WHO WILL WIN?
Armadillo
GRUNT-SCRITCH
Polar Bear
CHOMP-RUMBLE
THE SETUP

Armadillo vs Polar Bear

Armadillo
Armadillo
Polar Bear
Polar Bear

Pretend a armadillo and a polar bear meet in the desert. Look at the facts. Then you pick.

Would they meet?

No. Wild armadillos and polar bears would not meet. We still look at the facts.

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

Polar Bear

Ursus maritimus · The Arctic's heavyweight champ.

Polar Bear
Home
Arctic sea ice · Lives in North America / Asia / Europe
Food
Meat
Group
Lives alone
Size
Polar Bear is big.

Still-hunter on ice.

Smell can catch a seal from kilometers away.

Patient predator.

  • Polar Bear is big and fast.
  • Mostly seals.
  • Sea ice is their hunting floor.

Family: Brown bears.

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

1.60 m

Polar Bear to scale

Polar Bear

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

Armadillo6 kg

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

Polar Bear450 kg

Can stand taller than a basketball hoop on its hind legs.

Armadillo

0.30 m · 6 kg

Armadillo is small. 6 kg.

Polar Bear

1.60 m · 450 kg

Polar Bear is big. 450 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: Ice-hook paws
  • Armor: Blubber parka
  • Senses: Smell can catch a seal from kilometers away.

Polar Bear · labeled field diagram

Armadillo80 psi bite
Polar Bear1200 psi bite

Armadillo

Digging claws

Tool: digging claws. Bite: 80 psi.

Polar Bear

Ice-hook paws

Tool: ice-hook paws. Bite: 1,200 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
Polar Bear
40 km/h
Armadillo48 km/h
Polar Bear40 km/h

Armadillo

48 km/h

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

Polar Bear

40 km/h

Polar Bear can go 40 km/h. That is fast.

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

Who takes the speed card?

HOME MAP!

HOME

They meet in the desert. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
ArmadilloPolar BearBoth

Meeting biome: the desert. Colored land is where each animal actually lives.

Armadillo

This is home · Lives in North America / South America

Armadillo lives in places like the desert.

Polar Bear

Wrong place · Lives in North America / Asia / Europe

Polar Bear's home is the arctic sea ice, not the desert.

No. Wild armadillos and polar bears would not meet. We still look at the facts.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

Armadillo
Plants and meat · Bug vacuum.
Polar Bear
Meat · Still-hunter on ice.

Armadillo

Plants and meat · Bug vacuum.

Insects, grubs, and the occasional small snack.

Polar Bear

Meat · Still-hunter on ice.

Mostly seals.

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
Polar Bear
Lives alone
Armadillo5 grit /10
Polar Bear9 grit /10

Armadillo

Lives alone

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

Polar Bear

Lives alone

Patient predator. Grit: 9/10.

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
Polar Bear
7/10
Armadillo4 brains /10
Polar Bear7 brains /10

Armadillo

4/10

Nose-first.

Polar Bear

7/10

Smell can catch a seal from kilometers away.

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
Polar Bear
Ursus maritimus

Armadillo

Dasypus novemcinctus

Sloths and anteaters.

Polar Bear

Ursus maritimus

Brown bears.

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
Polar Bear
Seal-Snatch Slam

Armadillo

Shell-Up Sprint

First they jump straight up — a surprise pop.

Polar Bear

Seal-Snatch Slam

Polar bears can smell a seal from more than a kilometer away.

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 · Polar Bear 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

SKREEE!

THEY MEET

Armadillo runs first. Polar Bear does not race. They wait in the desert.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

CHOMP!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

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

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

SNAP!

SPECIAL MOVES

Armadillo tries the Shell-Up Sprint. Polar Bear tries the Seal-Snatch Slam. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Polar Bear!

A STOMP

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

On the desert, Polar Bear wins. Polar Bear is a lot heavier. 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 2 · Polar Bear 6.

Your card: Armadillo 0 · Polar Bear 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 · Polar Bear

The champ does laps. Underwater. Showing off.

Wikimedia Commons · Zoo Bremerhaven · CC. Source

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