4.** Yes, up to 10 metres, and they can aim them — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 11, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 53, line 7: «Porcupines raise and rattle barbed quills and back into an attacker; they cannot shoot their quills, but the quills come off easily and grow back.», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «quills» (+5); the same action «come off» (+4); the same property (+2). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/53-how-animals-defend-themselves/t1/)

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### Test 2 · right ✓ {#t2}

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If porcupines cannot throw quills, how do quills end up stuck in a dog's nose?

- **1.** The porcupine stabbed it again and again with its long sharp front teeth — no support
- **2.** The wind blew them at the dog — no support
- **3.** The dog touched or bit the porcupine and the barbed quills came off — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 7
- **4.** The dog rolled in an old nest — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask what something is like. It chose option 3 with score 7, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 53, line 7: «Porcupines raise and rattle barbed quills and back into an attacker; they cannot shoot their quills, but the quills come off easily and grow back.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «come off» (+4); the same doer «quills» (+3); it fills the role the question asks for (+1). Against it: the same property (-1). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/53-how-animals-defend-themselves/t2/)

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### Test 3 · right ✓ {#t3}

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A zoo frog is the same bright blue as a wild one. Why is it safe while the wild one is poisonous?

- **1.** It eats crickets and fruit flies, not the wild ants and mites — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 5
- **2.** It is only poisonous in the rain — score 4
- **3.** Zookeepers wash all of the poison off its skin every single morning — score 2
- **4.** Zoo glass soaks up the poison — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 1 with score 5, against 4 for the next best. Its support: lesson 53, line 9: «Wild poison dart frogs have poison in their skin, made from the ants and mites they eat, and their bright colours warn predators, which learn the colours and l…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «eat» (+2); the same doer «frog» (+2); the same thing acted on «ants» (+1). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/53-how-animals-defend-themselves/t3/)

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### Test 4 · wrong ✗ {#t4}

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Why would a poisonous animal want to be easy to see instead of hiding?

- **1.** Predators learn its colours and leave it alone — **✓ the right answer** · score 3
- **2.** Bright colours keep it warm in the shade — score 2
- **3.** It is too slow to hide — **← Mova's choice** · score 4
- **4.** It wants to make friends with other animals — score 4

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**Why:** It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 3 with score 4, tied with another option at 4 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 53, line 3: «Some animals hide, but others want to be seen: the bright blue poison dart frog and the black and white skunk wear warning colours that say, loud and clear, do…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «hide» (+2); the same doer «animals» (+2). The right option, 1, scored 3. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/53-how-animals-defend-themselves/t4/)

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### Test 5 · right ✓ {#t5}

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Why should you never try to make a pufferfish puff up just to see it?

- **1.** It costs the aquarium money — no support
- **2.** Puffing up is stressful and tiring for the fish — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 7
- **3.** It will explode — no support
- **4.** It will chase you out of the water and bite your toes — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 2 with score 7, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 53, line 10: «A pufferfish gulps water into a stretchy stomach and swells to several times its size; puffing up is stressful, so it only does it when it must.», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «puffing» (+4); the same light verb (be, have, do, get, go) (+2); the same property (+1). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/53-how-animals-defend-themselves/t5/)

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### Test 6 · right ✓ {#t6}

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Why should you never pick up a lizard by its tail?

- **1.** It may drop the tail, and growing a new one costs it a lot — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 8
- **2.** The tail is where its heart is — no support
- **3.** Its tail is poisonous to touch and will burn your hand — no support
- **4.** It will turn into a snake — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 1 with score 8, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 53, line 11: «Many lizards can drop their tail on purpose; it wriggles to distract the attacker, and the new tail grows back with cartilage instead of bones; growing a new o…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «many lizards» (+4); the same action «drop» (+3); the same thing acted on «tail» (+1). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/53-how-animals-defend-themselves/t6/)

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### Test 7 · wrong ✗ {#t7}

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mate says squid ink's just them pooing in fright. right?

- **1.** No, it's blood from a cut — no support
- **2.** Yes, it's what they had for dinner — no support
- **3.** Yes, they only squirt it when they're ill or really scared of something — **← Mova's choice** · score 7
- **4.** No, it is a defence: a dark cloud to hide behind — **✓ the right answer** · no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 3 with score 7, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 39, line 14: «Octopuses, squid and cuttlefish squirt ink made of melanin to hide or to make a fake blob while they jet away; cooks use squid ink to colour pasta black.», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same thing acted on «ink» (+5); the same action «squirt» (+2). The right option, 4, found no support in what it remembers. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/53-how-animals-defend-themselves/t7/)

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### Test 8 · right ✓ {#t8}

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Why do the eye spots on a butterfly work best if they appear suddenly?

- **1.** The spots fade if left open — no support
- **2.** A sudden pair of big eyes startles a bird before it can think — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 4
- **3.** The butterfly runs out of colour — no support
- **4.** Birds can only ever see eyes that are moving or blinking at them — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 2 with score 4, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 53, line 16: «A peacock butterfly suddenly flashes four big eye spots, which startle a bird before it can think, and even hisses; in experiments, birds were much more scared…», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same thing acted on «bird» (+5); the same action «startle» (+2). Against it: a different doer (counts against) (-3). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/53-how-animals-defend-themselves/t8/)

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### Test 9 · wrong ✗ {#t9}

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Which is true about the opossum playing dead?

- **1.** It can play dead for only one second — **← Mova's choice** · score 5
- **2.** It turns bright yellow while it does it — no support
- **3.** It chooses to act dead to make the people watching laugh — score 3
- **4.** It is more like fainting from fear than acting — **✓ the right answer** · score 3

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**Why:** It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 5, against 3 for the next best. Its support: lesson 53, line 1: «If you cannot run faster than the fox, you need another plan, and animals have hundreds: spines, armour, stinks, poison, tricks, fake eyes, playing dead and st…», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same property (+3); the same action «play» (+2). The right option, 4, scored 3. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/53-how-animals-defend-themselves/t9/)

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### Test 10 · wrong ✗ {#t10}

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What would be the weak point in a ring of musk oxen?

- **1.** There is no weak point at all, the ring is perfect and wolves always give up — **← Mova's choice** · no support
- **2.** The middle, where the strongest stand — no support
- **3.** Any gap, or an ox that panics and runs, letting wolves in — **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **4.** The horns, which are soft — no support

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**Why:** No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/53-how-animals-defend-themselves/t10/)

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### Test 11 · right ✓ {#t11}

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Why would digging fast be just as good as armour for an armadillo?

- **1.** It can get its soft belly safely underground before an attacker comes — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 5
- **2.** Armadillos dig to find more armour — no support
- **3.** Digging makes its shell grow thicker and harder every time — no support
- **4.** Predators are afraid of mud — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 1 with score 5, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 53, line 15: «The three-banded armadillo is the only armadillo that can roll into a complete ball; most others run or dig quickly into the ground to get their soft belly out…», reached through the cause of the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same thing acted on «soft belly» (+4); the same light verb (be, have, do, get, go) (+2). Against it: a different doer (counts against) (-1). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/53-how-animals-defend-themselves/t11/)

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### Test 12 · right ✓ {#t12}

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Why might a bee give its life for the hive?

- **1.** Bees always die after a week anyway, so it doesn't lose much at all — score 7
- **2.** The hive is full of its sisters, so protecting it protects its family — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 9
- **3.** It wants to save its own honey for itself — score 1
- **4.** It does not like the person it stung — score 4

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**Why:** It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 2 with score 9, against 7 for the next best. Its support: lesson 53, line 13: «A honeybee's barbed sting gets stuck in thick skin like ours and tears away, so the bee dies; wasps have smooth stings and can sting again; the hive is full of…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same circumstance (+3); the same light verb (be, have, do, get, go) (+3); the same doer «hive» (+2); the same property (+1). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/53-how-animals-defend-themselves/t12/)

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### Exam question 1 · formal language · wrong ✗ {#e1}

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Identify the principal function of the vivid colouration exhibited by wild poison dart frogs.

- **1.** It attracts insect prey within reach of the tongue — **← Mova's choice** · no support
- **2.** It serves as a warning of toxicity to would-be predators — **✓ the right answer** · no support
- **3.** It affords camouflage among the blossoms of the tropical forest — no support
- **4.** It regulates the temperature of the skin — no support

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**Why:** No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/53-how-animals-defend-themselves/e1/)

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### Exam question 2 · formal language · wrong ✗ {#e2}

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Which of the following statements most accurately characterises the defensive conduct of the porcupine?

- **1.** The quills are concealed until the animal is seized — **← Mova's choice** · no support
- **2.** The quills are propelled through the air towards the assailant at speed — no support
- **3.** The quills are discharged together with a noxious spray — no support
- **4.** The quills are raised and rattled and detach readily upon contact — **✓ the right answer** · no support

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**Why:** No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/53-how-animals-defend-themselves/e2/)

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### Exam question 3 · formal language · right ✓ {#e3}

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Select the response consistent with the established facts concerning the sting of the honeybee.

- **1.** Being barbed, it remains in the victim's skin and the bee perishes — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 12
- **2.** It is delivered by means of the mandibles — no support
- **3.** It is withdrawn and regrown within the hour — no support
- **4.** Being smooth, it may be employed repeatedly against the same assailant — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 12, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 36, line 14: «Only female bees and wasps sting; a honeybee's barbed sting stays in human skin and the bee dies, while a wasp's smooth sting slides out, so it can sting many…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «barbed sting» (+5); the same action «stay» (+4); the same place «human skin» (+3). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/53-how-animals-defend-themselves/e3/)

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### Exam question 4 · formal language · right ✓ {#e4}

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Ascertain the formation adopted by a herd of musk oxen upon the approach of wolves.

- **1.** A concealment of the herd within snow drifts — no support
- **2.** A ring facing outward with the young enclosed — **← Mova's choice** · **✓ the right answer** · score 9
- **3.** A dispersal of individuals at random — no support
- **4.** A single file retreating at speed — no support

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**Why:** It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 2 with score 9, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 53, line 18: «Musk oxen form a ring facing outwards, with calves in the middle, so wolves meet only a wall of horns.», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «ring» (+5); the same action «face» (+4). · [the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/biology/53-how-animals-defend-themselves/e4/)

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- ← previous: [52. How animals hunt](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/biology/52-how-animals-hunt/)
- next →: [54. Migration: the great journeys](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/biology/54-migration-the-great-journeys/)
- ↑ back to [Biology](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/biology/)