WHO WILL WIN?
Capybara
CLICK-PURR
Cougar
SCREAM-PURR
THE SETUP

Capybara vs Cougar

Capybara
Capybara
Cougar
Cougar

Pretend a capybara and a cougar meet in the desert. 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

Capybara

Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris · The world's chillest giant rodent.

Capybara
Home
South American wetlands · Lives in South America
Food
Plants
Group
Lives in a herd
Size
Capybara is medium.

Grazer that swims like a sofa with a motor.

Eyes and nose just above the water.

Chill social potato.

  • Capybara is medium and not very fast.
  • Grasses and water plants.
  • Riverbanks where the whole friend group can soak and snack.

Family: Guinea pigs.

Corner B

Cougar

Puma concolor · The quiet jumper with a hundred nicknames.

Cougar
Home
Americas from mountains to swamp · Lives in North America / South America
Food
Meat
Group
Lives alone
Size
Cougar is medium.

Stalk and pounce.

Dawn-and-dusk eyes.

A loner with a plan.

  • Cougar is medium and very fast.
  • Deer are favorite.
  • The widest range of any New World mammal, from Canada to the Andes.

Family: Cheetahs and jaguarundis more than roaring lions.

TO SCALE!

SIZE & WEIGHT

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

1.70 m

Grown-up

0.60 m

Capybara to scale

Capybara

0.75 m

Cougar to scale

Cougar

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

Capybara50 kg

About as heavy as a fifth-grader, shaped like a friendly ottoman.

Cougar65 kg

About as heavy as a grown-up's suitcase that can jump a creek.

Capybara

0.60 m · 50 kg

Capybara is medium. 50 kg.

Cougar

0.75 m · 65 kg

Cougar is medium. 65 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: Chisel teeth
  • Armor: Pond camouflage
  • Senses: Eyes and nose just above the water.

Capybara · labeled field diagram

  • Weapon: Pounce and hold
  • Armor: Tawny vanish
  • Senses: Dawn-and-dusk eyes.

Cougar · labeled field diagram

Capybara200 psi bite
Cougar400 psi bite

Capybara

Chisel teeth

Tool: chisel teeth. Bite: 200 psi.

Cougar

Pounce and hold

Tool: pounce and hold. Bite: 400 psi.

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

Whose tools would you trust?

ZOOM!

SPEED

Who gets there first?

Capybara
35 km/h
Cougar
70 km/h
Capybara35 km/h
Cougar70 km/h

Capybara

35 km/h

Capybara can go 35 km/h. That is not very fast.

Cougar

70 km/h

Cougar can go 70 km/h. That is 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 the desert. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
CapybaraCougarBoth

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

Capybara

Not their home · Lives in South America

Capybara's home is the south american wetlands, not the desert.

Cougar

This is home · Lives in North America / South America

Cougar lives in places like the desert.

Almost never. Their homes sit next to each other.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

Capybara
Plants · Grazer that swims like a sofa with a motor.
Cougar
Meat · Stalk and pounce.

Capybara

Plants · Grazer that swims like a sofa with a motor.

Grasses and water plants.

Cougar

Meat · Stalk and pounce.

Deer are favorite.

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.

Capybara
Lives in a herd
Cougar
Lives alone
Capybara4 grit /10
Cougar7 grit /10

Capybara

Lives in a herd

Chill social potato. Grit: 4/10.

Cougar

Lives alone

A loner with a plan. 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?

Capybara
5/10
Cougar
7/10
Capybara5 brains /10
Cougar7 brains /10

Capybara

5/10

Eyes and nose just above the water.

Cougar

7/10

Dawn-and-dusk eyes.

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

Who would you score for noticing?

COUSINS!

FAMILY

Who are they related to?

Capybara
Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris
Cougar
Puma concolor

Capybara

Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris

Guinea pigs.

Cougar

Puma concolor

Cheetahs and jaguarundis more than roaring lions.

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?

Capybara
Splash Sit-In
Cougar
Canyon Long Jump

Capybara

Splash Sit-In

When trouble shows, they take the water.

Cougar

Canyon Long Jump

They can bound 12 meters in a single leap.

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: Capybara 0 · Cougar 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

THWACK!

THEY MEET

Cougar runs first. Capybara does not race. They wait in the desert.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

SLAM!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

Cougar is heavier. Capybara uses chisel teeth. Nobody is keeping a gore score.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

POW!

SPECIAL MOVES

Capybara tries the Splash Sit-In. Cougar tries the Canyon Long Jump. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Cougar!

A STOMP

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

On the desert, Cougar wins. Cougar likes the desert more. Capybara 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: Capybara 0 · Cougar 8.

Your card: Capybara 0 · Cougar 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.

Also starring · Capybara

Victory yawn. Peak capybara. Nothing bothers this animal.

Nesnad · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0. Source

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