WHO WILL WIN?
Panda
HONK-BLEAT
Cougar
SCREAM-PURR
THE SETUP

Panda vs Cougar

Panda
Panda
Cougar
Cougar

Pretend a panda and a cougar meet in forest. 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

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

Cougar

Puma concolor · The quiet jumper with a hundred nicknames.

Cougar
Home
Americas from mountains to swamp · Lives in North America / South America
Food
Meat
Group
Lives alone
Size
Cougar is medium.

Stalk and pounce.

Dawn-and-dusk eyes.

A loner with a plan.

  • Cougar is medium and very fast.
  • Deer are favorite.
  • The widest range of any New World mammal, from Canada to the Andes.

Family: Cheetahs and jaguarundis more than roaring lions.

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

0.75 m

Cougar to scale

Cougar

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.

Cougar65 kg

About as heavy as a grown-up's suitcase that can jump a creek.

Panda

0.90 m · 120 kg

Panda is medium. 120 kg.

Cougar

0.75 m · 65 kg

Cougar is medium. 65 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: Pounce and hold
  • Armor: Tawny vanish
  • Senses: Dawn-and-dusk eyes.

Cougar · labeled field diagram

Panda500 psi bite
Cougar400 psi bite

Panda

Bamboo-crusher jaws

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

Cougar

Pounce and hold

Tool: pounce and hold. 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
Cougar
70 km/h
Panda30 km/h
Cougar70 km/h

Panda

30 km/h

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

Cougar

70 km/h

Cougar can go 70 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 forest. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
PandaCougarBoth

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

Panda

This is home · Lives in Asia

Panda lives in places like forest.

Cougar

This is home · Lives in North America / South America

Cougar lives in places like forest.

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?

Panda
Plants · Bamboo specialist.
Cougar
Meat · Stalk and pounce.

Panda

Plants · Bamboo specialist.

Almost all bamboo, all day.

Cougar

Meat · Stalk and pounce.

Deer are favorite.

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
Cougar
Lives alone
Panda4 grit /10
Cougar7 grit /10

Panda

Lives alone

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

Cougar

Lives alone

A loner with a plan. 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?

Panda
6/10
Cougar
7/10
Panda6 brains /10
Cougar7 brains /10

Panda

6/10

Smell finds the right stalks.

Cougar

7/10

Dawn-and-dusk eyes.

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
Cougar
Puma concolor

Panda

Ailuropoda melanoleuca

Other bears.

Cougar

Puma concolor

Cheetahs and jaguarundis more than roaring lions.

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
Cougar
Canyon Long Jump

Panda

Sit-and-Smoosh

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

Cougar

Canyon Long Jump

They can bound 12 meters in a single leap.

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 · Cougar 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

WHAM!

THEY MEET

Cougar runs first. Panda does not race. They wait in forest.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

WHOOSH!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

Panda is heavier. Cougar uses pounce and hold. Nobody is keeping a gore score.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

ZING!

SPECIAL MOVES

Panda tries the Sit-and-Smoosh. Cougar tries the Canyon Long Jump. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Cougar!

A CLEAR PICK

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

On forest, Cougar wins. Cougar's pounce and hold helps more. Panda 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 1 · Cougar 6 · ties 1.

Your card: Panda 0 · Cougar 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 · Panda

Bamboo: the official victory snack.

Wikimedia Commons · CC. Source

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