The capybara: the calmest animal, friend of crocodiles?

Tests: 4 of 11 right · Exam: 2 of 4 right · Kind: ★ · Understood: 9 of 15 · Run: 2026-10-18, commit f3c23ea72

Lesson 42 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.

Every question of this lesson and each of its options parsed by Mova, with trees and pragmatics: the lesson's questions in the corpora.

Test 1 · ★ · wrong ✗

«capybaras are friends with literally everything, even crocs, it's on TikTok» What is right?

1. Yes, crocodiles guard capybaras from jaguars, it's a proper team-up — score 0
2. They are calm and tolerant, but caimans and jaguars still hunt them — ✓ the right answer · score 4
3. Yes, no animal anywhere ever harms a capybara, they're too chill — ← Mova's choice · score 6
4. No, capybaras hunt crocodiles — score 6

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 3 with score 6, tied with another option at 6 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 42, line 5: «In memes and cartoons the capybara is everyone's chilled best friend, even the crocodile's; real capybaras are relaxed and tolerant, but they are still prey an…», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «capybara» (+2); the same property (+2); the same light verb (be, have, do, get, go) (+2). The right option, 2, scored 4. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 2 · ★ · right ✓

In a cartoon, a crocodile and a capybara share a picnic and the croc never gets hungry. What would a real caiman do?

1. Carry baby capybaras in its mouth to keep them safe from jaguars — no support
2. Eat grass and leaves on the bank together with the capybara — no support
3. Always attack every capybara it sees — no support
4. Ignore an adult while it is full, but sometimes grab a young one — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 9

Why: It took the question to ask what is done. It chose option 4 with score 9, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 42, line 4: «Caimans, cousins of alligators, sometimes do catch capybaras, mostly young ones, so the truth is calm, not friendship: a big capybara is a hard catch, a sunbat…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+3); the same action «catch» (+2); the same thing acted on «capybaras» (+2); the same doer «caimans» (+1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 3 · ★ · wrong ✗

«why doesn't the bloody croc just eat it, it's right there» What is the best answer?

1. The adult is big, the croc is not that hungry, and it would dash into the water — ✓ the right answer · no support
2. Caimans cannot open their mouths wide enough for anything bigger than a fish, mate — no support
3. Capybaras taste of soap — no support
4. Crocodiles are not allowed to eat rodents, it's against their own rules — ← Mova's choice · score 1

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 4 with score 1, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 42, line 8: «Caimans, especially the big black caiman, sometimes catch and eat capybaras, mostly young ones near the water; jaguars, anacondas and pumas hunt them too.», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same thing acted on «capybaras» (+4); the same action «eat» (+1). Against it: one says «not», the other does not (counts against) (-4). The right option, 1, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 4 · ★ · wrong ✗

What would happen to capybaras in a park if jaguars and caimans all disappeared?

1. They would slowly die out without their old friends to keep them company — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. They would turn into hunters — no support
3. Their numbers would grow, and they could eat gardens bare — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. Nothing at all would change — no support

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

Test 5 · ★ · wrong ✗

«mate wants to pet a wild capybara, they're basically giant plushies» What is the best advice?

1. Fine, as long as you bring a duck to sit on it — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Do not: a wild capybara can bite hard with its big front teeth — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. Only pet it if a caiman is lying nearby — no support
4. Fine, they never bite anyone, they're the chillest animals going — no support

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

Test 6 · ★ · right ✓

«my sis says it's a water pig so it's a pig, done» What is right?

1. Wrong, it is a kind of small hippo that never grew up properly, innit — no support
2. Right, it is a kind of wild pig that just likes swimming in rivers — no support
3. Right, pigs and capybaras are the same animal — no support
4. Its name means water pig, but it is a rodent, a guinea pig's cousin — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 5

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 4 with score 5, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 42, line 16: «Its name is sometimes said to mean «water pig», but the capybara is no pig: it is a close cousin of the guinea pig, both South American rodents, but a capybara…», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same thing acted on «water pig» (+4); the same action «mean» (+1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 7 · ★ · right ✓

A yellow bird is pecking at a capybara's back. Is the capybara in trouble?

1. Yes, the bird is calling out to the caimans to show them where it is — no support
2. No, the bird is just keeping warm — no support
3. Yes, the bird is eating its fur — score 2
4. No, the bird is eating ticks and flies, which helps it — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 4

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 4 with score 4, against 2 for the next best. Its support: lesson 42, line 11: «Birds such as cattle tyrants and yellow-headed caracaras ride on capybaras and eat ticks and flies; both gain, which scientists call mutualism, and the capybar…», 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 «birds» (+1); the same thing acted on «ticks» (+1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 8 · ★ · wrong ✗

In a game, your capybara sits in the river with its whole head out of the water to hide. What would a real one do?

1. Dig a hole in the mud and stay there for hours — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Stay on the bank and growl — no support
3. Sink so only its eyes, ears and nostrils show — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. Climb a tree instead — no support

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

Test 9 · ★ · wrong ✗

«no way a capybara's quicker than me lol» What is true?

1. It can only waddle along at about 2 km/h, slower than you walk — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Over a short burst it can run about 35 km/h, like a fast sprinter — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. It is faster than a cheetah over any distance you like — no support
4. It cannot run at all, it can only swim and float — no support

Why: Nothing it remembers matched the question, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 10 · ★ · wrong ✗

«guinea pig + capybara both rodents, so same size near enough» What is right?

1. No, the guinea pig is bigger — no support
2. Yes, they weigh about the same, give or take a bit — ← Mova's choice · score 6
3. No, a capybara can be about 50 times heavier — ✓ the right answer · score 6
4. Yes, but the capybara has much longer legs, that's all — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 2 with score 6, tied with another option at 6 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 42, line 14: «To get every bit of goodness, capybaras eat some of their own soft droppings in the morning, so the food passes through the gut twice, as rabbits do.», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same thing acted on «bit» (+4); the same doer «capybaras» (+2). The right option, 3, scored 6. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 11 · ★ · right ✓

«that croc's yawning at the capybara, it's being well rude» What is really going on?

1. It is cooling off by letting heat out of its open mouth — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · no support
2. It is tired after a long night of hunting fish in the dark river — no support
3. It is calling its babies over — no support
4. It is threatening the capybara — no support

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

Exam question 1 · formal language · wrong ✗

Which of the following statements most accurately characterises the relationship between capybaras and caimans?

1. The two frequently rest in proximity, yet caimans on occasion prey upon capybaras, chiefly the young — ✓ the right answer · score 3
2. Capybaras habitually prey upon the eggs and young of caimans — ← Mova's choice · score 8
3. The two species maintain a lasting friendship of mutual defence against the jaguar and the anaconda — no support
4. Caimans subsist principally upon capybaras and consume them daily — score 8

Why: It took the question to ask who or what does it. It chose option 2 with score 8, tied with another option at 8 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 42, line 16: «Its name is sometimes said to mean «water pig», but the capybara is no pig: it is a close cousin of the guinea pig, both South American rodents, but a capybara…», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: it fills the role the question asks for (+5); the same doer «capybara» (+3). The right option, 1, scored 3. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 2 · formal language · wrong ✗

Identify the principal reason for which a capybara may be observed consuming its own soft droppings.

1. The practice serves solely to clean the burrow — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. The animal is thereby rendered unpalatable to the caiman, the jaguar and other predators of the region — no support
3. The food passes through the gut a second time, permitting the extraction of further nourishment — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. The animal is deprived of any other source of food — no support

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

Exam question 3 · formal language · right ✓

Select the response consistent with the established facts concerning the birds which stand upon capybaras.

1. The birds feed upon the capybara's fur to its detriment, an arrangement termed parasitism — no support
2. The birds alert caimans to the location of the capybara — no support
3. The birds are carried to their nests in exchange for nothing — no support
4. The birds remove ticks and flies, an arrangement of mutual benefit termed mutualism — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 7

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 4 with score 7, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 42, line 11: «Birds such as cattle tyrants and yellow-headed caracaras ride on capybaras and eat ticks and flies; both gain, which scientists call mutualism, and the capybar…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «birds» (+5); the same thing acted on «ticks» (+3). Against it: a different action (counts against) (-1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 4 · formal language · right ✓

Ascertain the reason for which an adult caiman may abstain from feeding for many days.

1. Being a reptile, it does not expend food in maintaining its body heat — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 0
2. It is incapable of digesting any food larger than a snail — no support
3. It obtains all its nourishment from the water it swallows — no support
4. It sustains itself by consuming grass in the manner of the capybara upon the bank — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 0, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 42, line 17: «Caimans and crocodiles bask with their mouths open to let heat escape and cool down; it is not a threat or a yawn.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same doer «caimans» (+1); the same thing acted on «heat» (+1). Against it: a different action (counts against) (-2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

This page in Markdown → https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/biology/42-the-capybara/