WHO WILL WIN?
Okapi
CHUFF-BLEAT
Meerkat
CHK-CHK-ALARM
THE SETUP

Okapi vs Meerkat

Okapi
Okapi
Meerkat
Meerkat

Pretend a okapi and a meerkat meet in forest. 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

Okapi

Okapia johnstoni · A forest giraffe in zebra socks.

Okapi
Home
Congo rainforest · Lives in Africa
Food
Plants
Group
Lives alone
Size
Okapi is big.

Forest browser.

Huge ears.

Ghost of the rainforest.

  • Okapi is big and fast.
  • Leaves, fruit, and fungi.
  • Deep rainforest.

Family: Giraffes.

Corner B

Meerkat

Suricata suricatta · The smallest fighter with the biggest sentry energy.

Meerkat
Home
African desert and scrub · Lives in Africa
Food
Plants and meat
Group
Lives in a big group
Size
Meerkat is tiny.

Bug and scorpion specialist.

Dark-eye rings cut glare.

Brave in a mob, tiny in a 1-v-1.

  • Meerkat is tiny and not very fast.
  • Insects, scorpions, eggs, and the occasional lizard.
  • They live in underground burrow cities with many exits.

Family: Mongooses.

TO SCALE!

SIZE & WEIGHT

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

1.70 m

Grown-up

1.60 m

Okapi to scale

Okapi

0.30 m

Meerkat to scale

Meerkat

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

Okapi250 kg

About as heavy as a pony, dressed like a secret.

Meerkat0.8 kg

About as heavy as a loaf of bread that learned karate.

Okapi

1.60 m · 250 kg

Okapi is big. 250 kg.

Meerkat

0.30 m · 0.8 kg

Meerkat is tiny. 0.8 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: Kick plus ossicone bump
  • Armor: Stripe socks
  • Senses: Huge ears.

Okapi · labeled field diagram

  • Weapon: Needle claws
  • Armor: Absolutely none
  • Senses: Dark-eye rings cut glare.

Meerkat · labeled field diagram

Okapi30 psi bite
Meerkat50 psi bite

Okapi

Kick plus ossicone bump

Tool: kick plus ossicone bump. Bite: 30 psi.

Meerkat

Needle claws

Tool: needle claws. Bite: 50 psi.

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

Whose tools would you trust?

ZOOM!

SPEED

Who gets there first?

Okapi
50 km/h
Meerkat
32 km/h
Okapi50 km/h
Meerkat32 km/h

Okapi

50 km/h

Okapi can go 50 km/h. That is fast.

Meerkat

32 km/h

Meerkat can go 32 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 forest. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
OkapiMeerkatBoth

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

Okapi

This is home · Lives in Africa

Okapi lives in places like forest.

Meerkat

Can handle it · Lives in Africa

Meerkat's home is the african desert and scrub, not forest.

Almost never. Their homes sit next to each other.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

Okapi
Plants · Forest browser.
Meerkat
Plants and meat · Bug and scorpion specialist.

Okapi

Plants · Forest browser.

Leaves, fruit, and fungi.

Meerkat

Plants and meat · Bug and scorpion specialist.

Insects, scorpions, eggs, and the occasional lizard.

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.

Okapi
Lives alone
Meerkat
Lives in a big group
Okapi5 grit /10
Meerkat10 grit /10

Okapi

Lives alone

Ghost of the rainforest. Grit: 5/10.

Meerkat

Lives in a big group

Brave in a mob, tiny in a 1-v-1. Grit: 10/10.

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?

Okapi
5/10
Meerkat
7/10
Okapi5 brains /10
Meerkat7 brains /10

Okapi

5/10

Huge ears.

Meerkat

7/10

Dark-eye rings cut glare.

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

Who would you score for noticing?

COUSINS!

FAMILY

Who are they related to?

Okapi
Okapia johnstoni
Meerkat
Suricata suricatta

Okapi

Okapia johnstoni

Giraffes.

Meerkat

Suricata suricatta

Mongooses.

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?

Okapi
Ghost of the Ituri
Meerkat
Sentry Siren

Okapi

Ghost of the Ituri

They are so shy scientists photographed them in the wild only recently.

Meerkat

Sentry Siren

One meerkat stands watch while the rest forage.

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: Okapi 0 · Meerkat 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

FWOOSH!

THEY MEET

Okapi runs first. Meerkat does not race. They wait in forest.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

KICK!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

Okapi is heavier. Meerkat uses needle claws. Nobody is keeping a gore score.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

STOOMP!

SPECIAL MOVES

Okapi tries the Ghost of the Ituri. Meerkat tries the Sentry Siren. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Okapi!

A STOMP

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

On forest, Okapi wins. Okapi likes forest more. Meerkat 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: Okapi 5 · Meerkat 3.

Your card: Okapi 0 · Meerkat 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 · Meerkat

Family meeting. Someone is always on lookout.

Boksi · Wilhelma Zoo · Wikimedia Commons · CC. Source

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