Cheetah
Setswana Name: Lengau
Scientific Name:
Acinonyx jubatus
The name "cheetah" comes from a Hindi word meaning "spotted one". An adult has yellow or tan fur with solid black round or oval spots. The spots cover nearly the entire body; only the white throat and abdomen are unmarked. The tail ends with 4-6 black rings and a bushy, white tuft. The head is small with eyes set high and a black "tear mark" running from the inner aspect of each eye down to the mouth. The teeth are small to accommodate large nasal passages.
The cheetah, sometimes referred to as "greyhound of cats", is probably the most elegant member of the cat family. It is tall and slender, with long legs and a short muzzle with a rounded head. The Cheetah is the only cat that does not have fully retractile claws and the impressions of the claws can be seen in their tracks.
Young females usually occupy the same range as their mother although all females are solitary except when they have a litter. A female raises her cubs alone since adult male and female cheetahs mix only to mate. The average life span of wild radio-collared female cheetahs is 6.9 years which compares to 11.7 years for females in captivity.
Only rarely will a male cheetah live alone. Generally two or three cheetah males, often brothers, will form a coalition. This small group will live and hunt together for life and usually claims a large area or range which may overlap several female territories.
Favoured spots for cheetah are usually raised above the surrounding areas and are urine-marked by both males and females. When hunting, cheetah stalks to within a short distance of their intended prey and then sprint in for the kill. Although they have top speed of more than 100km per hour, this can only be sustained for a few hundred metres. Cheetahs are truly built for speed. Virtually every part of its body is adapted in some way to help it run faster. Special paw pads and semi-retractable claws provide great traction. Large nostrils and lungs provide quick air intake; a large liver, heart and adrenals facilitate a rapid physical response. A long, fluid, greyhound-like body is streamlined over light bones. Small collarbones and vertical shoulder blades help lengthen the stride. The tail acts as a rudder for quick turning plus the eye's retinal fovea is of an elongated shape, giving the cheetah a sharp, wide-angle view of its surroundings. The dark tear marks beneath each eye may also enhance its visual acuity by minimizing the sun's glare. The spine works as a spring for the powerful back legs to give the cheetah added reach for each step.
Cheetah sounds include purrs, bleats, barks, growls, hisses and chirps but the chirp can be heard a mile away. Many of their vocalizations are totally unlike those of any other cat.
Reproduction
A cheetah has a long-drawn courtship. The litters of 1-5 (usually 3) young may be born at any time of the year. The cubs are blind and helpless and weigh between 250g and 300g at birth. For the first weeks they are hidden in dense plant cover, thereafter following the mother.
Habitat
Their range includes sparse sub-desert, steppe, medium and long-grass plains. They need an environment with bushes, tall grass and other large plants in order to hide from predators. The availability of drinking water is not essential. Cheetahs are widely but sparsely distributed throughout Botswana.
Food
A cheetah is carnivorous and eats a variety of small animals. If two or more cheetahs hunt together, large prey may be overpowered. Antelope are the principal prey items. While most cats are nocturnal predators, the cheetah is primarily diurnal, hunting in early morning and late afternoon. Since it depends on sight rather than smell, it likes to scan the countryside from a tree limb or the top of a termite mound.
Whatever the meal - large or small – the cheetah eats quickly for if challenged it will often lose the kill. Cheetahs have unusually clean eating habits: they do not return to their kill nor do they eat carrion; they leave the skin, bones and entrails of their prey. At six weeks the young are strong enough to follow the hunt and when they are about six months old the mother will capture live prey for them to practice killing.
Throughout recorded history a cheetah pelt was a badge of wealth for its human owner. The animal was killed for its skin by some and captured for its hunting skills by others. But most recently, human excess is probably the major factor dramatically pushing the cheetah toward extinction. In 1900 there were only about 100,000 cheetah worldwide - present estimates place their numbers at 10 to 15 thousand with about 1/10 of those living in captivity. Namibia has the largest population of wild cheetah - about 2500. Smaller populations exist in Botswana, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Kenya and Tanzania.
