The cheetah has a small rounded head with a delicate skull and jaw compared with the lion and leopard. Distinctive black stripes extend from the inner corners of the eyes to the mouth. Its coat is pale tan to a tawny gold with beautifully spotted round black markings of fairly uniform size. Demand for their skins is one of the reasons they have disappeared from much of their historical range. The coat is somewhat coarse, with hair slightly longer at the nape, forming a short mane.
Males tend to be slightly larger than females.
Cheetahs are found in southern and eastern Africa with Namibia having the largest population of about 2,500. Their range is confined to narrowing islands of savanna and similar vegetation zones south of the Sahara. A relic population of a few hundred may exist in the northern Arabian Peninsula and Northwest Afghanistan. They do not inhabit forests, but their habitat varies widely. Cheetahs can be found in savannas, open woodlands and in the semi-desert areas.