WHO WILL WIN?
Komodo Dragon
HISS-CHOMP
Gorilla
HOOT-HOOT-BAM
THE SETUP

Komodo Dragon vs Gorilla

Komodo Dragon
Komodo Dragon
Gorilla
Gorilla

Pretend a komodo dragon and a gorilla 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

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.

Corner B

Gorilla

Gorilla gorilla · A quiet giant until the chest-thump starts.

Gorilla
Home
African rainforest · Lives in Africa
Food
Plants
Group
Lives with family
Size
Gorilla is medium.

Forager.

Sharp eyes in the green.

Gentle until a family is threatened.

  • Gorilla is medium and fast.
  • Mostly leaves, stems, and fruit.
  • Dense forest is home.

Family: Chimpanzees, orangutans, and humans.

TO SCALE!

SIZE & WEIGHT

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

1.70 m

Grown-up

0.50 m

Komodo Dragon to scale

Komodo Dragon

1.70 m

Gorilla to scale

Gorilla

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

Komodo Dragon80 kg

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

Gorilla160 kg

As heavy as two kids in a backpack... if the backpack could bench-press a motorcycle.

Komodo Dragon

0.50 m · 80 kg

Komodo Dragon is medium. 80 kg.

Gorilla

1.70 m · 160 kg

Gorilla is medium. 160 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: Venom-slick bite
  • Armor: Osteoderm chainmail
  • Senses: Tongue tastes the air.

Komodo Dragon · labeled field diagram

  • Weapon: Anvil fists + ape bite
  • Armor: Barrel chest
  • Senses: Sharp eyes in the green.

Gorilla · labeled field diagram

Komodo Dragon600 psi bite
Gorilla1300 psi bite

Komodo Dragon

Venom-slick bite

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

Gorilla

Anvil fists + ape bite

Tool: anvil fists + ape bite. Bite: 1,300 psi.

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

Whose tools would you trust?

ZOOM!

SPEED

Who gets there first?

Komodo Dragon
20 km/h
Gorilla
40 km/h
Komodo Dragon20 km/h
Gorilla40 km/h

Komodo Dragon

20 km/h

Komodo Dragon can go 20 km/h. That is not very fast.

Gorilla

40 km/h

Gorilla can go 40 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 grassland. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
Komodo DragonGorillaBoth

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

Komodo Dragon

This is home · Lives in Asia

Komodo Dragon lives in places like grassland.

Gorilla

Can handle it · Lives in Africa

Gorilla's home is the african rainforest, not grassland.

Almost never. Their homes sit next to each other.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

Komodo Dragon
Meat · Ambush lizard.
Gorilla
Plants · Forager.

Komodo Dragon

Meat · Ambush lizard.

Deer, pigs, water buffalo, even other dragons.

Gorilla

Plants · Forager.

Mostly leaves, stems, and 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.

Komodo Dragon
Lives alone
Gorilla
Lives with family
Komodo Dragon8 grit /10
Gorilla8 grit /10

Komodo Dragon

Lives alone

Slow-looking predator. Grit: 8/10.

Gorilla

Lives with family

Gentle until a family is threatened. 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?

Komodo Dragon
4/10
Gorilla
9/10
Komodo Dragon4 brains /10
Gorilla9 brains /10

Komodo Dragon

4/10

Tongue tastes the air.

Gorilla

9/10

Sharp eyes in the green.

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

Who would you score for noticing?

COUSINS!

FAMILY

Who are they related to?

Komodo Dragon
Varanus komodoensis
Gorilla
Gorilla gorilla

Komodo Dragon

Varanus komodoensis

Other monitor lizards.

Gorilla

Gorilla gorilla

Chimpanzees, orangutans, and humans.

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?

Komodo Dragon
Patient Island Ambush
Gorilla
Chest-Drum Charge

Komodo Dragon

Patient Island Ambush

They wait.

Gorilla

Chest-Drum Charge

The chest beat is a warning.

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: Komodo Dragon 0 · Gorilla 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

WHAM!

THEY MEET

Gorilla runs first. Komodo Dragon does not race. They wait in grassland.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

WHOOSH!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

Gorilla is heavier. Komodo Dragon uses venom-slick bite. Nobody is keeping a gore score.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

ZING!

SPECIAL MOVES

Komodo Dragon tries the Patient Island Ambush. Gorilla tries the Chest-Drum Charge. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Gorilla!

A SQUEAKER

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

On grassland, Gorilla wins. Gorilla is a lot heavier. Komodo Dragon 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: Komodo Dragon 3 · Gorilla 5.

Your card: Komodo Dragon 0 · Gorilla 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 · Gorilla

Five seconds of gorilla. Blink and you miss the champ.

Raul654 · Wikimedia Commons · GFDL. Source

1/17 · scroll