WHO WILL WIN?
Panda
HONK-BLEAT
Penguin
HONK-HONK
THE SETUP

Panda vs Penguin

Panda
Panda
Penguin
Penguin

Pretend a panda and a penguin meet in the coast. 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

Penguin

Aptenodytes forsteri · A tuxedo torpedo with zero quit.

Penguin
Home
Antarctic ice · Lives in Antarctica
Food
Meat
Group
Lives in a big group
Size
Penguin is medium.

Torpedo fisher.

Underwater vision is the talent.

Tough about cold.

  • Penguin is medium and slow.
  • Fish, krill, and squid, caught in icy dives.
  • They huddle in storms so tight that the inside of the huddle is toasty.

Family: Other flightless seabirds.

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

1.20 m

Penguin to scale

Penguin

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.

Penguin40 kg

About as heavy as a big bag of dog food, but much more dignified.

Panda

0.90 m · 120 kg

Panda is medium. 120 kg.

Penguin

1.20 m · 40 kg

Penguin is medium. 40 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: Flipper slap + beak poke
  • Armor: Tuxedo blubber
  • Senses: Underwater vision is the talent.

Penguin · labeled field diagram

Panda500 psi bite
Penguin80 psi bite

Panda

Bamboo-crusher jaws

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

Penguin

Flipper slap + beak poke

Tool: flipper slap + beak poke. Bite: 80 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
Penguin
8 km/h
Panda30 km/h
Penguin8 km/h

Panda

30 km/h

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

Penguin

8 km/h

Penguin can go 8 km/h. That is slow.

A fast animal can miss. A slow one only has to connect.

Who takes the speed card?

HOME MAP!

HOME

They meet in the coast. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
PandaPenguinBoth

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

Panda

Not their home · Lives in Asia

Panda's home is the chinese mountain forests, not the coast.

Penguin

This is home · Lives in Antarctica

Penguin lives in places like the coast.

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.
Penguin
Meat · Torpedo fisher.

Panda

Plants · Bamboo specialist.

Almost all bamboo, all day.

Penguin

Meat · Torpedo fisher.

Fish, krill, and squid, caught in icy dives.

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
Penguin
Lives in a big group
Panda4 grit /10
Penguin7 grit /10

Panda

Lives alone

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

Penguin

Lives in a big group

Tough about cold. 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
Penguin
6/10
Panda6 brains /10
Penguin6 brains /10

Panda

6/10

Smell finds the right stalks.

Penguin

6/10

Underwater vision is the talent.

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
Penguin
Aptenodytes forsteri

Panda

Ailuropoda melanoleuca

Other bears.

Penguin

Aptenodytes forsteri

Other flightless seabirds.

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
Penguin
Belly-Toboggan Escape

Panda

Sit-and-Smoosh

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

Penguin

Belly-Toboggan Escape

When walking is too slow, an emperor penguin drops and slides.

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 · Penguin 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

THWACK!

THEY MEET

Panda runs first. Penguin does not race. They wait in the coast.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

SLAM!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

Panda is heavier. Penguin uses flipper slap + beak poke. Nobody is keeping a gore score.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

POW!

SPECIAL MOVES

Panda tries the Sit-and-Smoosh. Penguin tries the Belly-Toboggan Escape. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Panda!

A SQUEAKER

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

On the coast, Panda wins. Panda is a lot heavier. Penguin 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 3 · Penguin 3 · ties 2.

Your card: Panda 0 · Penguin 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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