WHO WILL WIN?
Armadillo
GRUNT-SCRITCH
Alligator
BELLOW-CHOMP
THE SETUP

Armadillo vs Alligator

Armadillo
Armadillo
Alligator
Alligator

Pretend a armadillo and a alligator meet in river country. Look at the facts. Then you pick.

Would they meet?

Almost never. Their homes sit next to each other.

This is pretend and based on facts. Real animals usually hide or leave.

Read the facts. Make your card. The page waits to pick.

Corner A

Armadillo

Dasypus novemcinctus · A walking helmet that sometimes becomes a soccer ball.

Armadillo
Home
Americas grassland and scrub · Lives in North America / South America
Food
Plants and meat
Group
Lives alone
Size
Armadillo is small.

Bug vacuum.

Nose-first.

Startle, ball up or bolt.

  • Armadillo is small and fast.
  • Insects, grubs, and the occasional small snack.
  • Warm country with soil soft enough to mine.

Family: Sloths and anteaters.

Corner B

Alligator

Alligator mississippiensis · A living log with a U-shaped grin.

Alligator
Home
American swamps · Lives in North America
Food
Meat
Group
Lives alone
Size
Alligator is big.

Ambush from the float.

Night river hunter.

Looks like a log with a secret.

  • Alligator is big and not very fast.
  • Fish, turtles, birds, mammals — swamp buffet, all you can chomp.
  • Freshwater marshes and slow rivers.

Family: Crocodiles and caimans.

TO SCALE!

SIZE & WEIGHT

Stand them next to a grown-up. Who is bigger and heavier?

1.70 m

Grown-up

0.30 m

Armadillo to scale

Armadillo

0.50 m

Alligator to scale

Alligator

Height to scale. A grown-up is 1.7 m.

Armadillo6 kg

About as heavy as a small melon wearing a knight costume.

Alligator360 kg

Can stretch as long as a small car.

Armadillo

0.30 m · 6 kg

Armadillo is small. 6 kg.

Alligator

0.50 m · 360 kg

Alligator is big. 360 kg.

Kilograms are honest. A small animal can still have a strong tool.

Who would you pick for size?

TOOLKIT!

TOOLS

Teeth, claws, horns, venom, kick — what tools do they have?

  • Weapon: Digging claws
  • Armor: Bony banded shell
  • Senses: Nose-first.

Armadillo · labeled field diagram

  • Weapon: Trapdoor jaws
  • Armor: Osteoderm jacket
  • Senses: Night river hunter.

Alligator · labeled field diagram

Armadillo80 psi bite
Alligator3000 psi bite

Armadillo

Digging claws

Tool: digging claws. Bite: 80 psi.

Alligator

Trapdoor jaws

Tool: trapdoor jaws. Bite: 3,000 psi.

A bite number is only one tool. Coils and kicks count too.

Whose tools would you trust?

ZOOM!

SPEED

Who gets there first?

Armadillo
48 km/h
Alligator
24 km/h
Armadillo48 km/h
Alligator24 km/h

Armadillo

48 km/h

Armadillo can go 48 km/h. That is fast.

Alligator

24 km/h

Alligator can go 24 km/h. That is not very fast.

A fast animal can miss. A slow one only has to connect.

Who takes the speed card?

HOME MAP!

HOME

They meet in river country. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
ArmadilloAlligatorBoth

Meeting biome: river country. Colored land is where each animal actually lives.

Armadillo

Can handle it · Lives in North America / South America

Armadillo's home is the americas grassland and scrub, not river country.

Alligator

This is home · Lives in North America

Alligator lives in places like river country.

Almost never. Their homes sit next to each other.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

Armadillo
Plants and meat · Bug vacuum.
Alligator
Meat · Ambush from the float.

Armadillo

Plants and meat · Bug vacuum.

Insects, grubs, and the occasional small snack.

Alligator

Meat · Ambush from the float.

Fish, turtles, birds, mammals — swamp buffet, all you can chomp.

A plant eater is not 'safe.' Hippos and elephants still end arguments.

Whose hunting or defending helps more?

MOOD!

MOOD

Alone vs team. This rumble is one vs one.

Armadillo
Lives alone
Alligator
Lives alone
Armadillo5 grit /10
Alligator7 grit /10

Armadillo

Lives alone

Startle, ball up or bolt. Grit: 5/10.

Alligator

Lives alone

Looks like a log with a secret. Grit: 7/10.

Pack and pride animals lose their backup in a 1-v-1.

Who is better for a solo meeting?

PING!

BRAINS

Who notices first and thinks next?

Armadillo
4/10
Alligator
4/10
Armadillo4 brains /10
Alligator4 brains /10

Armadillo

4/10

Nose-first.

Alligator

4/10

Night river hunter.

In the wild, brains often mean leave before it starts.

Who would you score for noticing?

COUSINS!

FAMILY

Who are they related to?

Armadillo
Dasypus novemcinctus
Alligator
Alligator mississippiensis

Armadillo

Dasypus novemcinctus

Sloths and anteaters.

Alligator

Alligator mississippiensis

Crocodiles and caimans.

Cousins are clues, not a score.

Not a fight point. Who has the wilder family story?

WILD CARD!

SPECIAL

What special move did they evolve?

Armadillo
Shell-Up Sprint
Alligator
Gator-Gap Lunge

Armadillo

Shell-Up Sprint

First they jump straight up — a surprise pop.

Alligator

Gator-Gap Lunge

They wait like a stick.

A secret move here is a real wild tool, not a video-game combo.

Whose special move would change the meeting?

YOUR SCORECARD

Your scorecard

Tap who has each fact. Then tap who you think wins.

  • SIZE & WEIGHT

  • TOOLS

  • SPEED

  • HOME

  • FOOD

  • MOOD

  • BRAINS

  • SPECIAL

Your card: Armadillo 0 · Alligator 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

Keep going for the pretend meeting, then the science pick.

THWACK!

THEY MEET

Armadillo runs first. Alligator does not race. They wait in river country.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

SLAM!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

Alligator is heavier. Armadillo uses digging claws. Nobody is keeping a gore score.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

POW!

SPECIAL MOVES

Armadillo tries the Shell-Up Sprint. Alligator tries the Gator-Gap Lunge. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Alligator!

A STOMP

You skipped a final pick. The facts still stamp a champ.

On river country, Alligator wins. Alligator likes river country more. Armadillo would still win some meetings at home.

In the wild, most animals skip a fight. We still judge who the bodies and the place would favor.

Science card: Armadillo 1 · Alligator 6 · ties 1.

Your card: Armadillo 0 · Alligator 0.

The last page follows the whole animal — body plus home — not one bar chart.

Send this fight

A friend can read the same facts.

Victory lap · Alligator

Log? Nope. Champ.

Wikimedia Commons · CC. Source

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