The Southeast African cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus jubatus'') is the
nominate
Nomination is part of the process of selecting a candidate for either election to a public office, or the bestowing of an honor or award. A collection of nominees narrowed from the full list of candidates is a short list.
Political office
In the ...
cheetah
The cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus'') is a large cat native to Africa and central Iran. It is the fastest land animal, estimated to be capable of running at with the fastest reliably recorded speeds being , and as such has evolved specialized ...
subspecies
In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...
native to
East
East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth.
Etymology
As in other languages, the word is formed from the fa ...
and
Southern Africa
Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the African continent, south of the Congo and Tanzania. The physical location is the large part of Africa to the south of the extensive Congo River basin. Southern Africa is home to a number of ...
.
The Southern African cheetah lives mainly in the
lowland areas and
desert
A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About on ...
s of the
Kalahari
The Kalahari Desert is a large semi-arid sandy savanna in Southern Africa extending for , covering much of Botswana, and parts of Namibia and South Africa.
It is not to be confused with the Angolan, Namibian, and South African Namib coastal de ...
, the
savannah
A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the Canopy (forest), canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to rea ...
s of
Okavango Delta
The Okavango Delta (or Okavango Grassland; formerly spelled "Okovango" or "Okovanggo") in Botswana is a swampy inland delta formed where the Okavango River reaches a tectonic trough at an altitude of 930–1,000 m in the central part of the en ...
, and the
grassland
A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur natur ...
s of the
Transvaal Transvaal is a historical geographic term associated with land north of (''i.e.'', beyond) the Vaal River in South Africa. A number of states and administrative divisions have carried the name Transvaal.
* South African Republic (1856–1902; af, ...
region in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
. In
Namibia
Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...
, cheetahs are mostly found in farmlands.
Taxonomy
![GuepardaGuttataWolf](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/98/GuepardaGuttataWolf.jpg)
The Southern African cheetah was first
described by German naturalist
Johann Christian Daniel von Schreber
Johann Christian Daniel von Schreber (17 January 1739 in Weißensee, Thuringia – 10 December 1810 in Erlangen), often styled J.C.D. von Schreber, was a German naturalist.
Career
He was appointed professor of'' materia medica'' at the Univers ...
in his book ''Die Säugethiere in Abbildungen nach der Natur mit Beschreibungen'' (''The Mammals illustrated as in Nature with Descriptions''), published in 1775. Schreber described the species on basis of a specimen from the
Cape of Good Hope
The Cape of Good Hope ( af, Kaap die Goeie Hoop ) ;''Kaap'' in isolation: pt, Cabo da Boa Esperança is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa.
A common misconception is that the Cape of Good Hope is t ...
. It is therefore the
nominate subspecies
In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...
.
Subpopulations have been called "South African cheetah" and "Namibian cheetah."
Following Schreber's description, other naturalists and zoologists also described cheetah specimens from many parts of Southern and
East Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa:
Due to the historical ...
that today are all considered
synonym
A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are all ...
s of ''A. j. jubatus'':
[
*''Felis guttata'' proposed in 1804 by ]Johann Hermann
Johann, or Jean-Frederic, Hermann, or Herrmann, (31 December 1738 in Barr, Alsace – 4 October 1800 in Strasbourg) was a French physician and naturalist.
In 1769 he was appointed professor of medicine at the School of Public Health of Strasbo ...
;
*''Felis fearonii'' proposed in 1834 by Andrew Smith;
*''Felis lanea'' proposed in 1877 by Philip Sclater
Philip Lutley Sclater (4 November 1829 – 27 June 1913) was an England, English lawyer and zoologist. In zoology, he was an expert ornithologist, and identified the main zoogeographic regions of the world. He was Secretary of the Zoological ...
;
*''Acinonyx jubatus obergi'' proposed in 1913 by Max Hilzheimer;[Hilzheimer, M. (1913)]
Über neue Geparden nebst Bemerkungen über die Nomenklatur dieser Tiere.
Sitzungsberichte der Gesellschaft Naturforschender Freunde zu Berlin: 283−292.
*''Acinonyx jubatus ngorongorensis'' proposed in 1913 by Hilzheimer on basis of a specimen from Ngorongoro
The Ngorongoro Conservation Area (, ) is a protected area and a UNESCO World Heritage Site located in Ngorongoro District, west of Arusha City in Arusha Region, within the Crater Highlands geological area of northern Tanzania. The area is n ...
, German East Africa
German East Africa (GEA; german: Deutsch-Ostafrika) was a German colony in the African Great Lakes region, which included present-day Burundi, Rwanda, the Tanzania mainland, and the Kionga Triangle, a small region later incorporated into Mozam ...
;
*''Acinonyx jubatus velox'' proposed in 1913 by Edmund Heller
Edmund Heller (May 21, 1875 – July 18, 1939) was an American zoologist. He was President of the Association of Zoos & Aquariums for two terms, from 1935-1936 and 1937-1938.
Early life
While at Stanford University, he collected specimens in th ...
on basis of a cheetah that was shot by Kermit Roosevelt
Kermit Roosevelt MC (October 10, 1889 – June 4, 1943) was an American businessman, soldier, explorer, and writer. A son of Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th President of the United States, Kermit graduated from Harvard College, served in both Wo ...
in June 1909 in the Kenyan highlands.
*''Acinonyx rex'' proposed in 1927 by Reginald Innes Pocock
Reginald Innes Pocock F.R.S. (4 March 1863 – 9 August 1947) was a British zoologist.
Pocock was born in Clifton, Bristol, the fourth son of Rev. Nicholas Pocock and Edith Prichard. He began showing interest in natural history at St. Edward ...
on basis of a specimen from the Umvukwe Range
The Mvurwi range of mountains is located in northern Zimbabwe. It stretches about 160 km from Lake Manyame, just west of Harare, north to the Zambezi Escarpment. Its high point is at about 1728 metres. It is an important chromium
Chromium ...
in Rhodesia
Rhodesia (, ), officially from 1970 the Republic of Rhodesia, was an unrecognised state in Southern Africa from 1965 to 1979, equivalent in territory to modern Zimbabwe. Rhodesia was the ''de facto'' successor state to the British colony of S ...
.
In 2005, the authors of ''Mammal Species of the World
''Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference'' is a standard reference work in mammalogy giving descriptions and bibliographic data for the known species of mammals. It is now in its third edition, published in late 2005, ...
'' grouped ''A. j. guttata'', ''A. j. lanea'', ''A. j. obergi'', and ''A. j. rex'' under ''A j. jubatus'', whilst recognizing ''A. j. raineyi'' and ''A. j. velox'' as valid taxa
In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular nam ...
and considering ''P. l. ngorongorensis'' as synonymous with ''raineyi''.[
In 2017, the Cat Classification Task Force of the Cat Specialist Group subsumed all cheetah populations from most parts of Eastern and ]Southern Africa
Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the African continent, south of the Congo and Tanzania. The physical location is the large part of Africa to the south of the extensive Congo River basin. Southern Africa is home to a number of ...
to ''A. j. jubatus'', thus making it the most widespread subspecies in the continent.[
]
Evolutionary history
From the early Pleistocene
The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological Epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fina ...
, the earliest African cheetah fossils have been found in the lower beds of the Olduvai Gorge
The Olduvai Gorge or Oldupai Gorge in Tanzania is one of the most important paleoanthropology, paleoanthropological localities in the world; the many sites exposed by the gorge have proven invaluable in furthering understanding of early human ev ...
site in northern Tanzania, although cheetah fossils in Southern Africa were found to be 3.5 to 3.0 million years old. The Southeast African cheetah is the second-oldest subspecies.[
Cheetahs from Africa and Asia were previously considered as ]genetically
Genetics is the study of genes, genetic variation, and heredity in organisms.Hartl D, Jones E (2005) It is an important branch in biology because heredity is vital to organisms' evolution. Gregor Mendel, a Moravian Augustinian friar working i ...
identical with each other.[O’Brien S. J. 1987. East African Cheetahs: Evidence for Two Population Bottlenecks? Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 84:508-11.] DNA research and analysis started in the early 1990s and showed that the Southern and East African cheetahs are indeed separate subspecies.
Until September 2009, the Asiatic cheetah was thought to be identical to African cheetahs. Stephen J. O'Brien from the Laboratory of Genomic Diversity of the National Cancer Institute
The National Cancer Institute (NCI) coordinates the United States National Cancer Program and is part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which is one of eleven agencies that are part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. ...
was of the opinion that they have been separated from each other for only 5,000 years, which is not enough time to be classified as distinct subspecies.
In early 2011, results of phylogeographic
Phylogeography is the study of the historical processes that may be responsible for the past to present geographic distributions of genealogical lineages. This is accomplished by considering the geographic distribution of individuals in light of ge ...
analysis of 94 cheetah samples from museum collections, wild and captive specimens, revealed that Southeast African and Asiatic cheetahs are genetically distinct, and probably diverged between 32,000 and 67,000 years ago. The mitochondrial DNA
Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA or mDNA) is the DNA located in mitochondria, cellular organelles within eukaryotic cells that convert chemical energy from food into a form that cells can use, such as adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Mitochondrial D ...
data indicate that the cheetah samples from East Africa had no common haplotype
A haplotype ( haploid genotype) is a group of alleles in an organism that are inherited together from a single parent.
Many organisms contain genetic material ( DNA) which is inherited from two parents. Normally these organisms have their DNA or ...
with samples from Southern Africa, although one haplotype present in cheetah samples from Tanzania and Kenya clustered with samples from South Africa. The population in East Africa might have derived from a relatively recent recolonization event. The divergence between the cheetah populations in Southern, East and Northern Africa occurred between 6,700 and 32,400 years ago.[
]
Genetics
Historically, cheetahs were thought to be genetically homogeneous
Homogeneity and heterogeneity are concepts often used in the sciences and statistics relating to the uniformity of a substance or organism. A material or image that is homogeneous is uniform in composition or character (i.e. color, shape, siz ...
. In 2011, results of a phylogeographic
Phylogeography is the study of the historical processes that may be responsible for the past to present geographic distributions of genealogical lineages. This is accomplished by considering the geographic distribution of individuals in light of ge ...
study revealed that the Asiatic cheetah
The Asiatic cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus venaticus'') is a critically endangered cheetah subspecies currently only surviving in Iran. It once occurred from the Arabian Peninsula and the Near East to the Caspian region, Transcaucasus, Kyzylkum D ...
and cheetah populations in Africa are genetically distinct and separated between 32,000 and 67,000 years ago.
The woolly cheetah was discovered in the late 19th century by English zoologist Philip Sclater
Philip Lutley Sclater (4 November 1829 – 27 June 1913) was an England, English lawyer and zoologist. In zoology, he was an expert ornithologist, and identified the main zoogeographic regions of the world. He was Secretary of the Zoological ...
. It was considered as a separate species of cheetah that had a thicker body, and longer and denser fur. Several specimens were obtained. These creatures may be the same species as the present-day cheetah, but with a genetic disposition to long fur. In 1877, Sclater, of the Zoological Society of London
The Zoological Society of London (ZSL) is a charity devoted to the worldwide conservation of animals and their habitats. It was founded in 1826. Since 1828, it has maintained the London Zoo, and since 1931 Whipsnade Park.
History
On 29 ...
, wrote of a recent acquisition by the zoo. In 1878, a second woolly cheetah was reported as a preserved specimen in the South African Museum
The Iziko South African Museum is a South African national museum located in Cape Town. The museum was founded in 1825, the first in the country. It has been on its present site in the Company's Garden since 1897. The museum houses important A ...
. Both the London and South African specimens had come from Beaufort West
Beaufort West (Afrikaans: ''Beaufort-Wes''; Xhosa: ''eBhofolo'') is a town in the Western Cape province in South Africa. It is the largest town in the arid Great Karoo region, and is known as the "Capital of the Karoo". It forms part of the Beauf ...
. In 1884, a third skin was obtained from the same area, though this had more distinct spots and was a little smaller. By the late 1880s, the trophy hunters had eliminated the woolly cheetahs; from the number and locality of specimens, this variant seems to have evolved very recently (generations rather than millennia); perhaps all those animals (it seems only a handful are known at best) were the offspring of a single couple born around 1875, or maybe one more generation. The woolly cheetah has, in any case, vanished.
The king cheetah was considered a different species in 1927 by naturalist Reginald Innes Pocock
Reginald Innes Pocock F.R.S. (4 March 1863 – 9 August 1947) was a British zoologist.
Pocock was born in Clifton, Bristol, the fourth son of Rev. Nicholas Pocock and Edith Prichard. He began showing interest in natural history at St. Edward ...
. It was found to be a mutation caused by a recessive gene. The king cheetah is a rare variant of the Southern cheetah, first discovered in southern Rhodesia in 1925. A king cheetah was first found in South Africa in 1940 and in Botswana in 1942. However, in 1981, king cheetahs were shown to have never been a different species, as king cheetahs were born from regular parents at the De Wildt Cheetah and Wildlife Centre in South Africa, and another king cheetah were born from two female cheetahs having mated with a wild-caught male cheetah from the Transvaal Province
The Province of the Transvaal ( af, Provinsie van Transvaal), commonly referred to as the Transvaal (; ), was a province of South Africa from 1910 until 1994, when a new constitution subdivided it following the end of apartheid. The name "Trans ...
, and more king cheetahs were born later at the De Wildt Cheetah Centre. The king cheetahs are found in South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Botswana. In 2012, the cause of this alternative coat pattern was found to be a mutation in the gene for transmembrane aminopeptidase Q (''Taqpep''), the same gene responsible for the striped "mackerel" versus blotched "classic" patterning seen in tabby cats.[.]
The cheetah also has melanism
The term melanism refers to black pigment and is derived from the gr, μελανός. Melanism is the increased development of the dark-colored pigment melanin in the skin or hair.
Pseudomelanism, also called abundism, is another variant of pi ...
as one of its rare color morphs. A melanistic cheetah in Zambia was seen by Vesey Fitzgerald in the company of a spotted cheetah
The cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus'') is a large cat native to Africa and central Iran. It is the fastest land animal, estimated to be capable of running at with the fastest reliably recorded speeds being , and as such has evolved specialized ...
.
Physical characteristics
The cheetah is a medium-sized cat
The cat (''Felis catus'') is a domestic species of small carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species in the family Felidae and is commonly referred to as the domestic cat or house cat to distinguish it from the wild members of ...
. An adult male cheetah's total size can measure from and for females. Adult cheetahs are tall at the shoulder. Males are slightly taller than females and have slightly bigger heads with wider incisor
Incisors (from Latin ''incidere'', "to cut") are the front teeth present in most mammals. They are located in the premaxilla above and on the mandible below. Humans have a total of eight (two on each side, top and bottom). Opossums have 18, whe ...
s and longer mandible
In anatomy, the mandible, lower jaw or jawbone is the largest, strongest and lowest bone in the human facial skeleton. It forms the lower jaw and holds the lower tooth, teeth in place. The mandible sits beneath the maxilla. It is the only movabl ...
s.
Measurements taken of wild cheetahs in Namibia indicate that the females range in head-and-body length from with long tails, and weigh between ; males range in head-and-body length from with long tails, and weigh between .[.]
The cheetah has a bright yellow or sometimes a golden coat, and its fur is slightly thicker than that of other subspecies. The white underside is very distinct, especially on the neck and breast, and it has less spotting on its belly. The spots on the face are more pronounced, and as a whole its spots seem more dense than those of most other subspecies. The tear marks are notably thicker at the corners of the mouth, and almost all of them have distinct brown mustache markings. Like the Asiatic cheetah, it is known to have fur behind its tail and have both white and black tips at the end of its tail. However, the cheetah may also have only a black tip at the end of its tail.
In desert areas, such as the Kalahari
The Kalahari Desert is a large semi-arid sandy savanna in Southern Africa extending for , covering much of Botswana, and parts of Namibia and South Africa.
It is not to be confused with the Angolan, Namibian, and South African Namib coastal de ...
, cheetahs are somewhat smaller and lighter in weight, with thinner, bright-colored fur, a trait the Northwest African cheetah
The Northwest African cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus hecki''), also known as the Saharan cheetah, is a cheetah subspecies native to the Sahara and the Sahel. It is listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List. In 2008, the population was su ...
also has.
Distribution and habitat
The Southeast African cheetah usually lives on grassland
A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur natur ...
s, savannah
A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the Canopy (forest), canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to rea ...
s, scrub forest
Shrubland, scrubland, scrub, brush, or bush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or be the result of human activity. It ma ...
s, and arid environments such as desert
A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About on ...
s and semidesert steppe
In physical geography, a steppe () is an ecoregion characterized by grassland plains without trees apart from those near rivers and lakes.
Steppe biomes may include:
* the montane grasslands and shrublands biome
* the temperate grasslands, ...
s. These cheetahs can be found in open fields, where they chase and hunt herbivorous mammals such as antelope
The term antelope is used to refer to many species of even-toed ruminant that are indigenous to various regions in Africa and Eurasia.
Antelope comprise a wastebasket taxon defined as any of numerous Old World grazing and browsing hoofed mammals ...
s at a very high speed. In South Africa, the cheetah also prefers woodland
A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the ''plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (see ...
s (in Kruger National Park), shrubland
Shrubland, scrubland, scrub, brush, or bush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or be the result of human activity. It m ...
s, high mountains, mountainous grasslands, and montane
Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains. The alpine climate in these regions strongly affects the ecosystem because temperatures fall as elevation increases, causing the ecosystem to stratify. This stratification is a crucial ...
areas where favorable prey are mostly available.
The Southeast African cheetah is currently the most common subspecies and was widespread everywhere in southern to central Africa, ranging from South Africa to the southern Democratic Republic of the Congo (Katanga Province
Katanga was one of the four large provinces created in the Belgian Congo in 1914.
It was one of the eleven provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo between 1966 and 2015, when it was split into the Tanganyika Province, Tanganyika, Hau ...
) and southern Tanzania. Its range is now greatly reduced, where it occurs in an area of , 22% of its original range.
In the past, less than 10,000 cheetahs were hunted in Namibian farmlands. Previously estimated at mere 2,000 individuals since the 1990s, as of 2015, over 3,500 cheetahs live in Namibia today. The country maintains the largest population of wild cheetahs worldwide. About 90-95% of the cheetahs live on Namibian farmlands; others live in the Kalahari Basin
The Kalahari Basin, also known as the Kalahari Depression, Okavango Basin or the Makgadikgadi basin, is an endorheic basin and large lowland area covering approximately 725,293 km2 covering most of Botswana and Namibia, as well as parts of Angol ...
, the coastal deserts of Namib
The Namib ( ; pt, Namibe) is a coastal desert in Southern Africa. The name is of Khoekhoegowab origin and means "vast place". According to the broadest definition, the Namib stretches for more than along the Atlantic coasts of Angola, Nami ...
and Kaokoveld
The Kaokoveld Desert is a coastal desert of northern Namibia and southern Angola.
Setting
The Kaokoveld Desert occupies a coastal strip covering , from 13° to 21°S and is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Namibian savanna woodl ...
, and the central to northeastern region of the country. Although Namibian cheetahs are mostly found outside of protected areas
Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...
, they also live in Naankuse Wildlife Sanctuary The Naankuse Foundation Wildlife Sanctuary, also stylized ''Nǀaankusê'', is a wildlife sanctuary in central Namibia, situated outside Windhoek. Besides the sanctuary the establishment also runs a carnivore conservation research programme, the '' ...
, Namib-Naukluft National Park
The Namib-Naukluft Park is a national park in western Namibia, situated between the coast of the Atlantic Ocean and the edge of the Great Escarpment. It encompasses part of the Namib Desert (considered the world's oldest desert), the Naukluft mo ...
, and Bwabwata National Park. The cheetahs are rather uncommon in Etosha National Park
Etosha National Park is a national park in northwestern Namibia and one of the largest national parks in Africa. It was proclaimed a game reserve in March 1907 in Ordinance 88 by the Governor of German South West Africa, Friedrich von Lindequist. ...
and in Palmwag
Palmwag is a tourism concession on communal land in northern Namibia. It is located in the Kunene region, in northwestern Damaraland, halfway between Swakopmund and the Etosha National Park. It covers an area of 400,000 hectares and has population ...
.
With an approximate population of 2,000 cheetahs as of 2016, Botswana has the second-largest population of cheetahs.[ They are mostly found in arid habitats of the Central Kalahari, ]Mokolodi Nature Reserve
Mokolodi Nature Reserve is a private not-for-profit game reserve in southern Botswana. Founded in 1994 by The Mokolodi Wildlife Foundation, it is situated on of donated land, south of the capital Gaborone. The nature reserve is inhabited by a w ...
, and Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park
Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park is a large wildlife preserve and conservation area in southern Africa.
The park straddles the border between South Africa and Botswana and comprises two adjoining national parks:
* Kalahari Gemsbok National Park in S ...
(known as Gemsbok National Park in Botswana) in the south, and in the southwest and also in the northern region of the country that holds the largest prey base, such as in Okavango Delta
The Okavango Delta (or Okavango Grassland; formerly spelled "Okovango" or "Okovanggo") in Botswana is a swampy inland delta formed where the Okavango River reaches a tectonic trough at an altitude of 930–1,000 m in the central part of the en ...
, Chobe National Park
Chobe National Park is Botswana's first national park, and also the most biologically diverse. Located in the north of the country, it is Botswana's third largest park, after Central Kalahari Game Reserve and Gemsbok National Park, and has one ...
, and Moremi Game Reserve
Moremi Game Reserve is a protected area in Botswana. It lies on the eastern side of the Okavango Delta and was named after Chief Moremi of the BaTawana tribe. Moremi was designated as a game reserve, rather than a national park, when it was ...
. Khutse Game Reserve
Khutse Game Reserve is a game reserve in Botswana.
Overview
The name Khutse means "where one kneels to drink" in Sekwena (the local dialect of Tswana). Because of its proximity, and relative accessibility, to the nation's capital, Khutse game Re ...
is also known to contain high abundance of suitable prey base for cheetahs, such as springbok
The springbok (''Antidorcas marsupialis'') is a medium-sized antelope found mainly in south and southwest Africa. The sole member of the genus ''Antidorcas'', this bovid was first described by the German zoologist Eberhard August Wilhelm v ...
s, gemsboks, and wildebeest
Wildebeest ( , , ), also called gnu ( or ), are antelopes of the genus ''Connochaetes'' and native to Eastern and Southern Africa. They belong to the family Bovidae, which includes true antelopes, cattle, goats, sheep, and other even-to ...
s. Cheetahs are rarely found in the eastern Botswana and at the Zimbabwean border.
In South Africa, cheetahs live in the Limpopo
Limpopo is the northernmost province of South Africa. It is named after the Limpopo River, which forms the province's western and northern borders. The capital and largest city in the province is Polokwane, while the provincial legislature is ...
, Mpumalanga
Mpumalanga () is a province of South Africa. The name means "East", or literally "The Place Where the Sun Rises" in the Swazi, Xhosa, Ndebele and Zulu languages. Mpumalanga lies in eastern South Africa, bordering Eswatini and Mozambique. It ...
, North West
The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...
, and Northern Cape
The Northern Cape is the largest and most sparsely populated province of South Africa. It was created in 1994 when the Cape Province was split up. Its capital is Kimberley. It includes the Kalahari Gemsbok National Park, part of the Kgalagadi T ...
Provinces. After conservation efforts throughout the years, cheetahs have been reintroduced in the eastern, western, and southern parts, and recently in the Free State province of the country. Over 90% of the cheetah population is found outside protected areas such as game reserve
A game reserve (also known as a wildlife preserve or a game park) is a large area of land where wild animals live safely or are hunted in a controlled way for sport. If hunting is prohibited, a game reserve may be considered a nature reserve; ...
s and in farmland
Agricultural land is typically land ''devoted to'' agriculture, the systematic and controlled use of other forms of lifeparticularly the rearing of livestock and production of cropsto produce food for humans. It is generally synonymous with bot ...
s. More than 412 cheetahs are in Kruger National Park
Kruger National Park is a South African National Park and one of the largest game reserves in Africa. It covers an area of in the provinces of Limpopo and Mpumalanga in northeastern South Africa, and extends from north to south and from ea ...
, subpopulations of 300 to 350 in parks and reserves, and 400 to 500 free-roaming on farmlands in the Limpopo and North West Province, although the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park
Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park is a large wildlife preserve and conservation area in southern Africa.
The park straddles the border between South Africa and Botswana and comprises two adjoining national parks:
* Kalahari Gemsbok National Park in S ...
is the stronghold for cheetahs. Kruger and Kalahari Gemsbok National Parks hold the largest populations; they are home to roughly 42% of South Africa's cheetahs. Cheetahs had not always been common in South Africa. As of now, the country contains the third-largest population of cheetahs after years of conservation actions and reintroductions into the wild. In 2016, it is estimated about 1,500 adult cheetahs live in the wild.
The population of cheetahs has been dramatically decreased in Zimbabwe, from about a thousand to 400, as of 2007. Currently, the Zimbabwean population is estimated at 165 individuals. Prior the population decline, cheetahs were more widespread in Zimbabwe, and its population had excellent growth rate, in which over 1,500 individuals thrived. Back in 1973, an estimated 400 cheetahs lived in Zimbabwe and had increased to 470 in 1987. Afterwards in 1991, a total population of 1,391 cheetahs was found by the Zimbabwe Department of Parks and Wildlife Management, whilst in 1996, a population of 728 cheetahs lived on commercial farmlands alone. In 1999, a minimum total population of 1,520 was estimated, in which over 1,200 of these cheetahs lived on commercial farmlands, while 320 were found in national parks. A year later, several reports questioned whether the Zimbabwean cheetahs were stable or decreasing, but it was increasing at the time. However, cheetahs are known to be highly threatened in farmlands in which between 1999 and 2007, 80% of the population of Zimbabwean cheetahs living in private farmlands fell into massive decline due to human-cheetah conflict, reduced from over a thousand to less than 400 as of 2007. About 100 cheetahs were killed by livestock farmers in Zimbabwe's lowveld per year. Following years later, about 150 to 170 adult cheetahs are found there, and the human-cheetah conflict is no longer a major threat to the species. Most of the Zimbabwean cheetahs live in protected areas today. Cheetahs are mainly found in the southern to central regions. Isolated populations are found in northwestern Zimbabwe, such as Victoria Falls
Victoria Falls ( Lozi: ''Mosi-oa-Tunya'', "The Smoke That Thunders"; Tonga: ''Shungu Namutitima'', "Boiling Water") is a waterfall on the Zambezi River in southern Africa, which provides habitat for several unique species of plants and anim ...
, Matetsi
Matetsi is a village in Matabeleland North, Zimbabwe and is located about 55 km west of Hwange. The village started as a railway siding and took its name from the nearby Matetsi River. Most of the surrounding land is under forest and the Ma ...
, and Kazuma Pan, also near the Mozambican border. Hwange National Park
Hwange National Park (formerly Wankie Game Reserve) is the largest natural reserve in Zimbabwe. It is around 14,600 sq km in area. It lies in the northwest of the country, just off the main road between Bulawayo and Victoria Falls. The neares ...
, the largest reserve with an area of , is the main stronghold for the Zimbabwean cheetahs.[ Cheetahs also live in ]Matobo National Park
The Matobo National Park forms the core of the Matobo or Matopos Hills, an area of granite kopjes and wooded valleys commencing some south of Bulawayo, southern Zimbabwe. The hills were formed over 2 billion years ago with granite being forced ...
. The cheetahs of the Zambezi Valley
The Zambezi River (also spelled Zambeze and Zambesi) is the fourth-longest river in Africa, the longest east-flowing river in Africa and the largest flowing into the Indian Ocean from Africa. Its drainage basin covers , slightly less than hal ...
are nearly extinct, as only three individuals remain in Matusadona National Park
Matusadona National Park is a national park in northern Zimbabwe situated on the southern shore of Lake Kariba. The park takes its name from the local Matuzviadonha Hills.
History
Matusadona was proclaimed a non-hunting area on 7 November 1958 b ...
and 9 in the Mana Pools National Park
Mana Pools National Park is a 219,600 ha wildlife conservation area and national park in northern Zimbabwe.[lowveld
Veld ( or ), also spelled veldt, is a type of wide open rural landscape in :Southern Africa. Particularly, it is a flat area covered in grass or low scrub, especially in the countries of South Africa, Lesotho, Eswatini, Zimbabwe and Botswa ...](_blank)
, most of which live in Gonarezhou National Park
Gonarezhou National Park is a national park located in southeastern Zimbabwe. It is situated in a relatively remote corner of Masvingo Province, south of Chimanimani along the Mozambique border. Owing to its vast size, rugged terrain and its loc ...
, private reserves (Bubye, Save, Malilangwe, Nuanetsi), and at the Chilojo Cliffs.
In Zambia, cheetahs are mostly spotted at Matamene Camp of Liuwa Plain National Park
Liuwa Plain National Park is a national park in Zambia's Western Province. "Liuwa" means "plain" in the local Liuwa language, a dialect of Lozi language, and the plains originally served as a hunting ground for Lubosi Lewanika, the Litunga (ki ...
from the Western Province
Western Province or West Province may refer to:
* Western Province, Cameroon
*Western Province, Rwanda
*Western Province (Kenya)
*Western Province (Papua New Guinea)
*Western Province (Solomon Islands)
*Western Province, Sri Lanka
*Western Provin ...
. The national park is part of the Kavango–Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area Kavango–Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA TFCA) is the second-largest nature and landscape conservation area in the world, spanning the international borders of five countries in Southern Africa. It includes a major part of the Upper Z ...
. They are also present at the Kafue National Park
Kafue National Park is the largest national park in Zambia, covering an area of about 22,400 km² (similar in size to Wales or Massachusetts). It is one of the largest parks in Africa and is home to 152 different species of mammals.
The park ...
, near the Kafue River
The Kafue River is the longest river lying wholly within Zambia at about long. Its water is used for irrigation and for hydroelectric power. It is the largest tributary of the Zambezi, and of Zambia's principal rivers, it is the most centra ...
and at the Sioma Ngwezi National Park
Sioma Ngwezi National Park is a 5,000-square-kilometre park in the south west corner of Zambia. It is undeveloped and rarely visited, lacking roads and being off the usual tourist tracks, but this may change in the future.
Description
Like most ...
(the second-largest park in Africa) in the southwest corner of Zambia. About 100 cheetahs live in the country.
In 2007, between 50 and 90 cheetahs were estimated to survive in Mozambique, where the species inhabits grasslands, savannahs, and mixed ''Acacia
''Acacia'', commonly known as the wattles or acacias, is a large genus of shrubs and trees in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. Initially, it comprised a group of plant species native to Africa and Australasia. The genus na ...
'' and mopane
''Colophospermum mopane'', commonly called mopane, mopani, balsam tree, butterfly tree, or turpentine tree, is a tree in the legume family (Fabaceae), that grows in hot, dry, low-lying areas, in elevation, in the far northern parts of southern A ...
woodland
A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the ''plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (see ...
s. Most habitats consist of wetland
A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...
s and rivers. Historically, it was widespread in the country, but by 1975, the population had declined to about 200 individuals due to intense poaching during the Mozambican Civil War
The Mozambican Civil War ( pt, Guerra Civil Moçambicana) was a civil war fought in Mozambique from 1977 to 1992. Like many regional African conflicts during the late twentieth century, the Mozambican Civil War possessed local dynamics but was a ...
. Camera traps set up in 2004 and 2011 revealed constant presence of cheetahs, other predators and herbivores in Mozambique's conservation areas in Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park
Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park is a 35,000 km² peace park that is in the process of being formed. It will link the Limpopo National Park (formerly known as Coutada 16) in Mozambique, Kruger National Park in South Africa, Gonarezhou Natio ...
. Around 35 cheetahs live in Limpopo National Park
The Limpopo National Park ( pt, Parque Nacional do Limpopo) was born when the status of Coutada 16 Wildlife Utilisation Area in Gaza Province, Mozambique, was changed from a hunting concession to a protected area.
It forms part of the Great Limpop ...
. Cheetahs are also present in Zinave National Park
The Zinave National Park ( or PNZ) is a protected area in Mabote District of Inhambane Province, Mozambique, created by decree on 26 June 1973.
Land
The park extends to the south of the Save River in Inhambane Province, covering an area of . I ...
and Banhine National Park
Banhine National Park is a protected area in northern Gaza Province, Mozambique. The park was established on 26 June 1973. In 2013 the limits of Park were updated to better reflect the realities on the ground, particularly the human presence in th ...
, which are part of the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park.
Apart from the central and northern regions, the now-rare cheetah lived in southern Tanzania. It ranged close to the Zambia/Malawi borders in the southwest to the southeasternmost part of the country. These cheetahs are found at Mpanga-Kipengere Game Reserve and the Uwanda Game Reserve
Uwanda Game Reserve, also known as Uwanda Rukwa Game Reserve, is a reserve of the Rukwa Valley of southwestern Tanzania. It is an extension of Katavi National Park and covers an area of 4100 square kilometres. It includes almost half of Lake Rukwa ...
. Whether or not they are extinct in Selous Game Reserve
The Selous Game Reserve, now renamed Nyerere National Park, is a protected area in southern Tanzania. It covers a total area of and has additional buffer zones. It was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982 due to its wildlife diversity ...
is unknown.
The indigenous population of cheetahs was extinct in Eswatini
Eswatini ( ; ss, eSwatini ), officially the Kingdom of Eswatini and formerly named Swaziland ( ; officially renamed in 2018), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by Mozambique to its northeast and South Africa to its no ...
. In 1997, three cheetahs have been reintroduced into the Hlane Royal National Park, the largest () protected area of Eswatini.[
The cheetah was once thought to be extinct in Angola, but in 2010 two adult male cheetahs were spotted in the ]Iona National Park
Iona National Park (Portuguese: ) is the largest national park in Angola. It is situated in the Southwestern corner of the country, in Namibe Province. It is roughly bound by the Atlantic Ocean to the West, an escarpment to the East that mark ...
. It was the first time cheetahs have been sighted in the wild of Angola in 30 years. This protected area provides suitable habitat for the cheetah, as it has a large, open savannah where springbok and oryx
''Oryx'' is a genus consisting of four large antelope species called oryxes. Their pelage is pale with contrasting dark markings in the face and on the legs, and their long horns are almost straight. The exception is the scimitar oryx, which l ...
occur.
In the 1980s, cheetahs occurred in three protected areas, namely Kasungu National Park
Kasungu National Park is a national park in Malawi. It is located west of Kasungu, about 175 km north of Lilongwe, extending along the Zambian border.
Kasungu National Park, established in 1970, is the second-largest in Malawi at , with an ...
, Nyika National Park
Nyika National Park is Malawi’s largest national park, with an area of 3200 km2 (1250 mile2).
Location and road access
The park covers practically the whole of the Nyika Plateau in northern Malawi, about 480 km north of Lilongwe and 60 km ...
and Vwaza Marsh Game Reserve
Vwaza Marsh Game Reserve is a national game reserve in Malawi.
In contrast to the Nyika National Park on the Nyika Plateau, much of Vwaza is located on low-lying flat ground although the eastern side of the park is hilly. It is located to the s ...
, also at the Zambian border in the west. In 2007, the small cheetah population was considered locally extinct
Local extinction, also known as extirpation, refers to a species (or other taxon) of plant or animal that ceases to exist in a chosen geographic area of study, though it still exists elsewhere. Local extinctions are contrasted with global extinct ...
due to loss of suitable habitat and lack of prey.
Former range
In early 20th century, African cheetahs were widespread everywhere in the continent, until they lost most of their ranges and disappeared from 23 countries. Cheetahs are locally extinct
Local extinction, also known as extirpation, refers to a species (or other taxon) of plant or animal that ceases to exist in a chosen geographic area of study, though it still exists elsewhere. Local extinctions are contrasted with global extinct ...
from Lesotho
Lesotho ( ), officially the Kingdom of Lesotho, is a country landlocked country, landlocked as an Enclave and exclave, enclave in South Africa. It is situated in the Maloti Mountains and contains the Thabana Ntlenyana, highest mountains in Sou ...
[ and the southern part of the ]Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...
. They used to live in the Katanga, southern Bandundu, southern Kasai-Occidental
Kasaï-Occidental (French for "Western Kasai"; lua, Kasai Wa Mubuelu) was one of the eleven provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo between 1966 and 2015, when it was split into the Kasaï-Central and the Kasaï provinces.
History
T ...
, and Bas-Congo
Kongo Central ( kg, Kongo dia Kati ), formerly Bas-Congo is one of the 26 provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Its capital is Matadi.
History
At the time of independence, the area now encompassing Kongo Central was part of the g ...
. They probably extended to Kinshasa
Kinshasa (; ; ln, Kinsásá), formerly Léopoldville ( nl, Leopoldstad), is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Once a site of fishing and trading villages situated along the Congo River, Kinshasa is now one o ...
. It was previously estimated that about 100 to 500 cheetahs lived in the Congo between 1950-70s. Kundelungu National Park
Kundelungu National Park is a national park of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, located in Haut-Katanga Province. The park was first established in 1970. It is approximately . The park is the site of Lofoi Falls, a high waterfall (one of th ...
was one of the remaining stronghold for the cheetahs after recent extinction of cheetahs from Virunga National Park
, iucn_category = II
, iucn_ref =
, location = Democratic Republic of the Congo
, map = Democratic Republic of the Congo
, relief = 1
, coordinates =
, area =
, established =
, nearest_city = Goma
, photo =Virunga National Park-107997 ...
and Sudan cheetahs from Garamba National Park
Garamba National Park is a nearly national park in north-eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is among Africa's oldest parks, and was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1980 for its protection of critical habitat for norther ...
during the 1960s. Rumored sightings have been reported occasionally in the southern regions of the Congo, such as near the Angolan border, around the Sandoa Territory and on the Kibara Plateau of Upemba National Park
Upemba National Park is a large national park in Haut-Lomami, Lualaba Province & Haut-Katanga Province (formerly in Katanga Province) of the southeastern Democratic Republic of Congo, formerly Zaire.
Geography
At the time of the creation of Upem ...
.[ To this day, Upemba is still considered as the only national park of the country to contain cheetah populations.
]
Ecology and behavior
Reproduction and lifecycle
Male cheetahs are sociable and may live in a group with other males. Males establish their territories by marking their territories by urinating on trees or termite mounds.
The females, though, are not sociable and do not establish a territory. They are solitary and avoid each other. However, they may live with their mothers, daughters, or sisters on their home ranges. The female's home range's size can depend on the prey base. Cheetahs in southern African woodland
A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the ''plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (see ...
s have ranges as small as , while in some parts of Namibia, they can reach .
Female cheetahs can reproduce at 13 to 16 months of age and with a typical age of sexual maturity between 20 and 23 months. The gestation can last for 90 to 95 days. Cub births mostly occur at November to January in Namibia and November to March in Zambia.[ Females hunt solo, except the cheetah cubs accompany their mothers to learn how to hunt on their own after the age of 5–6 weeks. After the cubs reach 18 months of age, the mother leaves her cubs, and the siblings remain as a group for a few months until the sisters leave the group and the brothers stay together. The male cubs may form alliances with other males after separating from their mother.]
Hunting and diet
The cheetah is a carnivorous mammal. It preys on medium-sized and large antelope
The term antelope is used to refer to many species of even-toed ruminant that are indigenous to various regions in Africa and Eurasia.
Antelope comprise a wastebasket taxon defined as any of numerous Old World grazing and browsing hoofed mammals ...
s, and fast, small animals such as Cape hare
The Cape hare (''Lepus capensis''), also called the brown hare and the desert hare, is a hare native to Africa and Arabia extending into India.
Taxonomy
The Cape hare was one of the many mammal species originally described by Carl Linnaeus ...
s and rodents. It prefers Thomson's gazelles, impala, kudu
The kudus are two species of antelope of the genus '' Tragelaphus'':
* Lesser kudu, ''Tragelaphus imberbis'', of eastern Africa
* Greater kudu, ''Tragelaphus strepsiceros'', of eastern and southern Africa
The two species look similar, th ...
, puku
The puku (''Kobus vardonii'') is a medium-sized antelope found in wet grasslands in southern Democratic Republic of Congo, Namibia, Tanzania, Zambia and more concentrated in the Okavango Delta in Botswana. Nearly one-third of all puku are found ...
, oribi
The oribi (; ''Ourebia ourebi'') is a small antelope found in eastern, southern and western Africa. The sole member of its genus, it was described by the German zoologist Eberhard August Wilhelm von Zimmermann in 1783. While this is the only ...
, springbok
The springbok (''Antidorcas marsupialis'') is a medium-sized antelope found mainly in south and southwest Africa. The sole member of the genus ''Antidorcas'', this bovid was first described by the German zoologist Eberhard August Wilhelm v ...
, gemsbok, steenbok, wildebeest
Wildebeest ( , , ), also called gnu ( or ), are antelopes of the genus ''Connochaetes'' and native to Eastern and Southern Africa. They belong to the family Bovidae, which includes true antelopes, cattle, goats, sheep, and other even-to ...
, warthog
''Phacochoerus'' is a genus in the family Suidae, commonly known as warthogs (pronounced ''wart-hog''). They are pigs who live in open and semi-open habitats, even in quite arid regions, in sub-Saharan Africa. The two species were formerly cons ...
, red hartebeest
The red hartebeest (''Alcelaphus buselaphus caama''), also called the Cape hartebeest or Caama, is a subspecies of the hartebeest found in Southern Africa. More than 130,000 individuals live in the wild. The red hartebeest is closely related to t ...
, and other ungulate
Ungulates ( ) are members of the diverse clade Ungulata which primarily consists of large mammals with hooves. These include odd-toed ungulates such as horses, rhinoceroses, and tapirs; and even-toed ungulates such as cattle, pigs, giraffes, cam ...
s. The cheetah's preferred prey species is the oryx
''Oryx'' is a genus consisting of four large antelope species called oryxes. Their pelage is pale with contrasting dark markings in the face and on the legs, and their long horns are almost straight. The exception is the scimitar oryx, which l ...
and the nyala
The lowland nyala or simply nyala (''Tragelaphus angasii'') is a spiral-horned antelope native to southern Africa. It is a species of the family Bovidae and genus ''Tragelaphus'', previously placed in genus ''Nyala''. It was first described i ...
Enemies and competitors
Like other cheetahs, they are threatened and outranked by larger predators in their area. They are threatened by lion
The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphi ...
s and spotted hyena
The spotted hyena (''Crocuta crocuta''), also known as the laughing hyena, is a hyena species, currently classed as the sole extant member of the genus ''Crocuta'', native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is listed as being of least concern by the IUC ...
s as they can steal their carcasses. The cheetahs would surrender their meals to spotted hyena
The spotted hyena (''Crocuta crocuta''), also known as the laughing hyena, is a hyena species, currently classed as the sole extant member of the genus ''Crocuta'', native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is listed as being of least concern by the IUC ...
s. However, coalitions of male adult cheetahs can chase predators away, and a single cheetah can chase jackal
Jackals are medium-sized canids native to Africa and Eurasia. While the word "jackal" has historically been used for many canines of the subtribe canina, in modern use it most commonly refers to three species: the closely related black-backed ...
s and a lone wild dog away.
Threats
The Southern cheetah is a vulnerable subspecies, due to poaching
Poaching has been defined as the illegal hunting or capturing of wild animals, usually associated with land use rights.
Poaching was once performed by impoverished peasants for subsistence purposes and to supplement meager diets. It was set a ...
, habitat loss
Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...
, and lack of prey. Indiscriminate capture and removal of wild cheetahs in southern Africa continue to threaten the survival of this species, as it may reduce the genetic diversity in the wild and they breed poorly in captivity. Its survival is also threatened by inbreeding
Inbreeding is the production of offspring from the mating or breeding of individuals or organisms that are closely related genetically. By analogy, the term is used in human reproduction, but more commonly refers to the genetic disorders and o ...
. In Botswana
Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label=Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalahar ...
, the cheetahs are mostly threatened by habitat changes.
The cheetah was also highly threatened by hunting
Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...
and range loss. In early 1930s, the cheetahs were hunted down and almost went extinct in South Africa. Therefore, it has lost most of its range, mostly in South Africa and Mozambique. Only a few dozen of them live in the southern part of Mozambique. It also disappeared from many regions of South Africa, only living in the northern and northeastern parts of the country.
During the 1970s, 9,500 cheetahs were killed in Namibian farmlands. As a protected species in Namibia, people are allowed to remove Namibian cheetahs only if they pose a threat to livestock or human life. Unfortunately, farmers might capture Namibian cheetahs, often removing or killing those that have not taken any livestock. About 90% of the Namibian cheetah population live on farmlands.
In Botswana, the cheetah is protected under the Conserved Animal legislation since 1968, which strictly limits hunting and capture. Before then, the decline of suitable prey caused the cheetahs to feed on livestock. About 50 cheetah were previously hunted down by tribesmen each year to protect livestock.
Limited international trade in live animals and skins is permitted from Namibia, Zimbabwe, and Botswana.
Conservation status
Previously estimated at a population of 4,190 individuals in Southern Africa since 2007,[ the total population of the Southern cheetah has likely reached over 6,000 individuals,][IUCN/SSC. (2007). Regional conservation strategy for the cheetah and African wild dog in Southern Africa. IUCN Gland, Switzerland.] with Namibia having the largest cheetah population worldwide. Since 1990, the population was estimated to be about 2,500 individuals in Namibia; until 2015, the cheetah population has increased to more than 3,500 in the country. Botswana contains the second-largest population of cheetahs - in 2007, an estimated population of 1,800. However, in 2016, about 2,000 cheetahs were in Botswana, which is about 20% of the world's cheetahs. Around 550 to 850 cheetahs were left in South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
in 2007. After many conservation efforts, the cheetah population has boosted to more than 1,000. In 2013, the estimated population was between 1,200 and 1,300 cheetahs in South Africa. Whilst an estimated that 1,500 adult cheetahs live in South Africa since 2016, the Endangered Wildlife Trust
The Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) is a non-governmental, not-for-profit South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that str ...
stated that the total population ranges between 1,166 and 1,742 cheetahs in South Africa alone in 2017. In Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...
, on the contrary, the cheetahs' population has severely declined, from more than 1,500 cheetahs since 1999 to 400 cheetahs in 2007, to between 150 and 170 cheetahs as of 2015. In 2007, around 100 individuals remained in Zambia
Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most cent ...
and between 50 and 90 were left in Mozambique
Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...
.[
Several conservation projects for the cheetah species exist in African countries and ]Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
. Like the Asiatic cheetah, the Southern cheetah got more attention from people than other subspecies.
Three cheetah subspecies are included on the IUCN
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...
list of vulnerable species
A vulnerable species is a species which has been Conservation status, categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as being threatened species, threatened with extinction unless the circumstances that are threatened species, ...
(three African subspecies threatened, Northwest African and Asiatic subspecies in critical condition), as well as on the US Endangered Species Act
The Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA or "The Act"; 16 U.S.C. § 1531 et seq.) is the primary law in the United States for protecting imperiled species. Designed to protect critically imperiled species from extinction as a "consequence of ec ...
: threatened species
Threatened species are any species (including animals, plants and fungi) which are vulnerable to endangerment in the near future. Species that are threatened are sometimes characterised by the population dynamics measure of ''critical depensa ...
- Appendix I of CITES
CITES (shorter name for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, also known as the Washington Convention) is a multilateral treaty to protect endangered plants and animals from the threats of interna ...
(Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species).
Founded in Namibia in 1990, the Cheetah Conservation Fund
The Cheetah Conservation Fund is a research and lobby institution in Namibia concerned with the study and sustenance of the country's cheetah population, the largest and healthiest in the world. Its Research and Education Centre is located east ...
's mission is to be the world's resource charged with protecting the cheetah and to ensure its future. The organization works with all stakeholders within the cheetah's ecosystem to develop best practices in research, education, and ecology, and create a sustainable model from which all other species, including people, will benefit. Around 12,400 cheetahs were estimated to remain in the wild in 25 African countries. Recently, 6,674 mature individuals were found by the IUCN; Namibia has the most, with more than 3,500, of which 90% of them are living outside of protected areas. Breeding programs have been successful, including the use of ''in vitro'' fertilization, in zoos around the world.
The cheetahs are known to be poor breeders in captivity, though several organizations, such as the De Wildt Cheetah and Wildlife Centre, have succeeded in breeding high numbers of cheetah cubs. In 2009, the centre has bred more than 800 cubs.
Reintroduction projects
In Africa
South Africa
The cheetah once occurred in several areas of Southern Africa
Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the African continent, south of the Congo and Tanzania. The physical location is the large part of Africa to the south of the extensive Congo River basin. Southern Africa is home to a number of ...
, but not commonly in South Africa.
The species lives mostly on the eastern and northern locations of South Africa. Since the 1960s, the cheetah had been imported from Namibia, which used to contain healthy populations of cheetahs at the time, and has been reintroduced to their former ranges and in small reserves. About 29% of the cheetah population was indigenously from South Africa whilst 71% was those imported from Namibia. The first known reintroductions were in KwaZulu Natal
KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN and known as "the garden province") is a province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu) and Natal Province were merged. It is locat ...
, Gauteng
Gauteng ( ) is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. The name in Sotho-Tswana languages means 'place of gold'.
Situated on the Highveld, Gauteng is the smallest province by land area in South Africa. Although Gauteng accounts for only ...
, Lowveld
Veld ( or ), also spelled veldt, is a type of wide open rural landscape in :Southern Africa. Particularly, it is a flat area covered in grass or low scrub, especially in the countries of South Africa, Lesotho, Eswatini, Zimbabwe and Botswa ...
, Eastern Cape
The Eastern Cape is one of the provinces of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, but its two largest cities are East London and Gqeberha.
The second largest province in the country (at 168,966 km2) after Northern Cape, it was formed in ...
, Western Cape
The Western Cape is a province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , and the third most populous, with an estimated 7 million inhabitants in 2020 ...
, and Southern Kalahari. There are currently 1,500 mature cheetahs within the country.[
In December 2003, after the cheetahs were heavily hunted in the ]Great Karoo
The Karoo ( ; from the Afrikaans borrowing of the South Khoekhoe !Orakobab or Khoemana word ''ǃ’Aukarob'' "Hardveld") is a semi- desert natural region of South Africa. No exact definition of what constitutes the Karoo is available, so its ex ...
and Eastern Cape areas to extinction 125 years ago, cheetahs have returned to the Karoo
The Karoo ( ; from the Afrikaans borrowing of the South Khoekhoe !Orakobab or Khoemana word ''ǃ’Aukarob'' "Hardveld") is a semi-desert natural region of South Africa. No exact definition of what constitutes the Karoo is available, so its ext ...
, starting with a severely injured female wild-born cheetah named Sibella (''circa'' 2001 – 11 September 2015) that went through surgery at the De Wildt Cheetah and Wildlife Trust and was later reintroduced to Samara Private Game Reserve. The reintroduction process was a success. Sibella was a capable hunter and successfully raised 18 cubs. About 2% of the wild population of cheetahs in South Africa occurs in that region. The cheetahs living in Samara are also in better condition, threats from apex predators such as lions and hyenas no longer exist. Sibella's youngest daughter Chilli has given birth to the first third-generation cheetah cubs of the Samara Private Game Reserve in January 2017.
A National Cheetah Metapopulation Project was launched in 2011 by the Endangered Wildlife Trust
The Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) is a non-governmental, not-for-profit South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that str ...
. Its purpose is to develop and co-ordinate a national metapopulation
A metapopulation consists of a group of spatially separated populations of the same species which interact at some level. The term metapopulation was coined by Richard Levins in 1969 to describe a model of population dynamics of insect pests in ...
management plan for cheetahs in smaller fenced reserves in South Africa. For instance, the cheetahs have been reintroduced in around 50 of these South African reserves. Fragmented subpopulations of cheetahs are currently increasing in a few hundreds. As of July 2014, further plans exist to reintroduce the cheetahs in six more small fenced reserves over the next few years.
For the first time after 100 years of extinction since the colonial period, the cheetah has recently been reintroduced into the Free State in 2013, with two male wild cheetahs that have been relocated from the Eastern Cape
The Eastern Cape is one of the provinces of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, but its two largest cities are East London and Gqeberha.
The second largest province in the country (at 168,966 km2) after Northern Cape, it was formed in ...
's Amakhala Game Reserve to the Free State's Laohu Valley Reserve
The Laohu Valley Reserve (LVR) is a nature reserve located near Philippolis in the Free State and near Vanderkloof Dam in the Northern Cape of South Africa. It is a roughly 350-square-kilometre private reserve.
It has been created with the aims ...
, where the critically endangered South China tiger
The South China tiger is a population of the '' Panthera tigris tigris'' subspecies that is native to southern China. The population mainly inhabited the Fujian, Guangdong, Hunan and Jiangxi provinces. It has been listed as Critically Endange ...
from Save China's Tigers (SCT) are part of a rewilding
Rewilding may refer to:
*Rewilding (conservation biology), the return of habitats to a natural state
**Rewilding Europe
Rewilding Europe is a non-profit organisation based in Nijmegen, Netherlands, working to create rewilded landscapes through ...
project in South Africa. A female cheetah has yet to be reintroduced to Laohu Valley. In early 2016, an adult female has been reintroduced to the reserve. Three wild cheetah cubs have been born for the first time in Laohu Valley Reserve in February 2017, making them the first cheetahs born in the wild since their disappearance from the Free State province in over a century. With three mature individuals and three cubs, six cheetahs are in Laohu Valley Reserve.
In 2016, a reintroduction and rewilding project known as Rewilding iSimangaliso for cheetahs is going on in iSimangaliso situated in KwaZulu-Natal
KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN and known as "the garden province") is a province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu) and Natal Province were merged. It is locate ...
province, including lion
The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphi ...
s and Cape wild dog
The African wild dog (''Lycaon pictus''), also called the painted dog or Cape hunting dog, is a wild canine which is a native species to sub-Saharan Africa. It is the largest wild canine in Africa, and the only extant member of the genus '' L ...
s, which were first introduced in late 2013. The 15 collared resident cheetahs in uMkhuze Game Reserve
uMkhuze Game Reserve (also spelt Mkhuze or Mkuze) is a game reserve in northern Zululand, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.Atlas of National Parks and Reserves of South Africa. Mapstudio. 2004. It was proclaimed a protected area on 15 February 191 ...
are seen by visitors during game drives.[
]
Malawi
In May 2017, two male and two female cheetahs were imported from South Africa and reintroduced to Liwonde National Park
Liwonde National Park, also known as Liwonde Wildlife Reserve, is a national park in southern Malawi, near the Mozambique border. The park was established in 1973, and has been managed by the nonprofit conservation organization African Parks since ...
.
Zambia
Since 1989, only a few cheetahs had been recorded at the Lower Zambezi National Park
The Lower Zambezi National Park lies on the north bank of the Zambezi River in southeastern Zambia. Until 1983 when the area was declared a national park, the area was the private game reserve of Zambia's president. This meant that the park was pro ...
, despite the area being apparently suitable habitat for cheetahs. Chiawa Camp, in association with National Parks and Wildlife and Japan Aid, approached the Cheetah Conservation Fund
The Cheetah Conservation Fund is a research and lobby institution in Namibia concerned with the study and sustenance of the country's cheetah population, the largest and healthiest in the world. Its Research and Education Centre is located east ...
for a study group to assess the suitability of Lower Zambezi. In October 1994, reintroduction attempts were made with three cheetahs to the Lower Zambezi. However, the reintroduction project had been unsuccessful, as two of them were killed by traps; one survivor remained for three years alone. Further plans exist to reintroduce the cheetah to the Lower Zambezi.
Outside Africa
Asiatic cheetahs had existed in India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
for thousands of years, but as a result of hunting and other disastrous causes, they have disappeared there, with the last known Indian cheetah having been spotted in 1951. The critically endangered species currently lives in Iran, as the country itself is unwilling to give their cheetahs to India. A captive propagation project has been proposed. Minister of Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh
Jairam Ramesh (born 9 April 1954) is an Indian politician belonging to Indian National Congress. He is a Member of Parliament representing Karnataka state in the Rajya Sabha. In July 2011, Jairam was elevated to the Union Council of Ministers o ...
told the Rajya Sabha
The Rajya Sabha, constitutionally the Council of States, is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of India. , it has a maximum membership of 245, of which 233 are elected by the legislatures of the states and union territories using si ...
on 7 July 2009, "The cheetah is the only animal that has been described extinct in India in the last 100 years. We have to get them from abroad to repopulate the species." He was responding to a call for attention from Rajiv Pratap Rudy of the Bharatiya Janata Party
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; ; ) is a political party in India, and one of the two major Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. Since 2014, it has been the ruling political party in India under Narendra Modi ...
(BJP). "The plan to bring back the cheetah, which fell to indiscriminate hunting
Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...
and complex factors like a fragile breeding
Breeding is sexual reproduction that produces offspring, usually animals or plants. It can only occur between a male and a female animal or plant.
Breeding may refer to:
* Animal husbandry, through selected specimens such as dogs, horses, and ra ...
pattern is audacious given the problems besetting tiger conservation." Two naturalists, Divya Bhanusinh and MK Ranjit Singh, suggested importing cheetahs from Namibia, after which they will be bred in captivity and, in time, released in the wild.
Multiple suitable potential sites from the Indian states of Gujarat
Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...
, Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh (, ; meaning 'central province') is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal, and the largest city is Indore, with Jabalpur, Ujjain, Gwalior, Sagar, and Rewa being the other major cities. Madhya Pradesh is the seco ...
, and Rajasthan
Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern si ...
which consisted of forests, grasslands, savannahs, and deserts were chosen for the cheetah reintroduction project in India, such as Banni Grasslands Reserve
Banni Grasslands Reserve or Banni grasslands form a belt of arid grassland ecosystem on the outer southern edge of the desert of the marshy salt flats of Rann of Kutch in Kutch District, Gujarat State, India. They are known for rich wildlife a ...
, Desert National Park
Desert National Park is a national park situated in the Indian state of Rajasthan, near the towns of Jaisalmer and Barmer. This is one of the largest national parks, covering an area of 3162 km². The Desert National Park is an excellent ...
, Palpur-Kuno Wildlife Sanctuary
Kuno National Park is national park and Wildlife Sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh, India. It derives its name from Kuno River. It was established in 1981 as a wildlife sanctuary with an initial area of in the Sheopur and Morena districts. In 2018 ...
and Gajner Wildlife Sanctuary
Gajner Wildlife Sanctuary is located at a distance of about from Bikaner. In former times, it was a hunting ground for the Maharajah of Bikaner. There is a lake in this sanctuary and a variety of animals come here to quench their thirst in sum ...
. They are also known to be where the Asiatic cheetahs and other mystical animals coexisted for several years until they had recently gone extinct from the region. Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary
Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary, covering about , is the largest wildlife sanctuary of Madhya Pradesh state in India. This wildlife sanctuary is a part of 5500 km2 of forested landscape. It is located in the centre of the state covering parts of ...
was chosen as the most suitable site for reintroduced Namibian cheetahs.
However, the plan to introduce this subspecies to India has been suspended in 2012, after discovering the distinctness between the cheetahs from Asia and Africa, having been separated between 32,000 and 67,000 years ago.
In captivity
Cheetahs are known to be difficult to breed in captivity because of their social behaviors and breeding problems. The cub mortality in captivity and in the wild is high at about 50%. On average, 30% of all captive-bred cubs born in captivity may die within a month.
The Southern cheetah is the most widespread subspecies breeding in captivity around the world, while Sudanese cheetahs are found only in a few European and Middle East
The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...
ern zoos and wildlife centers. The subspecies is found in various zoos worldwide in America, Africa, Eurasia, and Australia.
Several zoos, facilities, breeding centers, and wildlife parks part of the American (Species Survival Plan
The American Species Survival Plan or SSP program was developed in 1981 by the (American) Association of Zoos and Aquariums to help ensure the survival of selected species in zoos and aquariums, most of which are threatened or endangered in the wi ...
, Association of Zoos and Aquariums
The Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), originally the American Association of Zoological Parks and Aquariums, is an American 501(c)(3)
nonprofit organization founded in 1924 and dedicated to the advancement of zoos and public aquariums in ...
) and Eurasian (European Endangered Species Programme The EAZA Ex-situ Programme (EEP) is a population management and conservation programme by European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA) for wild animals living in European zoos. The programme was formerly known as the European Endangered Species ...
, European Association of Zoos and Aquaria
The European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA), is an organisation for the European zoo and aquarium community that links over 340 member organisations in 41 countries. EAZA membership is open to all zoos and aquaria across Europe that compl ...
) captive-breeding programs have been successfully increasing populations of cheetahs, such as White Oak Conservation
White Oak Conservation, which is part of Walter Conservation, is a conservation center in northeastern Florida. It has long been dedicated to the conservation and care of endangered and threatened species, including rhinoceros, okapi, Bongo (a ...
from Yulee, Florida
Yulee is a Census county division (CCD) in Nassau County, Florida, United States. The population is currently 28,798 as of April 2018. Yulee is part of the Jacksonville metropolitan area, which was home to 1,504,980 people in 2017. Today, t ...
, the Wildlife Safari from Winston, Oregon
Winston is a city in Douglas County, Oregon, United States, located 7 miles southwest of Roseburg. The population was 5,379 according to the 2010 United States Census. It is home to Wildlife Safari.
History
In 1920, Oregon Route 99 was comple ...
, that bred more than 178 cheetahs and the De Wildt Cheetah and Wildlife Centre from South Africa where hundreds of cheetah cubs have been born. The Fota Wildlife Park
Fota Wildlife Park is a wildlife park located on Fota Island, near Carrigtwohill, County Cork, Ireland. Opened in 1983, it is an independently funded, not-for-profit charity that is one of the leading tourism, wildlife and conservation attract ...
from Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
is also known for successfully breeding cheetahs in captivity right before starting a captive-breeding project with the Northeast African cheetah
The Northeast African cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus soemmeringii'') is a cheetah subspecies occurring in Northeast Africa. Contemporary records are known in South Sudan and Ethiopia, but population status in Eritrea, Djibouti, Somalia and Sudan is ...
.
Gallery
File:Cheetah at Sunset.jpg, A cheetah silhouetted against a fiery sunset in Okavango Delta
The Okavango Delta (or Okavango Grassland; formerly spelled "Okovango" or "Okovanggo") in Botswana is a swampy inland delta formed where the Okavango River reaches a tectonic trough at an altitude of 930–1,000 m in the central part of the en ...
, Botswana
Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label=Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalahar ...
File:TheCheethcat.jpg, At Sabi Sand Game Reserve
Sabi Sand Game Reserve is located adjacent to the Kruger National Park in the Lowveld of Mpumalanga, South Africa. Officially named Sabi Sand Wildtuin, the Sabi Sand Game Reserve consists of a group of private game reserves. The Newington Ga ...
File:Gepard Portrait.jpg, At Farm ''Achalm'' in Namibia
Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...
File:Naankuse 3 cheetah release (7-9) 094b.jpg, At Naankuse Wildlife Sanctuary The Naankuse Foundation Wildlife Sanctuary, also stylized ''Nǀaankusê'', is a wildlife sanctuary in central Namibia, situated outside Windhoek. Besides the sanctuary the establishment also runs a carnivore conservation research programme, the '' ...
In popular culture
* The book ''How It Was with Dooms
''How It Was with Dooms'' is a children's book dictated to Carol Cawthra Hopcraft by her young son Xan Hopcraft. It tells the true story of the young boy's friendship with an orphaned cheetah on the family's game ranch in Kenya. Carol Hopcraft, a W ...
'' tells the true story of a family raising an orphaned East African cheetah cub named Duma (the Swahili word for cheetah) in Kenya. The films ''Cheetah'' (1989) and ''Duma'' (2005) were both loosely based on this book. However, ''Duma'' takes place in South Africa instead of Kenya. The cheetahs that starred in the film were South African cheetahs from the Kragga Kamma Game Park
The Kragga Kamma Game Park is a small reserve within the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality in the Eastern Cape, South Africa.
One of the cheetahs featured in the movie ''Duma (2005 film), Duma'' used to reside at Kragga Kamma. He died towards the ...
of the Eastern Cape
The Eastern Cape is one of the provinces of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, but its two largest cities are East London and Gqeberha.
The second largest province in the country (at 168,966 km2) after Northern Cape, it was formed in ...
province. In November 2011, one of the five adult cheetahs that starred in the film had died from an unusual kidney failure.
* The Toyota
is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...
Free State Cheetahs
The Free State Cheetahs (formerly the Orange Free State), currently named the Toyota Free State Cheetahs, for sponsorship reasons, are a South African rugby union team that participates in the annual Currie Cup tournament. They are governed by th ...
, founded in 1895, is a South African rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...
team that participates in the annual Currie Cup
The Currie Cup is South Africa's premier domestic rugby union competition, played each winter and spring (June to October), featuring teams representing either entire provinces or substantial regions within provinces. Although it is the premier ...
tournament. They have a cheetah running at high speed as their emblem.
* The Cheetahs
The cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus'') is a large cat native to Africa and central Iran. It is the fastest land animal, estimated to be capable of running at with the fastest reliably recorded speeds being , and as such has evolved specialized ...
are another South African rugby union team from Bloemfontein
Bloemfontein, ( ; , "fountain of flowers") also known as Bloem, is one of South Africa's three capital cities and the capital of the Free State (province), Free State province. It serves as the country's judicial capital, along with legisla ...
founded in 2005 that have a running cheetah as their emblem.
See also
* Asiatic cheetah
The Asiatic cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus venaticus'') is a critically endangered cheetah subspecies currently only surviving in Iran. It once occurred from the Arabian Peninsula and the Near East to the Caspian region, Transcaucasus, Kyzylkum D ...
* Northwest African cheetah
The Northwest African cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus hecki''), also known as the Saharan cheetah, is a cheetah subspecies native to the Sahara and the Sahel. It is listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List. In 2008, the population was su ...
* Northeast African cheetah
The Northeast African cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus soemmeringii'') is a cheetah subspecies occurring in Northeast Africa. Contemporary records are known in South Sudan and Ethiopia, but population status in Eritrea, Djibouti, Somalia and Sudan is ...
* Big cat
The term "big cat" is typically used to refer to any of the five living members of the genus '' Panthera'', namely the tiger, lion, jaguar, leopard, and snow leopard.
Despite enormous differences in size, various cat species are quite similar ...
References
External links
* Species portrai
''Acinonyx jubatus''
IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group
Cheetah Conservation Fund
Southern cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus jubatus'')
{{Taxonbar, from=Q20721337
southeast African cheetah
The Southeast African cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus jubatus'') is the nominate subspecies, nominate cheetah subspecies native to East Africa, East and Southern Africa. The Southern African cheetah lives mainly in the Kalahari Basin, lowland areas a ...
Mammals of East Africa
Mammals of Southern Africa
Mammals of Angola
Mammals of Botswana
Mammals of Kenya
Mammals of Malawi
Mammals of Mozambique
Mammals of Namibia
Mammals of Somalia
Mammals of South Africa
Mammals of Eswatini
Mammals of Tanzania
Mammals of Uganda
Mammals of Zambia
Mammals of Zimbabwe
southeast African cheetah
The Southeast African cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus jubatus'') is the nominate subspecies, nominate cheetah subspecies native to East Africa, East and Southern Africa. The Southern African cheetah lives mainly in the Kalahari Basin, lowland areas a ...