WHO WILL WIN?
Sloth
MEEP-SIGH
Gazelle
SNORT-PRONK
THE SETUP

Sloth vs Gazelle

Sloth
Sloth
Gazelle
Gazelle

Pretend a sloth and a gazelle meet in grassland. 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

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.

Corner B

Gazelle

Eudorcas thomsonii · A spring with horns and a stotting hobby.

Gazelle
Home
African savanna · Lives in Africa
Food
Plants
Group
Lives in a herd
Size
Gazelle is small.

Grazer.

Side-set eyes for a wraparound view.

Nervous athlete.

  • Gazelle is small and very fast.
  • Short grass.
  • Open plains where a lookout and a sprint are the whole security system.

Family: Antelopes and impalas.

TO SCALE!

SIZE & WEIGHT

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

1.70 m

Grown-up

0.60 m

Sloth to scale

Sloth

0.70 m

Gazelle to scale

Gazelle

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

Sloth6 kg

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

Gazelle25 kg

About as heavy as a second-grader, twice as bouncy.

Sloth

0.60 m · 6 kg

Sloth is small. 6 kg.

Gazelle

0.70 m · 25 kg

Gazelle is small. 25 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: Three-toed hooks
  • Armor: Algae cloak
  • Senses: Not a hunter's kit.

Sloth · labeled field diagram

  • Weapon: Lyre horns plus kick
  • Armor: Stotting bounce
  • Senses: Side-set eyes for a wraparound view.

Gazelle · labeled field diagram

Sloth50 psi bite
Gazelle20 psi bite

Sloth

Three-toed hooks

Tool: three-toed hooks. Bite: 50 psi.

Gazelle

Lyre horns plus kick

Tool: lyre horns plus kick. 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?

Sloth
2 km/h
Gazelle
80 km/h
Sloth2 km/h
Gazelle80 km/h

Sloth

2 km/h

Sloth can go 2 km/h. That is slow.

Gazelle

80 km/h

Gazelle 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 grassland. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
SlothGazelleBoth

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

Sloth

Can handle it · Lives in South America

Sloth's home is the central and south american rainforest, not grassland.

Gazelle

This is home · Lives in Africa

Gazelle lives in places like grassland.

Almost never. Their homes sit next to each other.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

Sloth
Plants · Leaf eater in slow motion.
Gazelle
Plants · Grazer.

Sloth

Plants · Leaf eater in slow motion.

Leaves.

Gazelle

Plants · Grazer.

Short grass.

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.

Sloth
Lives alone
Gazelle
Lives in a herd
Sloth5 grit /10
Gazelle5 grit /10

Sloth

Lives alone

Peaceful to a fault. Grit: 5/10.

Gazelle

Lives in a herd

Nervous athlete. 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?

Sloth
3/10
Gazelle
5/10
Sloth3 brains /10
Gazelle5 brains /10

Sloth

3/10

Not a hunter's kit.

Gazelle

5/10

Side-set eyes for a wraparound view.

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

Who would you score for noticing?

COUSINS!

FAMILY

Who are they related to?

Sloth
Bradypus variegatus
Gazelle
Eudorcas thomsonii

Sloth

Bradypus variegatus

Anteaters and armadillos — the xenarthran club of unhurried specialists.

Gazelle

Eudorcas thomsonii

Antelopes and impalas.

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?

Sloth
Hang In There
Gazelle
Zigzag Pronk

Sloth

Hang In There

Predators often cannot peel a sloth off a branch.

Gazelle

Zigzag Pronk

80 km/h plus sudden cuts.

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: Sloth 0 · Gazelle 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

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

THWACK!

THEY MEET

Gazelle runs first. Sloth does not race. They wait in grassland.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

SLAM!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

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

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

POW!

SPECIAL MOVES

Sloth tries the Hang In There. Gazelle tries the Zigzag Pronk. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Gazelle!

A STOMP

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

On grassland, Gazelle wins. Gazelle likes grassland more. 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: Sloth 0 · Gazelle 8.

Your card: Sloth 0 · Gazelle 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 · Gazelle

Nairobi National Park. Spring-loaded legs on standby.

Wikimedia Commons · CC. Source

1/17 · scroll