WHO WILL WIN?
Komodo Dragon
HISS-CHOMP
King Cobra
HISS-HOOD
THE SETUP

Komodo Dragon vs King Cobra

Komodo Dragon
Komodo Dragon
King Cobra
King Cobra

Pretend a komodo dragon and a king cobra 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

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.

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

0.50 m

King Cobra to scale

King Cobra

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.

King Cobra7 kg

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

Komodo Dragon

0.50 m · 80 kg

Komodo Dragon is medium. 80 kg.

King Cobra

0.50 m · 7 kg

King Cobra is small. 7 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: Hood-high venom fangs
  • Armor: Scale slicker
  • Senses: Heat and chemical trail.

King Cobra · labeled field diagram

Komodo Dragon600 psi bite
King Cobra100 psi bite

Komodo Dragon

Venom-slick bite

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

King Cobra

Hood-high venom fangs

Tool: hood-high venom fangs. Bite: 100 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
King Cobra
18 km/h
Komodo Dragon20 km/h
King Cobra18 km/h

Komodo Dragon

20 km/h

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

King Cobra

18 km/h

King Cobra can go 18 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 grassland. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
Komodo DragonKing CobraBoth

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.

King Cobra

Can handle it · Lives in Asia

King Cobra's home is the asian forests, 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.
King Cobra
Meat · Snake-eater with a stand-up hood.

Komodo Dragon

Meat · Ambush lizard.

Deer, pigs, water buffalo, even other dragons.

King Cobra

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

Mostly other snakes.

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
King Cobra
Lives alone
Komodo Dragon8 grit /10
King Cobra8 grit /10

Komodo Dragon

Lives alone

Slow-looking predator. Grit: 8/10.

King Cobra

Lives alone

Alert, not cartoon-mean. 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
King Cobra
5/10
Komodo Dragon4 brains /10
King Cobra5 brains /10

Komodo Dragon

4/10

Tongue tastes the air.

King Cobra

5/10

Heat and chemical trail.

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
King Cobra
Ophiophagus hannah

Komodo Dragon

Varanus komodoensis

Other monitor lizards.

King Cobra

Ophiophagus hannah

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

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
King Cobra
Wobble Venom Warning

Komodo Dragon

Patient Island Ambush

They wait.

King Cobra

Wobble Venom Warning

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

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 · King Cobra 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

SKREEE!

THEY MEET

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

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

CHOMP!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

Komodo Dragon is heavier. King Cobra uses hood-high venom fangs. Nobody is keeping a gore score.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

SNAP!

SPECIAL MOVES

Komodo Dragon tries the Patient Island Ambush. King Cobra tries the Wobble Venom Warning. 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 grassland, Komodo Dragon wins. Komodo Dragon likes grassland more. King Cobra 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 · King Cobra 2 · ties 3.

Your card: Komodo Dragon 0 · King Cobra 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

1/17 · scroll