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Cheetah
STATUS:
Endangered
DESCRIPTION: The fastest land animal in the world, the cheetah is a marvel of evolution. Capable of running up to 70 miles per hour, the cheetah’s slender, long-legged body is built for speed. Its spotted coat, small head and ears, and distinctive "tear stripes" from the corner of the eyes down the sides of the nose make the cheetah highly recognizable among the large cats of Africa.
SIZE:
The cheetah is smaller than other big cats, measuring 44 to
53 inches long with a tail length of 26 to 33 inches. Cheetahs
usually weigh 110 to 140 pounds.
POPULATION:
An estimated 9,000 to 12,000 cheetahs remain in the wild.
LIFESPAN:
Cheetahs live an average of ten to 12 years.
RANGE:
Once found throughout Africa and Asia, cheetahs are now
confined to parts of eastern and southwestern Africa.
HABITAT:
Cheetahs are found in open and partially open savannas.
FOOD:
Cheetahs rely on a burst of speed to catch such swift prey as gazelles, wildebeest calves, impalas and smaller hoofed animals, knocking their prey to the ground and delivering a suffocating bite to the neck. They must eat quickly to avoid losing their kill to other carnivores.
BEHAVIOR:
Cheetahs are typically solitary creatures. Females raise their cubs for about a year. Males sometimes live with a small group of brothers from the same litter. Cheetahs hunt in late mornings and early evenings. Chases last from 20 to 60 seconds. Only half are successful.
OFFSPRING:
Two to four cubs are born to a litter. Cubs are smoky grey in color with long wooly hair, called a mantle, running along their backs. This mantle is thought to help camouflage cubs in grass, concealing them from predators. Mothers move cubs to new hiding places every few days. At five to six weeks, cubs follow the mother and begin eating from her kills. Cubs stay with their mother for about a year.
THREATS:
The future of the cheetah is doubtful because of increasing loss of habitat, declines in prey, high cub mortality rates and conflict with ranchers.
PROTECTION:
Endangered Species Act, *CITES Appendix I
*Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, an international treaty with more than 144 member countries. Appendix I listed species cannot be traded commercially. Appendix II listed species can be traded commercially only if it does not harm their survival
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Latest page update: made by Animal-Planet
, Jul 9 2007, 7:58 AM EDT
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