WHO WILL WIN?
Macaw
RAAAK-RAAAK
Penguin
HONK-HONK
THE SETUP

Macaw vs Penguin

Macaw
Macaw
Penguin
Penguin

Pretend a macaw and a penguin meet in forest. Look at the facts. Then you pick.

Would they meet?

No. Wild macaws and penguins would not meet. We still look at the facts.

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

Macaw

Ara macao · A flying bolt-cutter in party colors.

Macaw
Home
Amazon canopy · Lives in South America
Food
Plants and meat
Group
Lives in a flock
Size
Macaw is tiny.

Seed-cracker.

Color vision and a noise that carries over canopy.

Social screamer.

  • Macaw is tiny and fast.
  • Seeds, nuts, fruit, and clay from riverbanks that helps settle spicy toxins.
  • High trees in pairs or flocks.

Family: Other parrots.

Corner B

Penguin

Aptenodytes forsteri · A tuxedo torpedo with zero quit.

Penguin
Home
Antarctic ice · Lives in Antarctica
Food
Meat
Group
Lives in a big group
Size
Penguin is medium.

Torpedo fisher.

Underwater vision is the talent.

Tough about cold.

  • Penguin is medium and slow.
  • Fish, krill, and squid, caught in icy dives.
  • They huddle in storms so tight that the inside of the huddle is toasty.

Family: Other flightless seabirds.

TO SCALE!

SIZE & WEIGHT

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

1.70 m

Grown-up

0.90 m

Macaw to scale

Macaw

1.20 m

Penguin to scale

Penguin

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

Macaw1 kg

Light as a loaf of bread, longer than a yardstick with the tail.

Penguin40 kg

About as heavy as a big bag of dog food, but much more dignified.

Macaw

0.90 m · 1 kg

Macaw is tiny. 1 kg.

Penguin

1.20 m · 40 kg

Penguin is medium. 40 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: Nutcracker beak
  • Armor: Rainbow vanish
  • Senses: Color vision and a noise that carries over canopy.

Macaw · labeled field diagram

  • Weapon: Flipper slap + beak poke
  • Armor: Tuxedo blubber
  • Senses: Underwater vision is the talent.

Penguin · labeled field diagram

Macaw200 psi bite
Penguin80 psi bite

Macaw

Nutcracker beak

Tool: nutcracker beak. Bite: 200 psi.

Penguin

Flipper slap + beak poke

Tool: flipper slap + beak poke. Bite: 80 psi.

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

Whose tools would you trust?

ZOOM!

SPEED

Who gets there first?

Macaw
56 km/h
Penguin
8 km/h
Macaw56 km/h
Penguin8 km/h

Macaw

56 km/h

Macaw can go 56 km/h. That is fast.

Penguin

8 km/h

Penguin can go 8 km/h. That is slow.

A fast animal can miss. A slow one only has to connect.

Who takes the speed card?

HOME MAP!

HOME

They meet in forest. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
MacawPenguinBoth

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

Macaw

This is home · Lives in South America

Macaw lives in places like forest.

Penguin

Wrong place · Lives in Antarctica

Penguin's home is the antarctic ice, not forest.

No. Wild macaws and penguins would not meet. We still look at the facts.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

Macaw
Plants and meat · Seed-cracker.
Penguin
Meat · Torpedo fisher.

Macaw

Plants and meat · Seed-cracker.

Seeds, nuts, fruit, and clay from riverbanks that helps settle spicy toxins.

Penguin

Meat · Torpedo fisher.

Fish, krill, and squid, caught in icy dives.

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.

Macaw
Lives in a flock
Penguin
Lives in a big group
Macaw5 grit /10
Penguin7 grit /10

Macaw

Lives in a flock

Social screamer. Grit: 5/10.

Penguin

Lives in a big group

Tough about cold. 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?

Macaw
6/10
Penguin
6/10
Macaw6 brains /10
Penguin6 brains /10

Macaw

6/10

Color vision and a noise that carries over canopy.

Penguin

6/10

Underwater vision is the talent.

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

Who would you score for noticing?

COUSINS!

FAMILY

Who are they related to?

Macaw
Ara macao
Penguin
Aptenodytes forsteri

Macaw

Ara macao

Other parrots.

Penguin

Aptenodytes forsteri

Other flightless seabirds.

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?

Macaw
Squawk and Scoot
Penguin
Belly-Toboggan Escape

Macaw

Squawk and Scoot

The call is an alarm.

Penguin

Belly-Toboggan Escape

When walking is too slow, an emperor penguin drops and slides.

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: Macaw 0 · Penguin 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

WHAM!

THEY MEET

Macaw runs first. Penguin does not race. They wait in forest.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

WHOOSH!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

Penguin is heavier. Macaw uses nutcracker beak. Nobody is keeping a gore score.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

ZING!

SPECIAL MOVES

Macaw tries the Squawk and Scoot. Penguin tries the Belly-Toboggan Escape. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Penguin!

A STOMP

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

On forest, Penguin wins. Penguin is a lot heavier. Macaw 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: Macaw 2 · Penguin 4 · ties 2.

Your card: Macaw 0 · Penguin 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 · Penguin

Penguins in the Ross Sea. Formal wear, chaotic energy.

Francisco Ardini / PNRA · CC BY-SA 4.0. Source

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