Common names: cheetah, southeast African cheetah, hunting leopard (Eng.); jagluiperd (Afr.); lengau (seSotho, seTswana); xikankanka (Xitsonga); ihlosi (isiXhosa); ingulule (isiZulu)
Derivation of the name
The vernacular name, cheetah, is derived from ‘ cītā’, which in turn comes from the Sanskrit word ‘citra’ meaning variegated, adorned or painted. The generic name, Acinonyx, is derived from the combination of two Greek words: ‘akinitos’ meaning unmoved or motionless, and ‘onyx’ meaning nail – therefore a rough translation would be ‘immobile nails’, a reference to the cheetah’s limited ability to retract its claws. The Latin word ‘jubatus’ means having a mane or crest, i.e. crested.
As the fastest land mammal in the world, the cheetah is a marvel of evolution.
Description:
Cheetahs are relatively large in size (2 m head to end of tail, 0.8 m at the shoulder). The chest of the cheetah is deeply indented to accommodate its large lungs and heart, the two organs being the powerhouses of this sprinter. Their tails are long and acts as a counterbalance steering the cheetah’s body when it’s running at speed.
The head is small and streamlined with small ears. The top of the head and cheeks are finely spotted. The cheetah is easily recognised by distinct ‘tear marks’ curving downwards from the inner corners of the eyes to the corners of the mouth, with white marks above and under the eyes. They have much smaller teeth than predators of similar size due to these making the skull heavier.
Having reduced dentition makes room for larger nasal cavities to improve the intake of oxygen in a full sprint and assist improved breathing when suffocating their prey. They also have aerodynamic nostrils, which maximise the flow of air over them while running. They also have a spotted coat rather than rosettes, which is characteristic of leopards.
The upper parts and sides is buffy white and darker along the mid back. The chin, throat and under parts of the belly are white with the chest and some parts of the front of the belly being spotted. Close to the tip of the tail (which is white) are two or three black rings. Their front limbs are spotted on the inside and outside whereas their hind limbs lack spots from the ankle to the toes.
Getting around:
Cheetahs are predators that are specialised for speed and they are known as the fastest land mammals. They are able to reach up to speeds of 75–100 km/h at a full sprint. They have long legs, long flexible spines and wasp like waists that in combination contribute to the long strides necessary for their specialised speed.
Communicating:
The cheetah is considered a vocal felid. It purrs when content or when greeting known individuals. They also growl, which is often accompanied by hissing and spitting, this is usually when faced with danger or when annoyed. They moan or yowl when the danger increases. Agonistic vocalisations – a term that denotes a combination of growls, moans and hisses that is followed by spitting – is more conspicuous in cheetah than in other large cats. In addition to spitting, the cheetah hits the ground with its front paws.
It also bleats – a sound similar to the meow of the domestic cat. They chirp or stutter-bark when excited. This vocalisation can also be used at social meetings, during courtship, or in attempting to find another; the chirp of a mother searching for her cubs, which sounds more like the yelp of a dog than the chirp of a bird, can be heard up to 2 km away. Churring resembles a growl and has the same purpose as chirping. Cubs bickering over a kill makes a sound called whirring, the pitch of which rises with the intensity of the quarrel, and ends on a harsh note.
Distribution:
Historically cheetahs were distributed widely throughout Africa and occupied a range of about 25 344 648 km2; however the known range has more recently been drastically reduced to a mere 2 709 054 km2 – a shocking decline of 89%. Due to human pressures the distribution of cheetahs have been modified greatly. There is a known population of approximately 6 700 adults across 29 subpopulations left in the wild. The two largest meta-populations occur in East Africa and southern Africa. Its presence across the continent has declined to a mere 10% of the historical range. The range in eastern Africa has reduced to 6% of its original extent, so that presently it is distributed in an area of 310 586 km2
Habitat:
Cheetahs can be found in a wide range of habitats and ecoregions, ranging from dry forest and thick scrub through to grassland and hyper-arid deserts, such as the Sahara. They are only absent from tropical and montane forest. There are reports of cheetah at altitudes of 4 000 m. Possibly the distribution of their prey may influence their habitat preferences. Ideally, an open area with some cover, such as dispersed bushes, because it needs to stalk and pursue its prey over a distance, exploiting its speed. This also minimises the risk of encountering larger carnivores. They will drink when water is available hence the presence or absence of this resource is not an essential habitat requirement. Cheetahs have large home ranges within which there is a specific area which they prefer and will return to.
Food:
Cheetahs are diurnal predators (hunt during the day) to avoid the risk of the presence of larger predators. Although they are diurnal, they prefer hunting or moving around in the cooler morning and late afternoon (crepuscular). For a hunt to be successful, cheetahs need to get as close as possible to their prey, before starting the final sprint. This making them accomplished stalkers.
Cheetahs hunt in open areas, however they make use of any form of cover available to them or simply just walk towards their prey freezing immediately upon detection. They will try to get within 100 m of their target before embarking on a chase and mostly choose prey that is isolated from the rest of the herd. Once in chase, they will run after the prey for only a short time and they must ensure that they are able to gain on the prey almost immediately to trip it with their paw and lastly ensure a throat grip. If this is not possible the cheetah will abandon the chase.
Although cheetahs are relatively large in size, they avoid targeting large ungulates such as wildebeest, zebra, buffalo etc. This is mainly due to the fact that to pull down these animals requires a large amount of strength, which the cheetah lacks. This is also to avoid the risk of getting injured. A coalition of males may cooperatively pull down a larger target, but still go for younger animals. Their main prey consists of any small or medium-sized bovids, especially antelope. Prey with masses of up to 60 kg are favoured.
Cheetahs, unlike many other African predators, rarely scavenge. They are very picky eaters and usually skim the meat from the surface of the carcass. They usually eat the heart and liver and discard the intestines, bones and skin.
Due to being specialists in speed they lack defence mechanisms against larger predators such as lion, hyena and even vultures, which makes them susceptible to kleptoparasitism – a form of feeding in which one animal takes prey that was caught or collected by another animal. Cheetahs are usually exhausted after making a kill and only feed once they have caught their breath again.
They usually make use of vantage points that are elevated when resting/hunting. They are naturally poor climbers, but will stand on sloping tree branches or termite mounds to look out for prey or enemies such as lions.
Sex and Life Cycles:
Sex
Cheetahs in the wild are considered seasonally polyoestrous (have more than one period of oestrus in a year) and do not have a specific breeding season, meaning their young are born at any time of the year. Females become sexually mature at 21–22 months of age and have a three-month gestation period. A female can give birth again after 17 to 20 months; however, on the loss of a litter, mothers can mate again.
Mating mainly occurs at night, and begins with the male approaching the female, who lies down on the ground. No courtship behaviour is observed; the male immediately secures hold of the female’s neck (back end) and copulation takes place. The pair then ignore each other and part ways. However, they meet and copulate a few more times within the next few days. Female cheetahs appear to mate with as many males as possible, and show no mate fidelity.
Cheetah mothers are quite attentive and hide their new-born cubs in tall grass or den sites and will regularly move them so that they remain. They generally give birth to a litter of four cubs. She moves them one at time and does so by pinching them by the scruff of the neck, this action relaxes the nerves of the cub and calms them when moving. The mother will bring back meat to the litter when they are still young (up to five weeks old). In just three months the cubs are fully weaned and by eight months are able to begin hunting and making their own kills.
The cubs gain independence and start fending for themselves at just 18 months old. Before reaching an age where they will start securing their own territories or settle into a fixed home range, they are very nomadic and travel great distances, making them especially vulnerable to exposure to large predators.
Family life: Cheetahs have a highly variable social system that varies by size, sex and age, which impacts their spatial requirements. The social organisation of cheetahs is unique in comparison to other felids. Females live alone or with dependent cubs, whereas the males live in stable coalitions of two to three males, usually brothers, but also unrelated males. Compared to coalitions formed by male lions where only one dominant male will mate with a female throughout the oestrus period, female cheetahs will mate with as many males as possible (polyandrous).
The Big Picture:
Friends and foes
There is a negative effect of lions and leopards on cheetahs through kleptoparasitism of kills or by direct mortality. To reduce encounters with larger carnivores such as lions, cheetahs shift their home range further away from areas that pose a high risk of attack or kleptoparasitism by these competing predators. Inter-guild competition amongst carnivores restricts spatial distribution, habitat use and access to prey, resulting in an increase of cheetah deaths.
Due to larger carnivores’ ecological behaviour of covering massive distances coupled with being confined into small reserves, they are forced to interact frequently, which in turn increases the chance of interference competition. Many of the cheetahs that were reintroduced into fenced reserves did not go as planned. In some reserves there were high mortality rates caused by lions, which may have been made worst by high lion densities.
Smart strategies
Young cheetah cubs (up to three months old) have a layer of grey fur along the top of their backs which at a quick glance makes them look like a honey badger. This mimicry is believed to act as camouflage and also deters large predators who confuse them for the more ferocious and generally avoided honey badger. Adults also have the crest of hair down their backs, however it lies flat and is only lifted when the cheetah wants to accentuate their size and appear more intimidating.
It is believed that cheetahs cannot retract their claws at all, however they do in fact have semi-retractable claws. This trait is adapted to assist the cheetah during a chase. Their pads underneath are hard and often ridged, acting as traction and for the improvement of braking.
Within large carnivore guilds, dominant predators such as the lion may pose a threat on the survival rates of mesopredators such as the cheetah. Where cheetahs occur in the same fenced area as lions, they tend to avoid the lions temporally, with lions predominantly hunting at night and cheetahs hunting mostly during the day.
Poorer world without me
There are no known effects on the ecosystem if cheetahs did not exist, however the removal or decline of any species from an ecosystem may cause functional problems.
Most importantly, the cheetah is one of the most unique creatures on planet Earth. It is the fastest land mammal, and one of a series of beautiful wild cats. It would be a shame if future generations weren’t able to see this marvellous animal for themselves.
People & I
The cheetah is threatened by habitat loss through agricultural and industrial expansion; moreover, the species requires large areas to live in. Human interference disturbs hunting and feeding of cheetah. With 76% of its range consisting of unprotected land, the cheetah is often targeted by farmers and pastoralists who attempt to protect their livestock. However, cheetah is not known to prey on livestock. Game hunters may also try to harm cheetahs as they deprive them of valuable game. Loss of prey due to hunting, high livestock densities and grazing pressure, and/or habitat conversion may directly impact cheetah populations.
Prey loss can also have serious indirect effects, since predation on livestock may become more frequent where wild prey are depleted. Roadkill is another threat, especially in areas where roads have been constructed near natural habitat or protected areas. Cheetah may also become captured in snares set for bushmeat offtake, which could have a negative effect on small or isolated populations. Cheetah are hunted in some areas for their skins, and also for cultural uses.
Conservation status and what the future holds
The cheetah is listed as Vulnerable on a global scale on the IUCN Red list, with a known population of approximately 6 700 adults across 29 subpopulations. In South Africa there is an estimated 4 190 adults. Some of the main drivers of a rapid decline in the cheetah population include conflict with larger predators, loss of prey, habitat alteration. In southern Africa, cheetah occur in only 22% (1 223 388 km2) of their former historical range. However, the establishment of enclosed reserves may the best option available to ensure the continued existence of cheetahs.
Relatives
There are 36 species of cats belonging to the Family Felidae. The cheetah is the only known species in the genus Acinonyx. The cheetah’s closest relatives are the cougar (Puma concolor) and the jaguarundi (Herpailurus yagouaroundi) (neither found in South Africa). These three species together form the Puma lineage, one of the eight lineages of Felidae. The extinct species of Acinonyx are older than the cheetah, with the oldest known from the late Pliocene; these fossils are about three million years old.
There are four subspecies of cheetah. The subspecies described here is the nominate race, A. jubatus jubatus, which occurs in southern and East Africa (from there the less used common name: Southeast African cheetah. The Asiatic cheetah, A. jubatus venaticus, is confined to Iran and is Critically Endangered. The Northeast African cheetah, A. jubatus soemmeringii, occurs in South Sudan, Ethiopia and Eritrea. The Northwast African cheetah, A. jubatus hecki, is the rarest of the four subspecies with fewer than 250 mature individual remaining; it occurs in southern Algeria, Benin, Burkina Faso and Niger.
Official Common name: Cheetah
Scientific name: Acinonyx jubatus (Von Schreber, 1775)
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Sub-order: Feliformia
Family: Felidae
Genus: Acinonyx
Species: A. jubatus
Subspecies: A. jubatus jubatus (Schreber, 1775)
References and further reading:
- Buk, K.G., Van der Merwe, V., Marnewick, K. & Funston, P.J. 2018. Conservation of severely fragmented populations: lessons from the transformation of uncoordinated reintroductions of cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus) into a managed meta-population with self‑sustained growth. Biodiversity and Conservation 27:3393–3423.
- Durant, S.M. 2000. Living with the enemy: avoidance of hyenas and lions by cheetahs in the Serengeti. Behavioural Ecology, 11: 624–632.
- Durant, S., Mitchell, N., Ipavec, A. & Groom, R. 2015. Acinonyx jubatus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2015: e.T219A50649567. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-4.RLTS.T219A50649567.en
- Emmett, M. & Pattrick, S. 2011.Game ranger in your backpack. All-in-one interpretative guide to the Lowveld. Briza Publications, Pretoria.
- Skead, C.J. 2011. Historical incidence of the larger land mammals in the broader Western and Northern Cape. Second Edition (Eds: Boshoff, A.F., Kerley, G.I.H. & Lloyd, P.H.). Port Elizabeth: Centre for African Conservation Ecology, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University.
- Skinner, D.J. & Chimimba, T.C. 2005. The mammals of the southern African subregion. Cambridge University Press, New York.
- Van de Vyver, D. 2016. The effects of a lion (Panthera leo) re-introduction on a resident cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) population in Mountain Zebra National Park, Eastern Cape, South Africa. Grahamstown: Rhodes University. MSc Thesis.
- Welch, R.J., Bissett, C., Perry, T.W. & Parker, D M. 2015. Somewhere to hide: Home range and habitat selection of cheetahs in an arid, enclosed system. Journal of Arid Environments, 114: 91–99.
Author: Joti Daya
CREW (Custodians of Rare and Endangered Wildflowers)