Cheetah
Cheetah

Cheetah

Hunting leopard

Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Chordata
Subphylum
Vertebrata
Class
Mammalia
Order
Carnivora
Suborder
Feliformia
Family
Felidae
Genus
Acinonyx
SPECIES
Acinonyx jubatus
Life Span
10-20 yrs
TOP SPEED
112 km/h
WEIGHT
21-72 kg
HEIGHT
70-90 cm
LENGTH
112-150 cm

The cheetah is a large cat with dotted coat. This animal is identified by black marks (so-called "tear marks"), running down from the inner eye along the nose to the outside of the mouth. This feline is an extremely agile animal, having powerful hind legs and very flexible, muscular spine. The body is long and slender, covered with coarse yellowish fur with small black markings. The tail is spotted with ringed markings, having black tip on its end. In addition, the tail is quite long, helping the cheetah to keep balance and change direction. The head is small and the eyes are set high, which help them find potential prey in the grasslands. Claws of cheetah are non-retractable; they dig their claws into the ground, which enhances their grip at high speed.

Di

Diurnal

Ca

Carnivore

Te

Terrestrial

Cu

Cursorial

Al

Altricial

Se

Sedentary

Po

Polygyny

So

Social

C

starts with

Sp

Spotted
(collection)

Photos with Cheetah

Cheetah photo
Cheetah
Cheetah photo
A la recherche de l'ombre
Cheetah photo

Distribution

The species is distributed over eastern and southern Africa as well as in the Middle East. Generally, the cheetahs occur in grasslands and savannas. However, they can be found in various habitats such mountainous areas or terrains with dense vegetation. In order to hide from predators, these animals prefer environment with lush vegetation such as tall grass or bushes.

Cheetah habitat map

Geography

Continents
Africa, Asia
Subcontinents
North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, Western Asia
Countries
Algeria, Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Chad, Ethiopia, Iran, Kenya, Show More Mali, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Eritrea, Swaziland Show Less

Biome

Tropical savanna
Desert and Xeric Shrublands

Climate zones

Tropical
Arid
Temperate
Cheetah photo

Habits and Lifestyle

Unlike other large African predators such as lion or hyena, cheetah is most active during the day, thus avoiding competition for food with these animals. Home range of a cheetah can cover large territory, sometimes overlapping with that of another cheetah or a lion. Female cheetahs tend to roam across much larger home range than males. These cats are extremely sociable animals. Male cheetahs usually gather in small groups with their siblings while females tend to lead solitary life, gathering only when they nurse their cubs. The cheetahs are very shy and cautious, being able to hunt in the heat of the day and remain unnoticed.

Group name
coalition
Lifestyle
Terrestrial, Cursorial, Altricial, Sedentary

Diet and Nutrition

The cheetahs are carnivores. They feed mainly upon gazelles while small and medium-sized ungulates such as impalas are a good complement to their usual diet. When there’s shortage of suitable food, these animals can also consume small species such as hares or birds.

Diet Carnivore

Mating Habits

MATING BEHAVIOR
Polygyny
REPRODUCTION SEASON
Year-round
PREGNANCY DURATION
3 months
BABY CARRYING
2-5 cubs
INDEPENDENT AGE
1.5-2 years
FEMALE NAME
female
MALE NAME
male
BABY NAME
cub

They have polygynous mating system, where a male mates with multiple females. In addition, male cheetahs associate with females only for mating and do not provide parental care. These animals breed all year round. The period of gestation lasts about three months, after which 2-5 cubs are born. Newborn babies are blind, being completely vulnerable. Over the following few months, the cubs are breastfed until they start eating meat. Soon the young start to accompany their mother during the hunt in order to watch and learn hunting skills. Also, they learn hunting techniques while playing with their siblings. The cubs live with their mother until they are able to hunt independently. Then, between the age of 18 months and 2 years, they leave to find their own territory. Female cheetahs reach sexual maturity at 21-22 months old.

cheetah
Population Trend
Decreasing
POPULATION STATUS
Vulnerable (VU)
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Population

Population threats

The major threats to cheetahs’ population include diseases, habitat loss, hunting and direct persecution. These animals are persecuted by farmers due to being predators, hunting on livestock. Development of tourism in the areas of their habitat can become another serious threat: tourist vehicles can drive the cheetahs away from their kills and separate cubs from their mother. The cheetahs are known to have extremely low genetic variation, which makes the survival of this species even more difficult.

Population number

The global population of cheetahs is currently decreasing, and on the IUCN Red List, the species is classified as Vulnerable (VU). The cheetah population in Africa is around 6.674 mature individuals. In addition, about 60-100 cheetahs live in small isolated populations in Iran.

Ecological niche

Due to being predators, cheetahs control populations of prey species they feed upon. Otherwise, populations these animals could become so large, that they would break down the whole food web, eating all the vegetation in the area and ruining the soil. On the other hand, cheetahs hunt on weak or sick animals, thus not allowing weaker genes to pass to the next generations and maintaining the health within prey species.

Fun Facts for Kids

  • These cats can't roar, but they can purr like domestic cats, on inhale and exhale.
  • Cheetah is an Indian word, which means "spotted one".
  • Among land animals, cheetah is the fastest. It takes the animal only 3 seconds to accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h!
  • The tail of cheetah acts like a boat rudder, helping the animal to steer when running.
  • These animals use facial expressions to show their mood.
  • This is the only big cat that is able to turn in the air when sprinting.

References

1. Cheetah Wikipedia article - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheetah
2. Cheetah on The IUCN Red List site - http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/219/0

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