WHO WILL WIN?
Penguin
HONK-HONK
Sloth
MEEP-SIGH
THE SETUP

Penguin vs Sloth

Penguin
Penguin
Sloth
Sloth

Pretend a penguin and a sloth meet in forest. Look at the facts. Then you pick.

Would they meet?

No. Wild penguins and sloths would not meet. We still look at the facts.

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

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.

Corner B

Sloth

Bradypus variegatus · The slowest fighter with the strongest grip.

Sloth
Home
Central and South American rainforest · Lives in South America
Food
Plants
Group
Lives alone
Size
Sloth is small.

Leaf eater in slow motion.

Not a hunter's kit.

Peaceful to a fault.

  • Sloth is small and slow.
  • Leaves.
  • The high canopy, where going nowhere slowly is a valid plan.

Family: Anteaters and armadillos — the xenarthran club of unhurried specialists.

TO SCALE!

SIZE & WEIGHT

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

1.70 m

Grown-up

1.20 m

Penguin to scale

Penguin

0.60 m

Sloth to scale

Sloth

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

Penguin40 kg

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

Sloth6 kg

About as heavy as a small melon that refuses to rush.

Penguin

1.20 m · 40 kg

Penguin is medium. 40 kg.

Sloth

0.60 m · 6 kg

Sloth is small. 6 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: Flipper slap + beak poke
  • Armor: Tuxedo blubber
  • Senses: Underwater vision is the talent.

Penguin · labeled field diagram

  • Weapon: Three-toed hooks
  • Armor: Algae cloak
  • Senses: Not a hunter's kit.

Sloth · labeled field diagram

Penguin80 psi bite
Sloth50 psi bite

Penguin

Flipper slap + beak poke

Tool: flipper slap + beak poke. Bite: 80 psi.

Sloth

Three-toed hooks

Tool: three-toed hooks. 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?

Penguin
8 km/h
Sloth
2 km/h
Penguin8 km/h
Sloth2 km/h

Penguin

8 km/h

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

Sloth

2 km/h

Sloth can go 2 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 forest. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
PenguinSlothBoth

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

Penguin

Wrong place · Lives in Antarctica

Penguin's home is the antarctic ice, not forest.

Sloth

This is home · Lives in South America

Sloth lives in places like forest.

No. Wild penguins and sloths would not meet. We still look at the facts.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

Penguin
Meat · Torpedo fisher.
Sloth
Plants · Leaf eater in slow motion.

Penguin

Meat · Torpedo fisher.

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

Sloth

Plants · Leaf eater in slow motion.

Leaves.

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.

Penguin
Lives in a big group
Sloth
Lives alone
Penguin7 grit /10
Sloth5 grit /10

Penguin

Lives in a big group

Tough about cold. Grit: 7/10.

Sloth

Lives alone

Peaceful to a fault. Grit: 5/10.

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?

Penguin
6/10
Sloth
3/10
Penguin6 brains /10
Sloth3 brains /10

Penguin

6/10

Underwater vision is the talent.

Sloth

3/10

Not a hunter's kit.

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

Who would you score for noticing?

COUSINS!

FAMILY

Who are they related to?

Penguin
Aptenodytes forsteri
Sloth
Bradypus variegatus

Penguin

Aptenodytes forsteri

Other flightless seabirds.

Sloth

Bradypus variegatus

Anteaters and armadillos — the xenarthran club of unhurried specialists.

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?

Penguin
Belly-Toboggan Escape
Sloth
Hang In There

Penguin

Belly-Toboggan Escape

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

Sloth

Hang In There

Predators often cannot peel a sloth off a branch.

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: Penguin 0 · Sloth 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

THWACK!

THEY MEET

Penguin runs first. Sloth does not race. They wait in forest.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

SLAM!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

Penguin is heavier. Sloth uses three-toed hooks. Nobody is keeping a gore score.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

POW!

SPECIAL MOVES

Penguin tries the Belly-Toboggan Escape. Sloth tries the Hang In There. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Penguin!

A STOMP

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

On forest, Penguin wins. Penguin is a lot heavier. Sloth 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: Penguin 7 · Sloth 1.

Your card: Penguin 0 · Sloth 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 · Penguin

Penguins in the Ross Sea. Formal wear, chaotic energy.

Francisco Ardini / PNRA · CC BY-SA 4.0. Source

1/17 · scroll