Salish Sea Activity Book Quiz

Multiple-Choice Questions

1. What is the Salish Sea?
A) A man-made canal system
B) The traditional name for inland waters of Canada and Washington State used by First Nation peoples
C) A single lake in Washington State
D) A river that flows into the Pacific Ocean

2. What is the largest kind of clam described in the book?
A) Blue Mussel
B) Sea Otter
C) Geoduck
D) Hermit Crab

3. Why do hermit crabs use other animals' shells?
A) They like the decoration
B) They have no shells of their own
C) They are stealing food
D) They are hiding from Orcas

4. What is the most common marine mammal seen in the Salish Sea?
A) Orca
B) Sea Otter
C) Pacific Harbor Seal
D) Sea Lion

5. What is the most common shark found in the Salish Sea area?
A) Great White Shark
B) Spiny Dogfish
C) Hammerhead Shark
D) Tiger Shark

6. How do sea otters help keep kelp forests healthy?
A) By eating kelp themselves
B) By keeping the number of sea urchins (which eat kelp) down
C) By building nests in the kelp
D) By scaring away fish

7. How do Tufted Puffins carry multiple fish in their bill at once?
A) They swallow them whole first
B) They secure the first fish between their tongue and upper jaw, leaving the lower bill free to catch more
C) They use their wings to hold extra fish
D) They only carry one fish at a time

Short-Answer Questions

8. Explain how glaciers helped shape the Salish Sea area about ten thousand years ago.

9. Describe two physical differences between the dorsal fins of adult male and adult female Orcas.

10. According to the book, what must salmon do, and why is this an important part of their life cycle?

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Answer Key

1. B) The traditional name for inland waters of Canada and Washington State used by First Nation peoples
2. C) Geoduck
3. B) They have no shells of their own
4. C) Pacific Harbor Seal
5. B) Spiny Dogfish
6. B) By keeping the number of sea urchins (which eat kelp) down
7. B) They secure the first fish between their tongue and upper jaw, leaving the lower bill free to catch more

1. Massive rivers of ice flowed through the Georgia Strait from northern ice fields. When the ice stream hit the Olympic Mountains, it split — one part went into Puget Sound and one went down the Strait of Georgia. The glaciers carved the area deeply, and when they retreated, they left behind gravel, sand, clay, and till.

1. Adult male Orcas have a tall, straight dorsal fin up to 5 feet tall, while adult female Orcas have a smaller, triangular-shaped dorsal fin only 3–4 feet tall.

1. Salmon must return to the same area in the same river where they were born.