WHO WILL WIN?
Crocodile
SNAP-HISSS
Cheetah
CHIRRUP-ZOOM
THE SETUP

Crocodile vs Cheetah

Crocodile
Crocodile
Cheetah
Cheetah

Pretend a crocodile and a cheetah meet in grassland. 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

Crocodile

Crocodylus niloticus · A living fossil with a trapdoor mouth.

Crocodile
Home
African rivers · Lives in Africa
Food
Meat
Group
Lives alone
Size
Crocodile is big.

Wait like a log.

Pressure sensors in the skin feel a ripple.

Explosive from zero.

  • Crocodile is big and not very fast.
  • Fish, mammals, birds — if it comes to the water's edge, it is on the menu.
  • They wait like logs.

Family: Alligators, caimans, and dinosaurs' old roommates, the archosaurs.

Corner B

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.

TO SCALE!

SIZE & WEIGHT

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

1.70 m

Grown-up

0.70 m

Crocodile to scale

Crocodile

0.90 m

Cheetah to scale

Cheetah

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

Crocodile500 kg

Can stretch longer than a pickup truck.

Cheetah50 kg

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

Crocodile

0.70 m · 500 kg

Crocodile is big. 500 kg.

Cheetah

0.90 m · 50 kg

Cheetah is medium. 50 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: The planet's hardest chomp
  • Armor: Bony osteoderm shield
  • Senses: Pressure sensors in the skin feel a ripple.

Crocodile · labeled field diagram

  • Weapon: High-speed trip claws
  • Armor: Tearaway lightness
  • Senses: Huge eyes, huge field of view.

Cheetah · labeled field diagram

Crocodile3700 psi bite
Cheetah400 psi bite

Crocodile

The planet's hardest chomp

Tool: the planet's hardest chomp. Bite: 3,700 psi.

Cheetah

High-speed trip claws

Tool: high-speed trip claws. 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?

Crocodile
32 km/h
Cheetah
110 km/h
Crocodile32 km/h
Cheetah110 km/h

Crocodile

32 km/h

Crocodile can go 32 km/h. That is not very fast.

Cheetah

110 km/h

Cheetah can go 110 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
CrocodileCheetahBoth

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

Crocodile

Not their home · Lives in Africa

Crocodile's home is the african rivers, not grassland.

Cheetah

This is home · Lives in Africa

Cheetah lives in places like grassland.

Almost never. Their homes sit next to each other.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

Crocodile
Meat · Wait like a log.
Cheetah
Meat · Sprint specialist.

Crocodile

Meat · Wait like a log.

Fish, mammals, birds — if it comes to the water's edge, it is on the menu.

Cheetah

Meat · Sprint specialist.

They prefer gazelles and other speedy snacks they can outrun.

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.

Crocodile
Lives alone
Cheetah
Lives alone
Crocodile8 grit /10
Cheetah6 grit /10

Crocodile

Lives alone

Explosive from zero. Grit: 8/10.

Cheetah

Lives alone

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

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?

Crocodile
4/10
Cheetah
6/10
Crocodile4 brains /10
Cheetah6 brains /10

Crocodile

4/10

Pressure sensors in the skin feel a ripple.

Cheetah

6/10

Huge eyes, huge field of view.

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

Who would you score for noticing?

COUSINS!

FAMILY

Who are they related to?

Crocodile
Crocodylus niloticus
Cheetah
Acinonyx jubatus

Crocodile

Crocodylus niloticus

Alligators, caimans, and dinosaurs' old roommates, the archosaurs.

Cheetah

Acinonyx jubatus

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

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?

Crocodile
Death-Roll Remix
Cheetah
Hundred-Kilo Zoom

Crocodile

Death-Roll Remix

If it grabs you, it spins.

Cheetah

Hundred-Kilo Zoom

0 to 100 km/h in about 3 seconds.

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: Crocodile 0 · Cheetah 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

SKREEE!

THEY MEET

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

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

CHOMP!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

Crocodile is heavier. Cheetah uses high-speed trip claws. Nobody is keeping a gore score.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

SNAP!

SPECIAL MOVES

Crocodile tries the Death-Roll Remix. Cheetah tries the Hundred-Kilo Zoom. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Crocodile!

A STOMP

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

On grassland, Crocodile wins. Crocodile is a lot heavier. Cheetah 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: Crocodile 4 · Cheetah 4.

Your card: Crocodile 0 · Cheetah 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 · Cheetah

Rozi the cheetah. Zoom is not a metaphor.

Cincinnati Zoo · Wikimedia Commons · CC. Source

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