Quiz Maker

QUIZ: Sand Dwellers

How much do you know about the benthic organisms that live on the sea floor? Put your knowledge to the test in our latest quiz.

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1. A clam lives buried in sediment, while a crab walks across its surface. Which terms describe their respective lifestyles?

Epifaunal and infaunal

Infaunal and epifaunal

Pelagic and benthic

Benthic and pelagic

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2. A splendid garden eel lines its burrow with mucus. What is the main purpose of this lining?

To trap plankton entering the burrow

To disguise its scent from predators

To prevent the burrow walls from collapsing

To stop seawater entering the burrow

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3. Burrowing worms move sediment grains as they feed and excavate. What is this process called?

Eutrophication

Biomineralisation

Bioaccumulation

Bioturbation

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4. An adult plaice rests with both eyes facing upwards. Which part of its body lies against the seabed?

Its belly

Its back

its side

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5. What chiefly powers a sand dollar’s movement through sand?

Rhythmic contractions of its body

Jets of water expelled from its mouth

Movements of its small spines

Rippling movements of its outer edge

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6. How does an Atlantic razor clam make the surrounding sediment easier to burrow through?

By binding loose grains into a rigid tunnel

By locally fluidising it through body movements

By dissolving sediment with acidic secretions

By swallowing the sand directly beneath its foot

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7. Complete the sentence: a heart urchin’s rigid skeleton is called a…

Mantle

Operculum

Carapace

Test

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8. A stingray lies partly buried in sand. Which openings allow it to draw in water for breathing from above its body?

Spiracles behind its eyes

Nostrils beneath its snout

Gill slits along its underside

Pores along its tail

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