WHO WILL WIN?
Cougar
SCREAM-PURR
Cassowary
BOOM-RUMBLE
THE SETUP

Cougar vs Cassowary

Cougar
Cougar
Cassowary
Cassowary

Pretend a cougar and a cassowary 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

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.

Corner B

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.

TO SCALE!

SIZE & WEIGHT

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

1.70 m

Grown-up

0.75 m

Cougar to scale

Cougar

1.70 m

Cassowary to scale

Cassowary

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

Cougar65 kg

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

Cassowary55 kg

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

Cougar

0.75 m · 65 kg

Cougar is medium. 65 kg.

Cassowary

1.70 m · 55 kg

Cassowary is medium. 55 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: Pounce and hold
  • Armor: Tawny vanish
  • Senses: Dawn-and-dusk eyes.

Cougar · labeled field diagram

  • Weapon: Dagger inner toe
  • Armor: Casque helmet
  • Senses: Casque and low rumble carry through forest.

Cassowary · labeled field diagram

Cougar400 psi bite
Cassowary20 psi bite

Cougar

Pounce and hold

Tool: pounce and hold. Bite: 400 psi.

Cassowary

Dagger inner toe

Tool: dagger inner toe. 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?

Cougar
70 km/h
Cassowary
50 km/h
Cougar70 km/h
Cassowary50 km/h

Cougar

70 km/h

Cougar can go 70 km/h. That is very fast.

Cassowary

50 km/h

Cassowary can go 50 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 forest. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
CougarCassowaryBoth

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

Cougar

This is home · Lives in North America / South America

Cougar lives in places like forest.

Cassowary

This is home · Lives in Australia / Asia

Cassowary 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?

Cougar
Meat · Stalk and pounce.
Cassowary
Plants and meat · Fruit eater with dinosaur feet.

Cougar

Meat · Stalk and pounce.

Deer are favorite.

Cassowary

Plants and meat · Fruit eater with dinosaur feet.

Mostly fruit.

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.

Cougar
Lives alone
Cassowary
Lives alone
Cougar7 grit /10
Cassowary7 grit /10

Cougar

Lives alone

A loner with a plan. Grit: 7/10.

Cassowary

Lives alone

Shy until cornered. 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?

Cougar
7/10
Cassowary
4/10
Cougar7 brains /10
Cassowary4 brains /10

Cougar

7/10

Dawn-and-dusk eyes.

Cassowary

4/10

Casque and low rumble carry through forest.

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

Who would you score for noticing?

COUSINS!

FAMILY

Who are they related to?

Cougar
Puma concolor
Cassowary
Casuarius casuarius

Cougar

Puma concolor

Cheetahs and jaguarundis more than roaring lions.

Cassowary

Casuarius casuarius

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

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?

Cougar
Canyon Long Jump
Cassowary
Kick of the Lost World

Cougar

Canyon Long Jump

They can bound 12 meters in a single leap.

Cassowary

Kick of the Lost World

They jump and slash with both feet.

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: Cougar 0 · Cassowary 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

FWOOSH!

THEY MEET

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

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

KICK!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

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

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

STOOMP!

SPECIAL MOVES

Cougar tries the Canyon Long Jump. Cassowary tries the Kick of the Lost World. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Cougar!

A SQUEAKER

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

On forest, Cougar wins. Cougar's pounce and hold helps more. Cassowary 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: Cougar 3 · Cassowary 1 · ties 4.

Your card: Cougar 0 · Cassowary 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.

1/17 · scroll