Cheetah

 

This week’s big cat is the fastest animal on Earth, the cheetah is unique in many ways, it kinda looks like a large muscular greyhound with its sleek body and long thin, powerful legs.  An adult can run up to 113km/h or 70 mph.  They have large nasal passages allowing them to breathe easy while running.

They like to live in dry areas like the bush lands of Savanah and the semi-deserts, they feed on gazelles, impala, wildebeests and zebras. They like to hunt during the day, following a herd from a distance then selecting and old, an injured or a young victim, it will chase its victim and usually catches it on its first attempt. Its powerful jaw muscles enable it to tightly hold and suffocate its prey.

Most males prefer to live alone and will claim and make an area as their own.  Their paws are more like dogs then a cats being narrow and hard padded and non-retractable like a cats which allows for better grip while running.

They can be as long as 1.5 metres or 3.5 feet, as tall a 1 metre or 3 feet they weigh about 45-65 kilos or 99-143 pounds, they have a life span of 12-14 years, females usually have between 2 and 4 cubs at a time.

Unlike other big cats they don’t roar but purr, they also make high pitched yelps and barks as well as moan and bleat. They have a tawny to creamy white or pale buff fur that is marked with evenly spaced, solid black spots. The head is small and rounded, with a short snout and black tear-like facial streaks. 

Cheetahs are in the “vulnerable” category and are at risk of extinction in the wild. They face a number of threats, including losing their prey and habitat to human activity, human-animal conflict, and illegal animal trade. Less than 100 animals live in East Africa, less than 2,000 in Sudan, and fewer than 500 live in Northeast Africa. The total number of cheetahs in the world is estimated to be approximately 6,517 mature individuals.