WHO WILL WIN?
Cheetah
CHIRRUP-ZOOM
Gazelle
SNORT-PRONK
THE SETUP

Cheetah vs Gazelle

Cheetah
Cheetah
Gazelle
Gazelle

Pretend a cheetah and a gazelle meet in grassland. 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

Cheetah

Acinonyx jubatus · The land-speed record in spots.

Cheetah
Home
African savanna · Lives in Africa
Food
Meat
Group
Lives alone
Size
Cheetah is medium.

Sprint specialist.

Huge eyes, huge field of view.

A sprinter, not a wrestler.

  • Cheetah is medium and very fast.
  • They prefer gazelles and other speedy snacks they can outrun.
  • Open plains are a racetrack.

Family: Other cats, but cheetahs are the odd cousins who joined track team.

Corner B

Gazelle

Eudorcas thomsonii · A spring with horns and a stotting hobby.

Gazelle
Home
African savanna · Lives in Africa
Food
Plants
Group
Lives in a herd
Size
Gazelle is small.

Grazer.

Side-set eyes for a wraparound view.

Nervous athlete.

  • Gazelle is small and very fast.
  • Short grass.
  • Open plains where a lookout and a sprint are the whole security system.

Family: Antelopes and impalas.

TO SCALE!

SIZE & WEIGHT

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

1.70 m

Grown-up

0.90 m

Cheetah to scale

Cheetah

0.70 m

Gazelle to scale

Gazelle

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

Cheetah50 kg

About as heavy as a fifth-grader — and faster than the school bus.

Gazelle25 kg

About as heavy as a second-grader, twice as bouncy.

Cheetah

0.90 m · 50 kg

Cheetah is medium. 50 kg.

Gazelle

0.70 m · 25 kg

Gazelle is small. 25 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: High-speed trip claws
  • Armor: Tearaway lightness
  • Senses: Huge eyes, huge field of view.

Cheetah · labeled field diagram

  • Weapon: Lyre horns plus kick
  • Armor: Stotting bounce
  • Senses: Side-set eyes for a wraparound view.

Gazelle · labeled field diagram

Cheetah400 psi bite
Gazelle20 psi bite

Cheetah

High-speed trip claws

Tool: high-speed trip claws. Bite: 400 psi.

Gazelle

Lyre horns plus kick

Tool: lyre horns plus kick. Bite: 20 psi.

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

Whose tools would you trust?

ZOOM!

SPEED

Who gets there first?

Cheetah
110 km/h
Gazelle
80 km/h
Cheetah110 km/h
Gazelle80 km/h

Cheetah

110 km/h

Cheetah can go 110 km/h. That is very fast.

Gazelle

80 km/h

Gazelle can go 80 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 grassland. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
CheetahGazelleBoth

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

Cheetah

This is home · Lives in Africa

Cheetah lives in places like grassland.

Gazelle

This is home · Lives in Africa

Gazelle lives in places like grassland.

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?

Cheetah
Meat · Sprint specialist.
Gazelle
Plants · Grazer.

Cheetah

Meat · Sprint specialist.

They prefer gazelles and other speedy snacks they can outrun.

Gazelle

Plants · Grazer.

Short grass.

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.

Cheetah
Lives alone
Gazelle
Lives in a herd
Cheetah6 grit /10
Gazelle5 grit /10

Cheetah

Lives alone

A sprinter, not a wrestler. Grit: 6/10.

Gazelle

Lives in a herd

Nervous athlete. Grit: 5/10.

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?

Cheetah
6/10
Gazelle
5/10
Cheetah6 brains /10
Gazelle5 brains /10

Cheetah

6/10

Huge eyes, huge field of view.

Gazelle

5/10

Side-set eyes for a wraparound view.

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

Who would you score for noticing?

COUSINS!

FAMILY

Who are they related to?

Cheetah
Acinonyx jubatus
Gazelle
Eudorcas thomsonii

Cheetah

Acinonyx jubatus

Other cats, but cheetahs are the odd cousins who joined track team.

Gazelle

Eudorcas thomsonii

Antelopes and impalas.

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?

Cheetah
Hundred-Kilo Zoom
Gazelle
Zigzag Pronk

Cheetah

Hundred-Kilo Zoom

0 to 100 km/h in about 3 seconds.

Gazelle

Zigzag Pronk

80 km/h plus sudden cuts.

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: Cheetah 0 · Gazelle 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

SKREEE!

THEY MEET

Cheetah runs first. Gazelle does not race. They wait in grassland.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

CHOMP!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

Cheetah is heavier. Gazelle uses lyre horns plus kick. Nobody is keeping a gore score.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

SNAP!

SPECIAL MOVES

Cheetah tries the Hundred-Kilo Zoom. Gazelle tries the Zigzag Pronk. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Cheetah!

A STOMP

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

On grassland, Cheetah wins. Cheetah is a lot heavier. Gazelle 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: Cheetah 7 · Gazelle 0 · ties 1.

Your card: Cheetah 0 · Gazelle 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 · Cheetah

Rozi the cheetah. Zoom is not a metaphor.

Cincinnati Zoo · Wikimedia Commons · CC. Source

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