WHO WILL WIN?
Penguin
HONK-HONK
Tortoise
HISS-HMPH
THE SETUP

Penguin vs Tortoise

Penguin
Penguin
Tortoise
Tortoise

Pretend a penguin and a tortoise meet in the island. 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

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

Tortoise

Chelonoidis niger · A walking bunker that outlives arguments.

Tortoise
Home
Galápagos islands · Lives in South America
Food
Plants
Group
Lives alone
Size
Tortoise is big.

Browser.

They feel footsteps.

Unbothered fortress.

  • Tortoise is big and slow.
  • Cactus, grass, and island plants.
  • Dry islands where going slowly uses less water and fewer bad ideas.

Family: Turtles and terrapins.

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

0.50 m

Tortoise to scale

Tortoise

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.

Tortoise250 kg

As heavy as a grown-up, shaped like a helmet that learned to walk.

Penguin

1.20 m · 40 kg

Penguin is medium. 40 kg.

Tortoise

0.50 m · 250 kg

Tortoise is big. 250 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: Beak ram
  • Armor: Dome fortress
  • Senses: They feel footsteps.

Tortoise · labeled field diagram

Penguin80 psi bite
Tortoise200 psi bite

Penguin

Flipper slap + beak poke

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

Tortoise

Beak ram

Tool: beak ram. Bite: 200 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
Tortoise
1 km/h
Penguin8 km/h
Tortoise1 km/h

Penguin

8 km/h

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

Tortoise

1 km/h

Tortoise can go 1 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 island. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
PenguinTortoiseBoth

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

Penguin

Not their home · Lives in Antarctica

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

Tortoise

This is home · Lives in South America

Tortoise lives in places like the island.

Almost never. Their homes sit next to each other.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

Penguin
Meat · Torpedo fisher.
Tortoise
Plants · Browser.

Penguin

Meat · Torpedo fisher.

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

Tortoise

Plants · Browser.

Cactus, grass, and island plants.

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
Tortoise
Lives alone
Penguin7 grit /10
Tortoise6 grit /10

Penguin

Lives in a big group

Tough about cold. Grit: 7/10.

Tortoise

Lives alone

Unbothered fortress. 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?

Penguin
6/10
Tortoise
3/10
Penguin6 brains /10
Tortoise3 brains /10

Penguin

6/10

Underwater vision is the talent.

Tortoise

3/10

They feel footsteps.

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
Tortoise
Chelonoidis niger

Penguin

Aptenodytes forsteri

Other flightless seabirds.

Tortoise

Chelonoidis niger

Turtles and terrapins.

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
Tortoise
Tuck and Outlast

Penguin

Belly-Toboggan Escape

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

Tortoise

Tuck and Outlast

They pull in.

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 · Tortoise 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

FWOOSH!

THEY MEET

Penguin runs first. Tortoise does not race. They wait in the island.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

KICK!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

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

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

STOOMP!

SPECIAL MOVES

Penguin tries the Belly-Toboggan Escape. Tortoise tries the Tuck and Outlast. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Tortoise!

A STOMP · UNDERDOG

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

On the island, Tortoise wins. Tortoise likes the island more. 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: Penguin 6 · Tortoise 2.

Your card: Penguin 0 · Tortoise 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 · Tortoise

Armor, patience, and a very committed walk.

Wikimedia Commons · CC. Source

1/17 · scroll