WHO WILL WIN?
Ostrich
BOOM-KICK
Meerkat
CHK-CHK-ALARM
THE SETUP

Ostrich vs Meerkat

Ostrich
Ostrich
Meerkat
Meerkat

Pretend a ostrich and a meerkat meet in grassland. Look at the facts. Then you pick.

Would they meet?

Yes. They could meet in the real wild. This page is still a what-if.

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

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

2.7 m

Ostrich to scale

Ostrich

0.30 m

Meerkat to scale

Meerkat

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

Ostrich140 kg

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

Meerkat0.8 kg

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

Ostrich

2.7 m · 140 kg

Ostrich is medium. 140 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: Dinosaur-leg kick
  • Armor: Long-range eyeballs
  • Senses: Giant eyes — among the biggest of any land animal.

Ostrich · labeled field diagram

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

Meerkat · labeled field diagram

Ostrich50 psi bite
Meerkat50 psi bite

Ostrich

Dinosaur-leg kick

Tool: dinosaur-leg kick. Bite: 50 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?

Ostrich
70 km/h
Meerkat
32 km/h
Ostrich70 km/h
Meerkat32 km/h

Ostrich

70 km/h

Ostrich can go 70 km/h. That is very 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 grassland. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
OstrichMeerkatBoth

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

Ostrich

This is home · Lives in Africa

Ostrich lives in places like grassland.

Meerkat

This is home · Lives in Africa

Meerkat lives in places like grassland.

Yes. They could meet in the real wild. This page is still a what-if.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

Ostrich
Plants and meat · Grazer and bug-pecker.
Meerkat
Plants and meat · Bug and scorpion specialist.

Ostrich

Plants and meat · Grazer and bug-pecker.

Plants, seeds, insects, and the occasional lizard.

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.

Ostrich
Lives in a flock
Meerkat
Lives in a big group
Ostrich6 grit /10
Meerkat10 grit /10

Ostrich

Lives in a flock

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

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?

Ostrich
4/10
Meerkat
7/10
Ostrich4 brains /10
Meerkat7 brains /10

Ostrich

4/10

Giant eyes — among the biggest of any land animal.

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?

Ostrich
Struthio camelus
Meerkat
Suricata suricatta

Ostrich

Struthio camelus

Emus, rheas, and other giant flightless birds.

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?

Ostrich
Sprint-and-Slash
Meerkat
Sentry Siren

Ostrich

Sprint-and-Slash

They do not bury their heads in sand.

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: Ostrich 0 · Meerkat 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

WHAM!

THEY MEET

Ostrich runs first. Meerkat does not race. They wait in grassland.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

WHOOSH!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

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

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

ZING!

SPECIAL MOVES

Ostrich tries the Sprint-and-Slash. Meerkat tries the Sentry Siren. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Ostrich!

A STOMP

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

On grassland, Ostrich wins. Ostrich is a lot heavier. 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: Ostrich 5 · Meerkat 2 · ties 1.

Your card: Ostrich 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.

Victory lap · Ostrich

That is a bird. That is also a sprinter.

Wikimedia Commons · CC. Source

1/17 · scroll