WHO WILL WIN?
Flamingo
HONK-HONK-PINK
Komodo Dragon
HISS-CHOMP
THE SETUP

Flamingo vs Komodo Dragon

Flamingo
Flamingo
Komodo Dragon
Komodo Dragon

Pretend a flamingo and a komodo dragon meet in river country. 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

Flamingo

Phoenicopterus roseus · A pink question mark with a secret temper.

Flamingo
Home
Lakes and lagoons · Lives in Africa / Europe / South America / North America
Food
Plants and meat
Group
Lives in a flock
Size
Flamingo is tiny.

Filter feeder.

They spot shallows and flock motion.

Social and noisy.

  • Flamingo is tiny and fast.
  • Shrimp and algae.
  • Salty, soda-like lakes where most animals would go 'no thanks.

Family: Other flashy wading birds, with a family tree scientists still argue about.

Corner B

Komodo Dragon

Varanus komodoensis · A walking dinosaur with a chemistry set.

Komodo Dragon
Home
Indonesian islands · Lives in Asia
Food
Meat
Group
Lives alone
Size
Komodo Dragon is medium.

Ambush lizard.

Tongue tastes the air.

Slow-looking predator.

  • Komodo Dragon is medium and not very fast.
  • Deer, pigs, water buffalo, even other dragons.
  • Hot, dry islands where a giant lizard can own the trail.

Family: Other monitor lizards.

TO SCALE!

SIZE & WEIGHT

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

1.70 m

Grown-up

1.20 m

Flamingo to scale

Flamingo

0.50 m

Komodo Dragon to scale

Komodo Dragon

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

Flamingo3 kg

Light enough to mail (please do not) but taller than a kitchen counter.

Komodo Dragon80 kg

Longer than a bike, lower than a coffee table, heavier than a grown-up's suitcase.

Flamingo

1.20 m · 3 kg

Flamingo is tiny. 3 kg.

Komodo Dragon

0.50 m · 80 kg

Komodo Dragon is medium. 80 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: Hooked filter beak
  • Armor: One-leg balance aura
  • Senses: They spot shallows and flock motion.

Flamingo · labeled field diagram

  • Weapon: Venom-slick bite
  • Armor: Osteoderm chainmail
  • Senses: Tongue tastes the air.

Komodo Dragon · labeled field diagram

Flamingo20 psi bite
Komodo Dragon600 psi bite

Flamingo

Hooked filter beak

Tool: hooked filter beak. Bite: 20 psi.

Komodo Dragon

Venom-slick bite

Tool: venom-slick bite. Bite: 600 psi.

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

Whose tools would you trust?

ZOOM!

SPEED

Who gets there first?

Flamingo
50 km/h
Komodo Dragon
20 km/h
Flamingo50 km/h
Komodo Dragon20 km/h

Flamingo

50 km/h

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

Komodo Dragon

20 km/h

Komodo Dragon can go 20 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 river country. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
FlamingoKomodo DragonBoth

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

Flamingo

This is home · Lives in Africa / Europe / South America / North America

Flamingo lives in places like river country.

Komodo Dragon

Can handle it · Lives in Asia

Komodo Dragon's home is the indonesian islands, not river country.

Almost never. Their homes sit next to each other.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

Flamingo
Plants and meat · Filter feeder.
Komodo Dragon
Meat · Ambush lizard.

Flamingo

Plants and meat · Filter feeder.

Shrimp and algae.

Komodo Dragon

Meat · Ambush lizard.

Deer, pigs, water buffalo, even other dragons.

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.

Flamingo
Lives in a flock
Komodo Dragon
Lives alone
Flamingo4 grit /10
Komodo Dragon8 grit /10

Flamingo

Lives in a flock

Social and noisy. Grit: 4/10.

Komodo Dragon

Lives alone

Slow-looking predator. Grit: 8/10.

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?

Flamingo
4/10
Komodo Dragon
4/10
Flamingo4 brains /10
Komodo Dragon4 brains /10

Flamingo

4/10

They spot shallows and flock motion.

Komodo Dragon

4/10

Tongue tastes the air.

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

Who would you score for noticing?

COUSINS!

FAMILY

Who are they related to?

Flamingo
Phoenicopterus roseus
Komodo Dragon
Varanus komodoensis

Flamingo

Phoenicopterus roseus

Other flashy wading birds, with a family tree scientists still argue about.

Komodo Dragon

Varanus komodoensis

Other monitor lizards.

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?

Flamingo
Wing-Whoosh Retreat
Komodo Dragon
Patient Island Ambush

Flamingo

Wing-Whoosh Retreat

When trouble shows up, flamingos take the sky.

Komodo Dragon

Patient Island Ambush

They wait.

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: Flamingo 0 · Komodo Dragon 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

SKREEE!

THEY MEET

Flamingo runs first. Komodo Dragon does not race. They wait in river country.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

CHOMP!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

Komodo Dragon is heavier. Flamingo uses hooked filter beak. Nobody is keeping a gore score.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

SNAP!

SPECIAL MOVES

Flamingo tries the Wing-Whoosh Retreat. Komodo Dragon tries the Patient Island Ambush. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Komodo Dragon!

A STOMP

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

On river country, Komodo Dragon wins. Komodo Dragon is a lot heavier. Flamingo 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: Flamingo 2 · Komodo Dragon 5 · ties 1.

Your card: Flamingo 0 · Komodo Dragon 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 · Komodo Dragon

Dragon walk. Tongue out. Homework done.

Wikimedia Commons · CC. Source

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