WHO WILL WIN?
Rattlesnake
CHK-CHK-BUZZ
Eagle
KLEEK-KIK
THE SETUP

Rattlesnake vs Eagle

Rattlesnake
Rattlesnake
Eagle
Eagle

Pretend a rattlesnake and a eagle meet in the mountains. 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

Rattlesnake

Crotalus atrox · A desert alarm clock with a noisy tail.

Rattlesnake
Home
North American deserts · Lives in North America
Food
Meat
Group
Lives alone
Size
Rattlesnake is tiny.

Sit, rattle, strike.

Heat pits are infrared goggles.

Would rather be left alone.

  • Rattlesnake is tiny and slow.
  • Mice, rats, rabbits — small warm snacks of the desert.
  • Rocks, brush, and sunny ledges where a coil can stay toasty.

Family: Other pit vipers, including copperheads.

Corner B

Eagle

Haliaeetus leucocephalus · A sky hammer with talons like grappling hooks.

Eagle
Home
North American coasts and lakes · Lives in North America
Food
Meat
Group
Lives in twos
Size
Eagle is small.

Stoop from the sky.

Vision that turns a fish into a target from way up.

Patient flyer.

  • Eagle is small and very fast.
  • Fish first, plus water birds and carrion.
  • Tall trees near water, with nests the size of small cars.

Family: Hawks and kites.

TO SCALE!

SIZE & WEIGHT

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

1.70 m

Grown-up

0.15 m

Rattlesnake to scale

Rattlesnake

0.90 m

Eagle to scale

Eagle

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

Rattlesnake2 kg

About as heavy as a water bottle, louder than a snack bag.

Eagle6 kg

About as heavy as a bag of flour, with a wingspan wider than a grown-up's armspan.

Rattlesnake

0.15 m · 2 kg

Rattlesnake is tiny. 2 kg.

Eagle

0.90 m · 6 kg

Eagle 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: Hinged venom fangs
  • Armor: Rattle warning
  • Senses: Heat pits are infrared goggles.

Rattlesnake · labeled field diagram

  • Weapon: Locking talons
  • Armor: Stoop speed
  • Senses: Vision that turns a fish into a target from way up.

Eagle · labeled field diagram

Rattlesnake80 psi bite
Eagle400 psi bite

Rattlesnake

Hinged venom fangs

Tool: hinged venom fangs. Bite: 80 psi.

Eagle

Locking talons

Tool: locking talons. 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?

Rattlesnake
8 km/h
Eagle
80 km/h
Rattlesnake8 km/h
Eagle80 km/h

Rattlesnake

8 km/h

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

Eagle

80 km/h

Eagle can go 80 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 the mountains. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
RattlesnakeEagleBoth

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

Rattlesnake

Can handle it · Lives in North America

Rattlesnake's home is the north american deserts, not the mountains.

Eagle

This is home · Lives in North America

Eagle lives in places like the mountains.

Almost never. Their homes sit next to each other.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

Rattlesnake
Meat · Sit, rattle, strike.
Eagle
Meat · Stoop from the sky.

Rattlesnake

Meat · Sit, rattle, strike.

Mice, rats, rabbits — small warm snacks of the desert.

Eagle

Meat · Stoop from the sky.

Fish first, plus water birds and carrion.

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.

Rattlesnake
Lives alone
Eagle
Lives in twos
Rattlesnake7 grit /10
Eagle7 grit /10

Rattlesnake

Lives alone

Would rather be left alone. Grit: 7/10.

Eagle

Lives in twos

Patient flyer. 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?

Rattlesnake
4/10
Eagle
6/10
Rattlesnake4 brains /10
Eagle6 brains /10

Rattlesnake

4/10

Heat pits are infrared goggles.

Eagle

6/10

Vision that turns a fish into a target from way up.

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

Who would you score for noticing?

COUSINS!

FAMILY

Who are they related to?

Rattlesnake
Crotalus atrox
Eagle
Haliaeetus leucocephalus

Rattlesnake

Crotalus atrox

Other pit vipers, including copperheads.

Eagle

Haliaeetus leucocephalus

Hawks and kites.

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?

Rattlesnake
Buzz Then Zap
Eagle
Dive-Bomb Snatch

Rattlesnake

Buzz Then Zap

First the concert.

Eagle

Dive-Bomb Snatch

They drop, snatch, and climb.

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: Rattlesnake 0 · Eagle 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

SKREEE!

THEY MEET

Eagle runs first. Rattlesnake does not race. They wait in the mountains.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

CHOMP!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

Eagle is heavier. Rattlesnake uses hinged venom fangs. Nobody is keeping a gore score.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

SNAP!

SPECIAL MOVES

Rattlesnake tries the Buzz Then Zap. Eagle tries the Dive-Bomb Snatch. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Eagle!

A STOMP

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

On the mountains, Eagle wins. Eagle likes the mountains more. 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 · Eagle 4 · ties 2.

Your card: Rattlesnake 0 · Eagle 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 · Eagle

The stare. The beak. The national dramatic pause.

Wikimedia Commons · CC. Source

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