WHO WILL WIN?
King Cobra
HISS-HOOD
Meerkat
CHK-CHK-ALARM
THE SETUP

King Cobra vs Meerkat

King Cobra
King Cobra
Meerkat
Meerkat

Pretend a king cobra and a meerkat meet in the desert. 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

King Cobra

Ophiophagus hannah · The tallest snake, with a hood like a warning sign.

King Cobra
Home
Asian forests · Lives in Asia
Food
Meat
Group
Lives alone
Size
King Cobra is small.

Snake-eater with a stand-up hood.

Heat and chemical trail.

Alert, not cartoon-mean.

  • King Cobra is small and not very fast.
  • Mostly other snakes.
  • Dense forest and bamboo, where a long warning hiss carries.

Family: Other cobras and mambas — the elapid family of front-fanged specialists.

Corner B

Meerkat

Suricata suricatta · The smallest fighter with the biggest sentry energy.

Meerkat
Home
African desert and scrub · Lives in Africa
Food
Plants and meat
Group
Lives in a big group
Size
Meerkat is tiny.

Bug and scorpion specialist.

Dark-eye rings cut glare.

Brave in a mob, tiny in a 1-v-1.

  • Meerkat is tiny and not very fast.
  • Insects, scorpions, eggs, and the occasional lizard.
  • They live in underground burrow cities with many exits.

Family: Mongooses.

TO SCALE!

SIZE & WEIGHT

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

1.70 m

Grown-up

0.50 m

King Cobra to scale

King Cobra

0.30 m

Meerkat to scale

Meerkat

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

King Cobra7 kg

Can stretch longer than a pickup truck, but no thicker than a grown-up's arm.

Meerkat0.8 kg

About as heavy as a loaf of bread that learned karate.

King Cobra

0.50 m · 7 kg

King Cobra is small. 7 kg.

Meerkat

0.30 m · 0.8 kg

Meerkat is tiny. 0.8 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: Hood-high venom fangs
  • Armor: Scale slicker
  • Senses: Heat and chemical trail.

King Cobra · labeled field diagram

  • Weapon: Needle claws
  • Armor: Absolutely none
  • Senses: Dark-eye rings cut glare.

Meerkat · labeled field diagram

King Cobra100 psi bite
Meerkat50 psi bite

King Cobra

Hood-high venom fangs

Tool: hood-high venom fangs. Bite: 100 psi.

Meerkat

Needle claws

Tool: needle claws. Bite: 50 psi.

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

Whose tools would you trust?

ZOOM!

SPEED

Who gets there first?

King Cobra
18 km/h
Meerkat
32 km/h
King Cobra18 km/h
Meerkat32 km/h

King Cobra

18 km/h

King Cobra can go 18 km/h. That is not very fast.

Meerkat

32 km/h

Meerkat can go 32 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 the desert. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
King CobraMeerkatBoth

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

King Cobra

Not their home · Lives in Asia

King Cobra's home is the asian forests, not the desert.

Meerkat

This is home · Lives in Africa

Meerkat lives in places like the desert.

Almost never. Their homes sit next to each other.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

King Cobra
Meat · Snake-eater with a stand-up hood.
Meerkat
Plants and meat · Bug and scorpion specialist.

King Cobra

Meat · Snake-eater with a stand-up hood.

Mostly other snakes.

Meerkat

Plants and meat · Bug and scorpion specialist.

Insects, scorpions, eggs, and the occasional lizard.

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.

King Cobra
Lives alone
Meerkat
Lives in a big group
King Cobra8 grit /10
Meerkat10 grit /10

King Cobra

Lives alone

Alert, not cartoon-mean. Grit: 8/10.

Meerkat

Lives in a big group

Brave in a mob, tiny in a 1-v-1. Grit: 10/10.

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?

King Cobra
5/10
Meerkat
7/10
King Cobra5 brains /10
Meerkat7 brains /10

King Cobra

5/10

Heat and chemical trail.

Meerkat

7/10

Dark-eye rings cut glare.

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

Who would you score for noticing?

COUSINS!

FAMILY

Who are they related to?

King Cobra
Ophiophagus hannah
Meerkat
Suricata suricatta

King Cobra

Ophiophagus hannah

Other cobras and mambas — the elapid family of front-fanged specialists.

Meerkat

Suricata suricatta

Mongooses.

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?

King Cobra
Wobble Venom Warning
Meerkat
Sentry Siren

King Cobra

Wobble Venom Warning

One bite can make a huge animal feel wobbly and want a very long nap.

Meerkat

Sentry Siren

One meerkat stands watch while the rest forage.

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: King Cobra 0 · Meerkat 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

SKREEE!

THEY MEET

Meerkat runs first. King Cobra does not race. They wait in the desert.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

CHOMP!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

King Cobra is heavier. Meerkat uses needle claws. Nobody is keeping a gore score.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

SNAP!

SPECIAL MOVES

King Cobra tries the Wobble Venom Warning. Meerkat tries the Sentry Siren. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

King Cobra!

A STOMP

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

On the desert, King Cobra wins. King Cobra is a lot heavier. Meerkat 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: King Cobra 4 · Meerkat 4.

Your card: King Cobra 0 · Meerkat 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 · Meerkat

Family meeting. Someone is always on lookout.

Boksi · Wilhelma Zoo · Wikimedia Commons · CC. Source

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