WHO WILL WIN?
Cassowary
BOOM-RUMBLE
Panda
HONK-BLEAT
THE SETUP

Cassowary vs Panda

Cassowary
Cassowary
Panda
Panda

Pretend a cassowary and a panda meet in forest. Look at the facts. Then you pick.

Would they meet?

Yes. They could meet in the real wild. This page is still a what-if.

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

Cassowary

Casuarius casuarius · The rainforest's dinosaur that never left.

Cassowary
Home
Australian and New Guinean rainforest · Lives in Australia / Asia
Food
Plants and meat
Group
Lives alone
Size
Cassowary is medium.

Fruit eater with dinosaur feet.

Casque and low rumble carry through forest.

Shy until cornered.

  • Cassowary is medium and fast.
  • Mostly fruit.
  • Dense rainforest where a tall dark bird can appear like a jump scare.

Family: Emus and ostriches — the ratite squad of giant flightless birds.

Corner B

Panda

Ailuropoda melanoleuca · A bamboo tank in a costume.

Panda
Home
Chinese mountain forests · Lives in Asia
Food
Plants
Group
Lives alone
Size
Panda is medium.

Bamboo specialist.

Smell finds the right stalks.

Slow-looking, not helpless.

  • Panda is medium and not very fast.
  • Almost all bamboo, all day.
  • Cool, misty mountain forests where bamboo grows like a salad bar.

Family: Other bears.

TO SCALE!

SIZE & WEIGHT

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

1.70 m

Grown-up

1.70 m

Cassowary to scale

Cassowary

0.90 m

Panda to scale

Panda

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

Cassowary55 kg

As tall as a grown-up, with the attitude of a dinosaur that kept the costume.

Panda120 kg

About as heavy as a big goat, shaped like a stuffed animal that lifts.

Cassowary

1.70 m · 55 kg

Cassowary is medium. 55 kg.

Panda

0.90 m · 120 kg

Panda is medium. 120 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: Dagger inner toe
  • Armor: Casque helmet
  • Senses: Casque and low rumble carry through forest.

Cassowary · labeled field diagram

  • Weapon: Bamboo-crusher jaws
  • Armor: Plush padding
  • Senses: Smell finds the right stalks.

Panda · labeled field diagram

Cassowary20 psi bite
Panda500 psi bite

Cassowary

Dagger inner toe

Tool: dagger inner toe. Bite: 20 psi.

Panda

Bamboo-crusher jaws

Tool: bamboo-crusher jaws. Bite: 500 psi.

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

Whose tools would you trust?

ZOOM!

SPEED

Who gets there first?

Cassowary
50 km/h
Panda
30 km/h
Cassowary50 km/h
Panda30 km/h

Cassowary

50 km/h

Cassowary can go 50 km/h. That is fast.

Panda

30 km/h

Panda can go 30 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 forest. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
CassowaryPandaBoth

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

Cassowary

This is home · Lives in Australia / Asia

Cassowary lives in places like forest.

Panda

This is home · Lives in Asia

Panda lives in places like forest.

Yes. They could meet in the real wild. This page is still a what-if.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

Cassowary
Plants and meat · Fruit eater with dinosaur feet.
Panda
Plants · Bamboo specialist.

Cassowary

Plants and meat · Fruit eater with dinosaur feet.

Mostly fruit.

Panda

Plants · Bamboo specialist.

Almost all bamboo, all day.

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.

Cassowary
Lives alone
Panda
Lives alone
Cassowary7 grit /10
Panda4 grit /10

Cassowary

Lives alone

Shy until cornered. Grit: 7/10.

Panda

Lives alone

Slow-looking, not helpless. Grit: 4/10.

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?

Cassowary
4/10
Panda
6/10
Cassowary4 brains /10
Panda6 brains /10

Cassowary

4/10

Casque and low rumble carry through forest.

Panda

6/10

Smell finds the right stalks.

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

Who would you score for noticing?

COUSINS!

FAMILY

Who are they related to?

Cassowary
Casuarius casuarius
Panda
Ailuropoda melanoleuca

Cassowary

Casuarius casuarius

Emus and ostriches — the ratite squad of giant flightless birds.

Panda

Ailuropoda melanoleuca

Other 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?

Cassowary
Kick of the Lost World
Panda
Sit-and-Smoosh

Cassowary

Kick of the Lost World

They jump and slash with both feet.

Panda

Sit-and-Smoosh

If a panda leans on a problem, the problem becomes a pancake.

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: Cassowary 0 · Panda 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

SKREEE!

THEY MEET

Cassowary runs first. Panda does not race. They wait in forest.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

CHOMP!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

Panda is heavier. Cassowary uses dagger inner toe. Nobody is keeping a gore score.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

SNAP!

SPECIAL MOVES

Cassowary tries the Kick of the Lost World. Panda tries the Sit-and-Smoosh. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Cassowary!

A SQUEAKER

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

On forest, Cassowary wins. Cassowary's dagger inner toe helps more. Panda 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: Cassowary 5 · Panda 2 · ties 1.

Your card: Cassowary 0 · Panda 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 · Panda

Bamboo: the official victory snack.

Wikimedia Commons · CC. Source

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