Animals & Nature
Extinct Animals Quiz
Dodos, woolly mammoths, and the species we lost — some just decades ago.
Dodos, woolly mammoths, and the species we lost — some just decades ago.
The Passenger Pigeon went from being the most abundant bird in North America — with flocks of billions that darkened the sky for days — to complete extinction in just a few decades. This quiz explores the species we've lost and the fight to bring some back.
Each round presents 10 randomized multiple-choice questions drawn from a pool of 50, so every playthrough is different. You get instant feedback with explanations after each answer, plus a shareable score at the end.
You'll discover famous extinctions from the dodo to the thylacine, learn about recent species losses and de-extinction efforts using CRISPR technology, understand what drives species to extinction, and explore whether we're in the midst of a sixth mass extinction.
Companies like Colossal Biosciences are using CRISPR gene editing to attempt de-extinction of woolly mammoths and thylacines. While promising, the technology creates 'mammoth-like' animals rather than true replicas, and ethical debates continue.
The Bramble Cay melomys, an Australian rodent, was declared extinct in 2019 — the first documented mammalian extinction directly caused by climate change, as rising seas flooded its tiny island habitat.
The dodo went extinct by 1681, less than 100 years after humans first arrived on Mauritius. The flightless birds were hunted by sailors and devastated by introduced species like rats, pigs, and monkeys that ate their eggs.
Last updated: March 2026