Trivia question for Apr-14-2011

Since we are not available to post the answer for yesterday’s trivia like normal, we are adding the answer here. Please read below for todays trivia.

Answer to 04-13-11 Trivia questions:

The mammal we featured yesterday was the False Killer Whale.  They get their name because of the similarities in looks and behavior to their cousins the Killer Whales.

The population is currently on the brink of extinction; only 10 known groups are left. The eastern Pacific is estimated to have in excess of 40,000 individuals and is probably the home of the largest grouping.  On 2 June 2005 up to 140 (estimates vary) False Killer Whales were beached at Geographe Bay, Western Australia. The main pod, which had been split into four separate strandings along the length of the coast, was successfully moved back to sea with only one death after the intervention of 1,500 volunteers coordinated by the Department of Conservation and Land Management.  (We actually found one report which claims that 835 individuals were beached at one time, but we could not confirm that number.)

Here is an interesting fact: A false killer whale and a bottlenose dolphin mated in captivity and produced a fertile calf. The hybrid offspring has been called a “wholphin”.  Here is more on these killers:  False Killer Whales.  Thanks for playing along.  Now here is todays trivia:

This is a most extraordinary mammal; the female lays eggs and produces milk to feed its young.  How many egg layers do you know that also produce milk?  That is not one of our questions… I’m just saying.

These guys have one of the largest ‘cortex’s’ of any mammal.  That’s the portion that deals with memory and intelligence.  During the winter, it goes into deep torpor and hibernation to save energy and reduce metabolism, before emerging as the temperature increases to breed. Females only lay one egg a year, and the mating period is the only time that the otherwise solitary animals meet one another; the father has no further contact with the mother after mating.

So here are our questions:  How do these odd creatures incubate their eggs?  Also, their scientific name is Tachyglossus (tachy) (glossus), can you tell us what it means?

Good Luck 😉