WHO WILL WIN?
Panda
HONK-BLEAT
Cheetah
CHIRRUP-ZOOM
THE SETUP

Panda vs Cheetah

Panda
Panda
Cheetah
Cheetah

Pretend a panda and a cheetah meet in the mountains. 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

Panda

Ailuropoda melanoleuca · A bamboo tank in a costume.

Panda
Home
Chinese mountain forests · Lives in Asia
Food
Plants
Group
Lives alone
Size
Panda is medium.

Bamboo specialist.

Smell finds the right stalks.

Slow-looking, not helpless.

  • Panda is medium and not very fast.
  • Almost all bamboo, all day.
  • Cool, misty mountain forests where bamboo grows like a salad bar.

Family: Other bears.

Corner B

Cheetah

Acinonyx jubatus · The land-speed record in spots.

Cheetah
Home
African savanna · Lives in Africa
Food
Meat
Group
Lives alone
Size
Cheetah is medium.

Sprint specialist.

Huge eyes, huge field of view.

A sprinter, not a wrestler.

  • Cheetah is medium and very fast.
  • They prefer gazelles and other speedy snacks they can outrun.
  • Open plains are a racetrack.

Family: Other cats, but cheetahs are the odd cousins who joined track team.

TO SCALE!

SIZE & WEIGHT

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

1.70 m

Grown-up

0.90 m

Panda to scale

Panda

0.90 m

Cheetah to scale

Cheetah

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

Panda120 kg

About as heavy as a big goat, shaped like a stuffed animal that lifts.

Cheetah50 kg

About as heavy as a fifth-grader — and faster than the school bus.

Panda

0.90 m · 120 kg

Panda is medium. 120 kg.

Cheetah

0.90 m · 50 kg

Cheetah is medium. 50 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: Bamboo-crusher jaws
  • Armor: Plush padding
  • Senses: Smell finds the right stalks.

Panda · labeled field diagram

  • Weapon: High-speed trip claws
  • Armor: Tearaway lightness
  • Senses: Huge eyes, huge field of view.

Cheetah · labeled field diagram

Panda500 psi bite
Cheetah400 psi bite

Panda

Bamboo-crusher jaws

Tool: bamboo-crusher jaws. Bite: 500 psi.

Cheetah

High-speed trip claws

Tool: high-speed trip claws. 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?

Panda
30 km/h
Cheetah
110 km/h
Panda30 km/h
Cheetah110 km/h

Panda

30 km/h

Panda can go 30 km/h. That is not very fast.

Cheetah

110 km/h

Cheetah can go 110 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 the mountains. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
PandaCheetahBoth

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

Panda

This is home · Lives in Asia

Panda lives in places like the mountains.

Cheetah

Not their home · Lives in Africa

Cheetah's home is the african savanna, not the mountains.

Almost never. Their homes sit next to each other.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

Panda
Plants · Bamboo specialist.
Cheetah
Meat · Sprint specialist.

Panda

Plants · Bamboo specialist.

Almost all bamboo, all day.

Cheetah

Meat · Sprint specialist.

They prefer gazelles and other speedy snacks they can outrun.

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.

Panda
Lives alone
Cheetah
Lives alone
Panda4 grit /10
Cheetah6 grit /10

Panda

Lives alone

Slow-looking, not helpless. Grit: 4/10.

Cheetah

Lives alone

A sprinter, not a wrestler. Grit: 6/10.

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?

Panda
6/10
Cheetah
6/10
Panda6 brains /10
Cheetah6 brains /10

Panda

6/10

Smell finds the right stalks.

Cheetah

6/10

Huge eyes, huge field of view.

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

Who would you score for noticing?

COUSINS!

FAMILY

Who are they related to?

Panda
Ailuropoda melanoleuca
Cheetah
Acinonyx jubatus

Panda

Ailuropoda melanoleuca

Other bears.

Cheetah

Acinonyx jubatus

Other cats, but cheetahs are the odd cousins who joined track team.

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?

Panda
Sit-and-Smoosh
Cheetah
Hundred-Kilo Zoom

Panda

Sit-and-Smoosh

If a panda leans on a problem, the problem becomes a pancake.

Cheetah

Hundred-Kilo Zoom

0 to 100 km/h in about 3 seconds.

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: Panda 0 · Cheetah 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

SKREEE!

THEY MEET

Cheetah runs first. Panda does not race. They wait in the mountains.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

CHOMP!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

Panda is heavier. Cheetah uses high-speed trip claws. Nobody is keeping a gore score.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

SNAP!

SPECIAL MOVES

Panda tries the Sit-and-Smoosh. Cheetah tries the Hundred-Kilo Zoom. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Panda!

A CLEAR PICK · UNDERDOG

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

On the mountains, Panda wins. Panda likes the mountains more. Cheetah 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: Panda 2 · Cheetah 5 · ties 1.

Your card: Panda 0 · Cheetah 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 · Panda

Bamboo: the official victory snack.

Wikimedia Commons · CC. Source

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