WHO WILL WIN?
Sea Lion
ARK-ARK-ARK
Cassowary
BOOM-RUMBLE
THE SETUP

Sea Lion vs Cassowary

Sea Lion
Sea Lion
Cassowary
Cassowary

Pretend a sea lion and a cassowary meet in forest. Look at the facts. Then you pick.

Would they meet?

No. Wild sea lions and cassowarys 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

Sea Lion

Zalophus californianus · A barking torpedo in a wet tuxedo.

Sea Lion
Home
Pacific coasts · Lives in North America
Food
Meat
Group
Lives in a big group
Size
Sea Lion is big.

Fish chaser in the surf.

Whiskers read fish in murk.

Playful and noisy.

  • Sea Lion is big and not very fast.
  • Fish, squid, and the occasional unfortunate leftover from the ocean buffet.
  • Rocky coasts and piers, where barking is a civic duty.

Family: Fur seals and walruses.

Corner B

Cassowary

Casuarius casuarius · The rainforest's dinosaur that never left.

Cassowary
Home
Australian and New Guinean rainforest · Lives in Australia / Asia
Food
Plants and meat
Group
Lives alone
Size
Cassowary is medium.

Fruit eater with dinosaur feet.

Casque and low rumble carry through forest.

Shy until cornered.

  • Cassowary is medium and fast.
  • Mostly fruit.
  • Dense rainforest where a tall dark bird can appear like a jump scare.

Family: Emus and ostriches — the ratite squad of giant flightless birds.

TO SCALE!

SIZE & WEIGHT

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

1.70 m

Grown-up

1.20 m

Sea Lion to scale

Sea Lion

1.70 m

Cassowary to scale

Cassowary

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

Sea Lion300 kg

As heavy as a couple of grown-ups, shaped like a barking sofa.

Cassowary55 kg

As tall as a grown-up, with the attitude of a dinosaur that kept the costume.

Sea Lion

1.20 m · 300 kg

Sea Lion is big. 300 kg.

Cassowary

1.70 m · 55 kg

Cassowary is medium. 55 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: Speed-bite plus flipper slap
  • Armor: Blubber wetsuit
  • Senses: Whiskers read fish in murk.

Sea Lion · labeled field diagram

  • Weapon: Dagger inner toe
  • Armor: Casque helmet
  • Senses: Casque and low rumble carry through forest.

Cassowary · labeled field diagram

Sea Lion400 psi bite
Cassowary20 psi bite

Sea Lion

Speed-bite plus flipper slap

Tool: speed-bite plus flipper slap. Bite: 400 psi.

Cassowary

Dagger inner toe

Tool: dagger inner toe. Bite: 20 psi.

A bite number is only one tool. Coils and kicks count too.

Whose tools would you trust?

ZOOM!

SPEED

Who gets there first?

Sea Lion
30 km/h
Cassowary
50 km/h
Sea Lion30 km/h
Cassowary50 km/h

Sea Lion

30 km/h

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

Cassowary

50 km/h

Cassowary can go 50 km/h. That is fast.

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
Sea LionCassowaryBoth

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

Sea Lion

Wrong place · Lives in North America

Sea Lion's home is the pacific coasts, not forest.

Cassowary

This is home · Lives in Australia / Asia

Cassowary lives in places like forest.

No. Wild sea lions and cassowarys would not meet. We still look at the facts.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

Sea Lion
Meat · Fish chaser in the surf.
Cassowary
Plants and meat · Fruit eater with dinosaur feet.

Sea Lion

Meat · Fish chaser in the surf.

Fish, squid, and the occasional unfortunate leftover from the ocean buffet.

Cassowary

Plants and meat · Fruit eater with dinosaur feet.

Mostly fruit.

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.

Sea Lion
Lives in a big group
Cassowary
Lives alone
Sea Lion6 grit /10
Cassowary7 grit /10

Sea Lion

Lives in a big group

Playful and noisy. Grit: 6/10.

Cassowary

Lives alone

Shy until cornered. 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?

Sea Lion
6/10
Cassowary
4/10
Sea Lion6 brains /10
Cassowary4 brains /10

Sea Lion

6/10

Whiskers read fish in murk.

Cassowary

4/10

Casque and low rumble carry through forest.

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

Who would you score for noticing?

COUSINS!

FAMILY

Who are they related to?

Sea Lion
Zalophus californianus
Cassowary
Casuarius casuarius

Sea Lion

Zalophus californianus

Fur seals and walruses.

Cassowary

Casuarius casuarius

Emus and ostriches — the ratite squad of giant flightless birds.

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?

Sea Lion
Porpoise Missile
Cassowary
Kick of the Lost World

Sea Lion

Porpoise Missile

They leap, twist, and snatch fish mid-zoom.

Cassowary

Kick of the Lost World

They jump and slash with both feet.

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: Sea Lion 0 · Cassowary 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

THWACK!

THEY MEET

Cassowary runs first. Sea Lion does not race. They wait in forest.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

SLAM!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

Sea Lion is heavier. Cassowary uses dagger inner toe. Nobody is keeping a gore score.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

POW!

SPECIAL MOVES

Sea Lion tries the Porpoise Missile. Cassowary tries the Kick of the Lost World. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Sea Lion!

A SQUEAKER · UNDERDOG

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

On forest, Sea Lion wins. Sea Lion is a lot heavier. Cassowary 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: Sea Lion 2 · Cassowary 6.

Your card: Sea Lion 0 · Cassowary 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 · Sea Lion

Harbor barking. The champ has notes.

Sarah Stierch · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY. Source

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