Animals of Australia and New Zealand: kangaroos, koalas, wombats, kiwis

Tests: 8 of 12 right · Exam: 3 of 4 right · Kind: ★★ · Understood: 11 of 16 · Run: 2026-10-18, commit f3c23ea72

Lesson 79 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 ✗

«koala bears are so cute, wanna hug one» What is right?

1. Koalas are marsupials, not bears, and wild ones should be left alone — ✓ the right answer · score 2
2. No, koalas are a kind of monkey — score 2
3. Yes, koalas are the smallest kind of bear, so hugging them is safe — ← Mova's choice · score 5
4. Yes, koalas love hugs from people — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 3 with score 5, against 2 for the next best. Its support: lesson 55, line 5: «Cartoons show bears snoring all winter and waking up in spring with a big stretch, and goldfish forgetting everything in 3 seconds; real bears sleep more light…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same circumstance (+3); the same thing acted on «bears» (+2). The right option, 1, scored 2. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 2 · ★★ · right ✓

«koalas are just stoned on eucalyptus all day lol» What is right?

1. That's a myth; they rest because the leaves give little energy — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 4
2. Yes, eucalyptus makes them drunk — no support
3. No, koalas only sleep in winter — score 4
4. Yes, and that is why they keep falling out of the trees all the time — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 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 1, line 18: «Koalas eat almost only eucalyptus leaves, which are tough, low in energy and slightly poisonous and need special gut bacteria to digest, so they rest or sleep…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «rest» (+2); the same doer «koalas» (+2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 3 · ★★ · right ✓

«saw a platypus, gonna pick it up for a selfie» What is the best answer?

1. Fine, as long as you hold it by the bill so it cannot bite you — no support
2. Fine, they love being held — no support
3. Fine, platypuses are harmless — no support
4. Don't: males have a venomous spur that causes terrible pain — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 6

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 4 with score 6, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 79, line 8: «The platypus is an egg-laying mammal with a duck-like bill; under water it shuts its eyes, ears and nose and senses tiny electric signals from prey, and males…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «cause» (+4); the same thing acted on «terrible pain» (+2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 4 · ★★ · right ✓

In a cartoon, a kangaroo wears boxing gloves and hops forever without getting tired. What is real?

1. Springy tendons make hopping cheap, but top speed is only for short bursts — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 12
2. Kangaroos cannot hop, they walk on four legs — score 1
3. Kangaroos never get tired at any speed, so they can hop all day and night — no support
4. Kangaroos fly short distances — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 12, against 1 for the next best. Its support: lesson 79, line 5: «Red kangaroos are the largest marsupials, can stand taller than a man and hop at over 50 kilometres per hour in bursts; their springy tendons make hopping chea…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «springy tendons» (+5); the same action «hop» (+4); the same property (+3). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 5 · ★★ · wrong ✗

«that wombat poo's square, someone's messing with us» What is right?

1. It is not poo, it is a wombat egg — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Someone carved it with a knife — no support
3. Wombats sit on square rocks to squash it into shape on purpose — no support
4. Wombats really make cube-shaped droppings, shaped in the gut — ✓ the right answer · 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 6 · ★★ · right ✓

«cassowary looks friendly, I'll give it my sandwich» Why is that a bad idea?

1. Fed cassowaries lose their fear of people and may kick with sharp claws — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 6
2. Cassowaries only eat meat, so the bread would make them angry and attack — score -1
3. Sandwiches make cassowaries sleepy — no support
4. It is fine, cassowaries never kick — score 6

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 1 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 79, line 16: «The southern cassowary has a dagger-like claw up to about 12 centimetres on each foot; it avoids people, but fed cassowaries lose their fear and can kick if fe…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «fed cassowaries» (+4); the same action «lose» (+2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 7 · ★★ · wrong ✗

«crap, a kea's nicking the wiper off the car!» Why do keas do this?

1. They hate cars and attack them to drive them out of the mountains — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. They are hungry and eat rubber — no support
3. Someone trained them to steal — no support
4. They are very clever and curious and try out everything they find — ✓ the right answer · 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 8 · ★★ · right ✓

Why might scientists keep a healthy group of Tasmanian devils on a separate island?

1. Because devils like islands better — no support
2. As insurance, in case the face tumour disease kills the rest — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 6
3. To stop them eating all the baby kangaroos on the mainland — no support
4. To breed them into dogs — no support

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 2 with score 6, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 79, line 14: «The Tasmanian devil is the largest surviving meat-eating marsupial, about the size of a small dog, with a bone-crushing bite; a face tumour disease has killed…», reached through the cause of the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «kill» (+5); the same doer «face tumour disease» (+1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 9 · ★★ · right ✓

What would happen if rats and stoats spread through a New Zealand forest?

1. Ground-nesting birds like kiwis would lose eggs and chicks — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · no support
2. The birds would turn round and eat the rats and stoats instead — no support
3. Nothing, kiwis are too fast — no support
4. Kiwis would quickly learn to fly away into the trees — 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 10 · ★★ · right ✓

«emus are just Aussie ostriches» What is true?

1. Yes, ostriches are baby emus — no support
2. No, emus can fly — no support
3. Emus are a different bird, the second tallest after the ostrich — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 5
4. Yes, they are the same species, just living in a different country — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 3 with score 5, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 79, line 15: «The emu is the second tallest bird, up to about 1.9 metres, and runs at around 50 kilometres per hour; the father sits on the eggs for about 8 weeks, hardly ea…», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same thing acted on «second tallest bird» (+5); the same light verb (be, have, do, get, go) (+1). Against it: the same doer «emu» (-1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 11 · ★★ · right ✓

«the tuatara is just a lizard, innit» What is right?

1. Yes, it is a baby crocodile — no support
2. It looks like one but is the last of a separate ancient group — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 8
3. Yes, it is a common green iguana that escaped from a pet shop — no support
4. No, it is a kind of frog — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 2 with score 8, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 79, line 17: «The tuatara looks like a lizard but is the last survivor of an ancient group of reptiles; it lives on cool New Zealand islands and can live over 100 years.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same property (+3); the same doer «tuatara» (+2); the same light verb (be, have, do, get, go) (+2); the same circumstance (+1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 12 · ★★ · wrong ✗

Why is a kiwi's egg remarkable?

1. It is the smallest egg of any bird in the world — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. It is square like a wombat dropping — no support
3. It is about 20 percent of the mother's weight — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. It hatches in one day — 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

Exam question 1 · formal language · right ✓

Which of the following statements most accurately characterises the koala?

1. It is a marsupial whose long rest saves the scant energy of eucalyptus leaves — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 5
2. It is a primate which rests only during the winter months — no support
3. It is a species of bear intoxicated by the leaves of the eucalyptus tree — score 5
4. It is a nocturnal predator which hunts throughout the night — no support

Why: It took the question to ask who or what does it. It chose option 1 with score 5, tied with another option at 5 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 79, line 6: «Koalas are marsupials, not bears; they rest about 18 to 22 hours a day because eucalyptus leaves are tough, low in energy and poisonous to most animals, and th…», 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 (+2); the same doer «koalas» (+1); the same thing acted on «marsupials» (+1); the same light verb (be, have, do, get, go) (+1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 2 · formal language · right ✓

Identify the means by which the platypus detects its prey beneath the water.

1. By hearing, its ears remaining open beneath the water — score 4
2. By sensing minute electrical signals with its bill — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 9
3. By the sense of smell, its nostrils remaining open — no support
4. By sight, its eyes remaining fully open beneath the water — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 2 with score 9, against 4 for the next best. Its support: lesson 43, line 7: «A platypus dives with its eyes, ears and nostrils closed and finds shrimps, worms and insect larvae with tens of thousands of sensors in its soft bill that fee…», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same doer «echidna» (+5); the same action «bill» (+4). · 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 incubation of the eggs of the emu.

1. The male incubates the eggs for some eight weeks, scarcely eating — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 4
2. The female incubates the eggs for approximately eight days — score 4
3. The eggs are incubated by the warmth of the sun alone, being buried in sand — score 4
4. Both parents incubate the eggs in alternating hours — score 4

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 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 49, line 1: «Animals have babies in three main ways: they lay eggs that hatch outside, they give birth to live young that grew inside the mother, or, like kangaroos, they g…», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: the same thing acted on «eggs» (+5); the same action «hatch» (+2). Against it: a different doer (counts against) (-3). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 4 · formal language · wrong ✗

State the two mammals of Australia which reproduce by laying eggs.

1. The emu and the laughing kookaburra — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. The red kangaroo and the koala — no support
3. The wombat and the Tasmanian devil — no support
4. The platypus and the echidna — ✓ the right answer · 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

This page in Markdown → https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/biology/79-animals-of-australia-and-new-zealand/