Once the mother leaves the cubs, they often stay together in sibling groups for several months before the males and females go their separate ways.Ĭheetah males are often social (live in coalitions) and hold small territories while cheetah females are solitary and have large home ranges. The cheetah mothers are not able to defend their cubs against these larger predators.Ĭheetah cubs stay with their mother for one and a half to two years, during which time they learn from their mother and practice hunting techniques with playful games. Cheetah cubs are often killed by larger predators such as lions, spotted hyenas and leopards, and cub mortality can be as high as 95%. During the first two months of their life the cheetah mother leaves her cubs behind in a lair when she goes out to hunt. Mating occurs throughout the year, the gestation period is 90-95 days and average litter sizes range from 3 to 5 cubs (although up to 8 have been recorded).Ĭubs are born with their black spots and a silvery mane that is shed at about 3-4 months of age. Females mature at about 24 months, when they may give birth to their first litter, which they raise on their own. Wild cheetah can live to 12 years of age. Unlike other cats, cheetah have blunt, semi-retractable claws that serve as a pair of running spikes and provide traction when chasing prey. It is believed that the black tear marks help to keep the reflection of the sun out of the cheetahs’ eyes.Īdults measure 110-150cm in length and weigh between 35 and 60kg. ![]() They have a long tail that serves as a rudder when they turn corners at high speed.Ĭheetah also have exceptionally keen eyesight, which they use to scan their environment for signs of prey. With astonishing powers of acceleration, a cheetah can go from 0 to 60 miles (96 kilometres) an hour in only three seconds during a chase, they can (briefly) maintain speeds of up to 100 km/hr. The cheetah is the world’s fastest land mammal, and the most unique and specialized member of the cat family. Their coat is tan coloured, covered with solid round black spots. They have a small head with high set eyes and a black ‘tear mark’ running from the inner aspect of each eye down to the mouth. The cheetah is a large, sleek felid with a light skeletal frame and a slender, long-legged body. Sizes of territories and home ranges can vary greatly (37-3000 km²).Ĭlick here to see the historical distribution of cheetah and here to see current distribution Caro (1994) attributes lower cheetah densities to interspecific competition (especially with larger species such as lions and hyenas that can kill cheetah cubs), but on Namibian farmlands, where lions and hyenas have been eradicated, cheetah still occur at low densities (0.2 per 100 km²) (Marker 2002). On the Serengeti plains, cheetah densities range from 0.8-1.0 per 100 km², but seasonally cheetah can congregate at densities up to 40 per 100 km² (Caro 1994). In comparison with other big cats, cheetah occur at relatively low densities (10-30% of typical densities for lions, leopards, tigers and jaguars in prime habitat: Durant, 2007). ![]() In addition, approximately 50% live in habitat blocks which are trans-boundary, requiring international cooperation for conservation of the population. Overall, only 21% of the estimated cheetah population across Africa inhabits protected areas (IUCN categories I-IV). ![]() A large proportion of the estimated population (73.5%) lives outside protected areas, in lands ranched primarily for livestock but also for wild game, and where lions and hyenas have been extirpated. Southern Africa is the cheetah’s regional stronghold, with a “roughly” estimated population of 4,213 adults (RWCP 2016). In some parts of southern Africa they occur extensively outside protected areas on commercial ranch land where other large predators (lions and hyenas) have been extirpated (e.g. Cheetah are known to be extirpated from large areas in Uganda, Tanzania, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Malawi. Sudan, Somalia, Eritrea, Angola, Mozambique and Zambia). Current distribution in several countries remains largely unknown (e.g. ![]() Southern and Eastern Africa are the species strongholds, although there has still been significant range loss in parts of these regions. Of their remaining range, only 21% is protected. They still occur widely, but sparsely, in Africa, but Durant et al (in press) estimate that cheetah have disappeared from 88% of their historic range on the continent. Cheetah have disappeared from huge areas of their historic range.
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