WHO WILL WIN?
Komodo Dragon
HISS-CHOMP
T. rex
RAAWR
THE SETUP

Komodo Dragon vs T. rex

Komodo Dragon
Komodo Dragon
T. rex
T. rex

Pretend they meet in grassland. Dinosaurs lived long ago. Look at the facts. Then you pick.

Would they meet?

No. Komodo Dragon and T. rex did not live at the same time. This meeting is pretend.

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

T. rex

Tyrannosaurus rex · The banana-toothed bone cruiser.

T. rex
Home
Late Cretaceous floodplains of western North America · Lived in North America long ago
Food
Meat
Group
Lives alone
Size
T. rex is giant.

Giant bite-and-pull hunter.

A huge smelling system and eyes that faced more forward than most dinosaurs.

Top of a vanished food web.

  • T. rex is giant and not very fast.
  • Horned dinosaurs, duckbills, leftover carcasses — a giant meat-eater that did not skip free calories.
  • Fossils come from places like Hell Creek: forests, rivers, and floodplains about 66 million years ago.

Family: Birds!

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

3.7 m

T. rex to scale

T. rex

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.

T. rex8,200 kg

Hip-tall as a basketball hoop, heavier than an African elephant, longer than a school bus.

Komodo Dragon

0.50 m · 80 kg

Komodo Dragon is medium. 80 kg.

T. rex

3.7 m · 8,200 kg

T. rex is giant. 8,200 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: Banana-sized bone shears
  • Armor: Thick skull and a neck like a crane
  • Senses: A huge smelling system and eyes that faced more forward than most dinosaurs.

T. rex · labeled field diagram

Komodo Dragon600 psi bite
T. rex8000 psi bite

Komodo Dragon

Venom-slick bite

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

T. rex

Banana-sized bone shears

Tool: banana-sized bone shears. Bite: 8,000 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
T. rex
20 km/h
Komodo Dragon20 km/h
T. rex20 km/h

Komodo Dragon

20 km/h

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

T. rex

20 km/h

T. rex 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 grassland. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
Komodo DragonT. rexBoth

Meeting biome: grassland. Colored land is fossil range for dinosaurs and living range for zoo animals.

Komodo Dragon

This is home · Lives in Asia

Komodo Dragon lives in places like grassland.

T. rex

This is home · Lived in North America long ago

T. rex lives in places like grassland.

No. Komodo Dragon and T. rex did not live at the same time. This meeting is pretend.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

Komodo Dragon
Meat · Ambush lizard.
T. rex
Meat · Giant bite-and-pull hunter.

Komodo Dragon

Meat · Ambush lizard.

Deer, pigs, water buffalo, even other dragons.

T. rex

Meat · Giant bite-and-pull hunter.

Horned dinosaurs, duckbills, leftover carcasses — a giant meat-eater that did not skip free calories.

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
T. rex
Lives alone
Komodo Dragon8 grit /10
T. rex9 grit /10

Komodo Dragon

Lives alone

Slow-looking predator. Grit: 8/10.

T. rex

Lives alone

Top of a vanished food web. Grit: 9/10.

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
T. rex
5/10
Komodo Dragon4 brains /10
T. rex5 brains /10

Komodo Dragon

4/10

Tongue tastes the air.

T. rex

5/10

A huge smelling system and eyes that faced more forward than most dinosaurs.

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
T. rex
Tyrannosaurus rex

Komodo Dragon

Varanus komodoensis

Other monitor lizards.

T. rex

Tyrannosaurus rex

Birds!

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
T. rex
Bone-Crunch Clamp

Komodo Dragon

Patient Island Ambush

They wait.

T. rex

Bone-Crunch Clamp

T.

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 · T. rex 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

WHAM!

THEY MEET

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

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

WHOOSH!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

T. rex 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. T. rex tries the Bone-Crunch Clamp. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

T. rex!

A STOMP

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

On grassland, T. rex wins. T. rex 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 0 · T. rex 5 · ties 3.

Your card: Komodo Dragon 0 · T. rex 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 · Komodo Dragon

Dragon walk. Tongue out. Homework done.

Wikimedia Commons · CC. Source

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