Consider the following animals : 1. Hedgehog 2. Marmot 3. Pangolin To reduce the chance of being captured by predators, which of the above organisms rolls up/roll up and protects/protect its/their vulnerable parts?

The correct answer is D, 1 and 3. Hedgehogs and pangolins curl into a tight ball when threatened, covering the soft belly and face with spines or scales; marmots do not.

A hedgehog has thousands of stiff spines on its back. When in danger, strong muscles pull the spiny skin over its head and legs, and it becomes a prickly ball that most predators leave alone. A pangolin is the only mammal covered in overlapping keratin scales; it rolls up so tightly that even lions find it hard to open, and its name comes from the Malay word for "one that rolls up". India has two species, the Indian pangolin and the Chinese pangolin, both protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act; pangolins are among the most trafficked mammals in the world.

Statement 2 is wrong: the marmot, a large ground squirrel of the Himalaya, escapes by whistling an alarm and running into its burrow, not by rolling up.

So A, B and C are wrong.

Exam tip: roll-up defence = hedgehog (spines), pangolin (scales), armadillo (bony plates); marmot = burrow and alarm call.