Beyond the answers - interesting background to this quiz

A currency that took decades to arrive

Austria's adoption of the euro in 2002 came relatively late compared with some of its neighbours, and it replaced the Austrian schilling, a currency that had been in use since the 1920s. The euro is now the official currency of Austria and a large group of other European countries, which is why travellers can move between many of them without changing money. The shilling, meanwhile, still survives as a name for currencies in parts of East Africa.

The snake that wins on length, not weight

The green anaconda is often called the largest snake in the world, but the title depends on what you measure. Anacondas are exceptionally heavy and bulky, while the reticulated python of Southeast Asia regularly grows longer. Both are constrictors, meaning they overpower prey by squeezing rather than using venom, and both are capable swimmers that spend much of their time near water.

A mountain range that is not the Alps

The Western Ghats run along the western edge of India, a long chain of hills and mountains that shapes the region's rainfall and shelters an extraordinary range of species. The Yeti, by contrast, belongs to the Himalayas, where stories of a large, ape-like creature have circulated for generations. The two are often confused simply because both are associated with mountains and Asia.

A war that began without a declaration

The Korean War started in 1950, when fighting broke out between North and South Korean forces and quickly drew in the United States, China and others. It ended not with a peace treaty but with an armistice in 1953, which is why the two Koreas are technically still at war today. The conflict also left a heavily guarded border that remains one of the most militarised places on earth.

The ocean triangle that is not really a triangle

The Bermuda Triangle sits in the western part of the Atlantic Ocean, bounded roughly by Bermuda, Miami and Puerto Rico. Its reputation for vanishing ships and aircraft owes more to popular books and sensational reporting than to any measurable pattern of losses. Many of the region's waters are busy shipping lanes and hurricane-prone, which helps explain why incidents there have drawn so much attention.