Rattlesnake VS Bison
Files · 1/17
Rattlesnake vs Bison
Pretend a rattlesnake and a bison meet in the desert. 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.
Rattlesnake
Crotalus atrox · A desert alarm clock with a noisy tail.
Sit, rattle, strike.
Heat pits are infrared goggles.
Would rather be left alone.
Family: Other pit vipers, including copperheads.
Bison
Bison bison · A shaggy locomotive with horns.
Grazer.
Smell and hearing across open grass.
Looks like furniture until it runs.
Family: Yaks and cattle.
SIZE & WEIGHT
Stand them next to a grown-up. Who is bigger and heavier?
1.70 m
Grown-up
0.15 m
Rattlesnake
1.70 m
Bison
Height to scale. A grown-up is 1.7 m.
About as heavy as a water bottle, louder than a snack bag.
As heavy as a small car, with a haircut that never clocks out.
Rattlesnake
0.15 m · 2 kg
Rattlesnake is tiny. 2 kg.
Bison
1.70 m · 700 kg
Bison is big. 700 kg.
Kilograms are honest. A small animal can still have a strong tool.
Who would you pick for size?
TOOLS
Teeth, claws, horns, venom, kick — what tools do they have?
Rattlesnake · labeled field diagram
Bison · labeled field diagram
Rattlesnake
Hinged venom fangs
Tool: hinged venom fangs. Bite: 80 psi.
Bison
Headbutt horns
Tool: headbutt horns. Bite: 200 psi.
A bite number is only one tool. Coils and kicks count too.
Whose tools would you trust?
SPEED
Who gets there first?
Rattlesnake
8 km/h
Rattlesnake can go 8 km/h. That is slow.
Bison
55 km/h
Bison can go 55 km/h. That is fast.
A fast animal can miss. A slow one only has to connect.
Who takes the speed card?
HOME
They meet in the desert. Who is built for this place?
Meeting biome: the desert. Colored land is where each animal actually lives.
Rattlesnake
This is home · Lives in North America
Rattlesnake lives in places like the desert.
Bison
Can handle it · Lives in North America
Bison's home is the north american grassland, not the desert.
Almost never. Their homes sit next to each other.
Who gets the home point?
FOOD
How do they get lunch?
Rattlesnake
Meat · Sit, rattle, strike.
Mice, rats, rabbits — small warm snacks of the desert.
Bison
Plants · Grazer.
Grass.
A plant eater is not 'safe.' Hippos and elephants still end arguments.
Whose hunting or defending helps more?
MOOD
Alone vs team. This rumble is one vs one.
Rattlesnake
Lives alone
Would rather be left alone. Grit: 7/10.
Bison
Lives in a herd
Looks like furniture until it runs. Grit: 8/10.
Pack and pride animals lose their backup in a 1-v-1.
Who is better for a solo meeting?
BRAINS
Who notices first and thinks next?
Rattlesnake
4/10
Heat pits are infrared goggles.
Bison
4/10
Smell and hearing across open grass.
In the wild, brains often mean leave before it starts.
Who would you score for noticing?
FAMILY
Who are they related to?
Rattlesnake
Crotalus atrox
Other pit vipers, including copperheads.
Bison
Bison bison
Yaks and cattle.
Cousins are clues, not a score.
Not a fight point. Who has the wilder family story?
SPECIAL
What special move did they evolve?
Rattlesnake
Buzz Then Zap
First the concert.
Bison
Prairie Freight Charge
They look like furniture.
A secret move here is a real wild tool, not a video-game combo.
Whose special move would change the meeting?
Your scorecard
Tap who has each fact. Then tap who you think wins.
SIZE & WEIGHT
TOOLS
SPEED
HOME
FOOD
MOOD
BRAINS
SPECIAL
Your card: Rattlesnake 0 · Bison 0 · still open 8
Who wins the meeting?
Keep going for the pretend meeting, then the science pick.
THEY MEET
Bison runs first. Rattlesnake does not race. They wait in the desert.
Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest
THE TOOLS SHOW UP
Bison is heavier. Rattlesnake uses hinged venom fangs. Nobody is keeping a gore score.
Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest
SPECIAL MOVES
Rattlesnake tries the Buzz Then Zap. Bison tries the Prairie Freight Charge. Keep your card. The last page is next.
Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest
Bison!
A STOMP
You skipped a final pick. The facts still stamp a champ.
On the desert, Bison wins. Bison is a lot heavier. Rattlesnake 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: Rattlesnake 2 · Bison 3 · ties 3.
Your card: Rattlesnake 0 · Bison 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 · Bison
A good scratch after a hard rumble.
Wikimedia Commons · CC. Source
1/17 · scroll