WHO WILL WIN?
Ostrich
BOOM-KICK
Crocodile
SNAP-HISSS
THE SETUP

Ostrich vs Crocodile

Ostrich
Ostrich
Crocodile
Crocodile

Pretend a ostrich and a crocodile meet in the desert. 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

Ostrich

Struthio camelus · The kick that thinks it is a dinosaur.

Ostrich
Home
African savanna · Lives in Africa
Food
Plants and meat
Group
Lives in a flock
Size
Ostrich is medium.

Grazer and bug-pecker.

Giant eyes — among the biggest of any land animal.

Run first, kick second.

  • Ostrich is medium and very fast.
  • Plants, seeds, insects, and the occasional lizard.
  • Open country where those huge legs can actually use their speed.

Family: Emus, rheas, and other giant flightless birds.

Corner B

Crocodile

Crocodylus niloticus · A living fossil with a trapdoor mouth.

Crocodile
Home
African rivers · Lives in Africa
Food
Meat
Group
Lives alone
Size
Crocodile is big.

Wait like a log.

Pressure sensors in the skin feel a ripple.

Explosive from zero.

  • Crocodile is big and not very fast.
  • Fish, mammals, birds — if it comes to the water's edge, it is on the menu.
  • They wait like logs.

Family: Alligators, caimans, and dinosaurs' old roommates, the archosaurs.

TO SCALE!

SIZE & WEIGHT

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

1.70 m

Grown-up

2.7 m

Ostrich to scale

Ostrich

0.70 m

Crocodile to scale

Crocodile

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

Ostrich140 kg

Taller than most grown-ups, and faster than a city speed limit.

Crocodile500 kg

Can stretch longer than a pickup truck.

Ostrich

2.7 m · 140 kg

Ostrich is medium. 140 kg.

Crocodile

0.70 m · 500 kg

Crocodile is big. 500 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: Dinosaur-leg kick
  • Armor: Long-range eyeballs
  • Senses: Giant eyes — among the biggest of any land animal.

Ostrich · labeled field diagram

  • Weapon: The planet's hardest chomp
  • Armor: Bony osteoderm shield
  • Senses: Pressure sensors in the skin feel a ripple.

Crocodile · labeled field diagram

Ostrich50 psi bite
Crocodile3700 psi bite

Ostrich

Dinosaur-leg kick

Tool: dinosaur-leg kick. Bite: 50 psi.

Crocodile

The planet's hardest chomp

Tool: the planet's hardest chomp. Bite: 3,700 psi.

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

Whose tools would you trust?

ZOOM!

SPEED

Who gets there first?

Ostrich
70 km/h
Crocodile
32 km/h
Ostrich70 km/h
Crocodile32 km/h

Ostrich

70 km/h

Ostrich can go 70 km/h. That is very fast.

Crocodile

32 km/h

Crocodile 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 the desert. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
OstrichCrocodileBoth

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

Ostrich

This is home · Lives in Africa

Ostrich lives in places like the desert.

Crocodile

Wrong place · Lives in Africa

Crocodile's home is the african rivers, not the desert.

Almost never. Their homes sit next to each other.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

Ostrich
Plants and meat · Grazer and bug-pecker.
Crocodile
Meat · Wait like a log.

Ostrich

Plants and meat · Grazer and bug-pecker.

Plants, seeds, insects, and the occasional lizard.

Crocodile

Meat · Wait like a log.

Fish, mammals, birds — if it comes to the water's edge, it is on the menu.

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.

Ostrich
Lives in a flock
Crocodile
Lives alone
Ostrich6 grit /10
Crocodile8 grit /10

Ostrich

Lives in a flock

Run first, kick second. Grit: 6/10.

Crocodile

Lives alone

Explosive from zero. 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?

Ostrich
4/10
Crocodile
4/10
Ostrich4 brains /10
Crocodile4 brains /10

Ostrich

4/10

Giant eyes — among the biggest of any land animal.

Crocodile

4/10

Pressure sensors in the skin feel a ripple.

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

Who would you score for noticing?

COUSINS!

FAMILY

Who are they related to?

Ostrich
Struthio camelus
Crocodile
Crocodylus niloticus

Ostrich

Struthio camelus

Emus, rheas, and other giant flightless birds.

Crocodile

Crocodylus niloticus

Alligators, caimans, and dinosaurs' old roommates, the archosaurs.

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?

Ostrich
Sprint-and-Slash
Crocodile
Death-Roll Remix

Ostrich

Sprint-and-Slash

They do not bury their heads in sand.

Crocodile

Death-Roll Remix

If it grabs you, it spins.

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: Ostrich 0 · Crocodile 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

THWACK!

THEY MEET

Ostrich runs first. Crocodile does not race. They wait in the desert.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

SLAM!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

Crocodile is heavier. Ostrich uses dinosaur-leg kick. Nobody is keeping a gore score.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

POW!

SPECIAL MOVES

Ostrich tries the Sprint-and-Slash. Crocodile tries the Death-Roll Remix. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Crocodile!

A CLEAR PICK

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

On the desert, Crocodile wins. Crocodile is a lot heavier. Ostrich 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: Ostrich 2 · Crocodile 5 · ties 1.

Your card: Ostrich 0 · Crocodile 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 · Ostrich

That is a bird. That is also a sprinter.

Wikimedia Commons · CC. Source

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