🐍 Black mamba vs Gyrfalcon 🦅
The black mamba is about 4 times as long as the gyrfalcon.
Getting the animals ready…
| Row | 🐍 Black mamba | 🦅 Gyrfalcon |
|---|---|---|
| Size The black mamba is about 4 times as long as the gyrfalcon. | 7.2 to 8.9 ft2.2 to 2.7 m1 | 21 to 22 in53 to 56 cm2 |
| Top speed We don't have a checked number for the gyrfalcon yet. | 12 mph20 km/h1 | no checked number yet |
| Weight We don't have a checked number for the black mamba yet. | no checked number yet | 1.8 to 4.6 lb800 g to 2.1 kg2 |
| Lives The gyrfalcon lives a bit longer than the black mamba. | 11 years11 years1 | 14 years14 years2 |
| Eats Both eat meat. | small mammals such as rodents, squirrels and hyraxes, and sometimes birds | ptarmigan, Arctic ground squirrels and Arctic hares, and other small mammals and birds |
| Lives in They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet. | wooded savanna, rocky hills and river forests in south and east Africa | mostly Arctic tundra, far from the northern forests |
Which one? Black mamba or gyrfalcon
🏁 Who would win the race?
We don't have a checked top speed for the gyrfalcon yet, so there is no race.
We only race. Real animals mostly avoid each other. A race is the only fair contest: who reaches the tree first, by top speed. Our face-off books compare real numbers, and nobody gets hurt.
9 things to know about Black mamba vs Gyrfalcon
- The black mamba: A very long, quick snake of the African savanna.
- The gyrfalcon: A big falcon that lives on the northern tundra.
- They are different kinds of animal. The black mamba is a reptile, so it has scaly skin; the gyrfalcon is a bird, so it has feathers and lays eggs.
- The black mamba is about 4 times as long as the gyrfalcon: 1 against 2.
- The gyrfalcon lives a bit longer than the black mamba. Usual lifespans: 1 for the black mamba and 2 for the gyrfalcon.
- Both eat meat. The black mamba eats small mammals such as rodents, squirrels and hyraxes, and sometimes birds; the gyrfalcon eats ptarmigan, Arctic ground squirrels and Arctic hares, and other small mammals and birds.
- The black mamba lives in wooded savanna, rocky hills and river forests in south and east Africa. The gyrfalcon lives in mostly Arctic tundra, far from the northern forests. They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet.
- The black mamba: doing fine (Least Concern on the IUCN Red List). 3
- The gyrfalcon: doing fine (Least Concern on the IUCN Red List). 4
Wow facts
🐍 Black mamba
- A black mamba can move quickly across the ground.
- It hides among rocks and fallen trees.
- It eats mostly small mammals.
🦅 Gyrfalcon
- A gyrfalcon nests on the Arctic tundra.
- Female gyrfalcons are bigger than males.
- Most of its food is ptarmigan, a plump northern bird.
Questions kids ask about Black mamba and Gyrfalcon
Which is bigger, black mamba or gyrfalcon?
The black mamba is about 4 times as long as the gyrfalcon: 1 against 2.
Which is heavier, black mamba or gyrfalcon?
We only have a checked weight for the gyrfalcon: 2. Scientists are still working out the other.
Which lives longer, black mamba or gyrfalcon?
The gyrfalcon lives a bit longer than the black mamba. Usual lifespans: 1 for the black mamba and 2 for the gyrfalcon.
What do black mamba and gyrfalcon eat?
Both eat meat. The black mamba eats small mammals such as rodents, squirrels and hyraxes, and sometimes birds; the gyrfalcon eats ptarmigan, Arctic ground squirrels and Arctic hares, and other small mammals and birds.
Where do black mamba and gyrfalcon live?
The black mamba lives in wooded savanna, rocky hills and river forests in south and east Africa. The gyrfalcon lives in mostly Arctic tundra, far from the northern forests. They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet.
Who would win, black mamba or gyrfalcon?
We never show fights, because a fight is not a fair way to compare animals. They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet. What we can compare is how big, how heavy, how fast, how long they live and what they eat, as above.
📤 Share this pair
The link carries only the two animals’ names: peabody.kids/animals/compare/black-mamba-vs-gyrfalcon
Where these numbers come from
- University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, Animal Diversity Web: Dendroaspis polylepis (black mamba), checked 10 November 2026.
- University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, Animal Diversity Web: Falco rusticolus (gyrfalcon), checked 10 November 2026.
- Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 10 November 2026.
- Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 10 November 2026.