WHO WILL WIN?
Lion
ROOOAR
Cougar
SCREAM-PURR
THE SETUP

Lion vs Cougar

Lion
Lion
Cougar
Cougar

Pretend a lion and a cougar 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

Lion

Panthera leo · The mane event.

Lion
Home
African savanna · Lives in Africa
Food
Meat
Group
Lives in a team
Size
Lion is medium.

Lionesses stalk and rush as a team.

Night vision and a roar you can hear for kilometers.

Bold on home grass.

  • Lion is medium and very fast.
  • Lions hunt antelope, zebra, and even buffalo — usually as a team.
  • Lions love open grass country where they can stalk in plain sight.

Family: Tiger, leopard, jaguar, and your house cat (very, very distant cousin).

Corner B

Cougar

Puma concolor · The quiet jumper with a hundred nicknames.

Cougar
Home
Americas from mountains to swamp · Lives in North America / South America
Food
Meat
Group
Lives alone
Size
Cougar is medium.

Stalk and pounce.

Dawn-and-dusk eyes.

A loner with a plan.

  • Cougar is medium and very fast.
  • Deer are favorite.
  • The widest range of any New World mammal, from Canada to the Andes.

Family: Cheetahs and jaguarundis more than roaring lions.

TO SCALE!

SIZE & WEIGHT

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

1.70 m

Grown-up

1.20 m

Lion to scale

Lion

0.75 m

Cougar to scale

Cougar

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

Lion190 kg

About as heavy as two grown-up humans stacked together.

Cougar65 kg

About as heavy as a grown-up's suitcase that can jump a creek.

Lion

1.20 m · 190 kg

Lion is medium. 190 kg.

Cougar

0.75 m · 65 kg

Cougar is medium. 65 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: Retractable meat hooks
  • Armor: Neck-guard mane
  • Senses: Night vision and a roar you can hear for kilometers.

Lion · labeled field diagram

  • Weapon: Pounce and hold
  • Armor: Tawny vanish
  • Senses: Dawn-and-dusk eyes.

Cougar · labeled field diagram

Lion650 psi bite
Cougar400 psi bite

Lion

Retractable meat hooks

Tool: retractable meat hooks. Bite: 650 psi.

Cougar

Pounce and hold

Tool: pounce and hold. Bite: 400 psi.

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

Whose tools would you trust?

ZOOM!

SPEED

Who gets there first?

Lion
80 km/h
Cougar
70 km/h
Lion80 km/h
Cougar70 km/h

Lion

80 km/h

Lion can go 80 km/h. That is very fast.

Cougar

70 km/h

Cougar can go 70 km/h. That is 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
LionCougarBoth

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

Lion

This is home · Lives in Africa

Lion lives in places like grassland.

Cougar

Can handle it · Lives in North America / South America

Cougar's home is the americas from mountains to swamp, not grassland.

Almost never. Their homes sit next to each other.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

Lion
Meat · Lionesses stalk and rush as a team.
Cougar
Meat · Stalk and pounce.

Lion

Meat · Lionesses stalk and rush as a team.

Lions hunt antelope, zebra, and even buffalo — usually as a team.

Cougar

Meat · Stalk and pounce.

Deer are favorite.

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.

Lion
Lives in a team
Cougar
Lives alone
Lion9 grit /10
Cougar7 grit /10

Lion

Lives in a team

Bold on home grass. Grit: 9/10.

Cougar

Lives alone

A loner with a plan. Grit: 7/10.

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?

Lion
7/10
Cougar
7/10
Lion7 brains /10
Cougar7 brains /10

Lion

7/10

Night vision and a roar you can hear for kilometers.

Cougar

7/10

Dawn-and-dusk eyes.

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

Who would you score for noticing?

COUSINS!

FAMILY

Who are they related to?

Lion
Panthera leo
Cougar
Puma concolor

Lion

Panthera leo

Tiger, leopard, jaguar, and your house cat (very, very distant cousin).

Cougar

Puma concolor

Cheetahs and jaguarundis more than roaring lions.

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?

Lion
Pride Roar Stun
Cougar
Canyon Long Jump

Lion

Pride Roar Stun

A lion's roar can travel 8 kilometers.

Cougar

Canyon Long Jump

They can bound 12 meters in a single leap.

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: Lion 0 · Cougar 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

WHAM!

THEY MEET

Lion runs first. Cougar does not race. They wait in grassland.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

WHOOSH!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

Lion is heavier. Cougar uses pounce and hold. Nobody is keeping a gore score.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

ZING!

SPECIAL MOVES

Lion tries the Pride Roar Stun. Cougar tries the Canyon Long Jump. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Lion!

A STOMP

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

On grassland, Lion wins. Lion likes grassland more. Cougar 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: Lion 5 · Cougar 0 · ties 3.

Your card: Lion 0 · Cougar 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 · Lion

The champ works the camera. Mane: present. Dignity: optional.

Wikimedia Commons · Fun Zoo Miami / CC. Source

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