Cheetahs are very fast and agile creatures but can be very shy. Even though they are one of the smallest big cats, they are one of the closest relatives of the saber-tooth tiger! The cheetah is one of the fastest animals on earth, running at around 80.5mph (130km).
Size
The cheetah is not very large compared to most other big cats. They grow to around 21 to 72kg (46 to 158 pounds) in weight, about 77cm (30in) tall at the shoulder and 112 to 142cm (44 to 56in) long not including tail.
Location
These speedy big cats will range from around the Eastern and Southern parts of South Africa and the Sahara desert. Sometimes you can find some in North Africa and Iran. You will primarily find cheetahs were there is an abundance of prey.
Population
The cheetah population is declining at quite a fast rate. There are currently only around 6,600 mature individuals in Africa and in Asia there are only about 50 in the wild. Due to their declining numbers the cheetah is on the IUCN red list, they are vulnerable.
I would hate to see these beautiful creatures extinct.
Felidae Family Group
Cheetahs are classed in the family Felidae which has two sub families this includes the lions, tigers and cheetahs from the big cats and the sand cats and wildcats from the small cats. These two groups are separated by being able to roar or not. Did you know that big cats can roar where as small cats cannot.
Diet
The cheetahs speed has given it a wide range of prey to exploit. It will pursue gazelles and impalas across the savannah or bring down a zebra or wildebeest with a friend. The great migration in Africa is made up of wildebeest, zebra and gazelles this results in a huge herd containing over 1.5 million animals. The cheetah will take advantage on this mass of prey to eat. I would love to one day see this migration first hand.
Predators
Lions, leopards and hyenas will all attempt to fight cheetahs to try and get prey that the cheetah has already killed. They are also very vulnerable to human poachers who will try and kill these magnificent animals for their beautiful, spotted coat. As a result of this they are on the vulnerable list.
Fun Facts
Did you Know some cheetahs are born with a special gene that can produce a more blotchy coat. Cheetahs with this special gene are known as a king cheetah. The king cheetah is critically endangered and there are as little as 30 in the world and only around 10 in the wild.
I think that Cheetahs are really cool creatures, I love to watch them running about the enclosures at Hammerton Zoo Park, they have very sweet faces considering the power that sits behind those faces.
for other sweet looking animals take a look at my blogpost on the Ring Tailed Lemur….
