Cheetah

The **cheetah** (*Acinonyx jubatus*), is a big cat that for common bides in eastren an soothren Africae an a few pairts o Iran. The anly livin member o the genus *[[Acinonyx]]*, the cheetah wis first describit bi Johann Christian Daniel von Schreber in 1775. The cheetah is kenspeckle for its slender bouk, deep chest, spottit coat, a smaw roond heid, black tear-lik streaks on the face, lang thin legs an a lang spottit tail. Its lichtly biggit, slender form is in sharp contrast wi the robust big o the ither big cats. The cheetah reaches nearly  at the shouder, an wechs . Tho tawer nor the leopard, it is notably smawer nor the lion. Basically yellaeish tan or rufous tae greyish white, the coat is uniformly covered wi nearly 2,000 solit black spots.

Cheetah are active mainly during the day, wi huntin its major activity. Adult males are sociable despite thair territoriality, formin groups cried "coaleetions". Females are nae territorial; thay mey be solitary or live wi thair affspring in hame ranges. Carnivores, cheetah mainly prey upon antelopes an gazelles. Thay will stalk thair prey tae within , chairge taewart it an kill it bi trippin it during the chase an bitin its throat tae suffocate it tae daith. The cheetah's bouk is specialised for speed; it is the fastest laund ainimal. The speed o a huntin cheetah averages  during a sprint; the chase is interspersed wi a few short bursts o speed, when the ainimal can clock . Cheetahs are induced ovulators, breedin throughout the year. Gestation is nearly three month lang, resultin in a litter o teepically three tae five cubs (the nummer can vary frae ane tae aicht). Weanin occurs at sax month; siblings tend tae stay thegither for some time. Cheetah cubs face heicher mortality nor maist ither mammals, especially in the Serengeti region. Cheetahs indwall a variety o habitatsdry forests, scrub forests an savannahs.

Clessifee'd as vulnerable bi the IUCN, the cheetah haes suffered a substantial decline in its historic range due taeo rampant huntin in the 20t century. Several African kintras hae taken steps tae improve the staundarts o cheetah conservation. Thanks tae its prowess at huntin, the cheetah wis tamed an uised tae kill gemme at hunts in the past. The ainimal haes been widely depictit in airt, leeteratur, advertisin an ainimation.

## Etymology
The vernacular name "cheetah" () is derived frae the Hindi wird चीता (*cītā*), which in turn comes frae the Sanskrit wird चित्रकायः (**') meanin "bricht" or "[[Variegation|variegatit]]". The first recordit uise o this wird wis in 1610. An alternative name for the cheetah is "huntin leopard". The [[scienteefic name]] o the cheetah is ''Acinonyx jubatus''. The [[generic name (biology)|generic name]] ''Acinonyx'' coud hae oreeginatit frae the combination o twa [[Greek leid|Greek]] wirds: ''akinetos'' means motionless, an ''onyx'' means [[claw]]. A rough translation o the wird wad be "non-muivin claws", a reference tae the leemitit retractability (capability o bein drawn inside the paw) o the claws o the cheetah relative tae ither cats'. The [[speceefic name (zoology)|speceefic name]] ''jubatus'' means "maned" in [[Laitin]], referrin tae the [[Dorsal (location)|dorsal]] crest o this ainimal.

==Taxonomy==

The cheetah is the anly extant [[species]] o the [[Genus (biology)|genus]] ''[[Acinonyx]]''. It is clessifee'd unner the [[subfaimily]] [[Felinae]] an [[faimily (biology)|faimily]] [[Felidae]], the faimily that includes lairge cats sic as the [[lion]], [[teeger]] an [[leopard]] an aa. The species wis first [[scienteefic description|describit]] bi German naituralist [[Johann Christian Daniel von Schreber]] in his 1775 publication ''Die Säugethiere in Abbildungen nach der Natur mit Beschreibungen''.

The cheetah's closest relatives are the [[cougar]] (''Puma concolor'') an the [[jaguarundi]] (''P.yagouaroundi''). Thir three species thegither form the ''Puma'' lineage, ane o the aicht lineages o Felidae. The [[sister group]] o the ''Puma'' lineage is a clade o smawer Auld Warld cats that includes the genera ''[[Felis]]'', ''[[Otocolobus]]'' an ''[[Prionailurus]]''.

===Subspecies===

The five recognised [[subspecies]] o the cheetah are:

***Asiatic cheetah** (''A. j. venaticus'') <small>([[Edward Griffith (zoologist)|Griffith]], 1821)</small>: Cried the **Iranian** or **Indian cheetah** an aa. Umwhile occurred across soothwastren Asie an Indie. Accordin tae the Internaitional Union for Conservation o Naitur an Naitural Resoorces ([[IUCN]]), it is confined tae [[Iran]], an is sicweys the anly survivin cheetah subspecies indigenous tae Asie. It haes been clessifee'd as [[Creetically Endangered]]. A 2004 study estimatit the tot population at 50 tae 60. Later, a 2007 study gae the tot population in Iran as 60 tae 100; the majority o individuals war likely tae be juveniles. The population haes declined sharply syne the mid-1970s. As o 2012, anly twa captive individuals are kent.
***Northwast African cheetah** (''A. j. hecki'') <small>Hilzheimer, 1913</small>: Cried the **Saharan cheetah** an aa. Foond in northwastren Africae; the IUCN confirms its presence in anly fower countries: [[Algerie]], [[Benin]], [[Burkina Faso]] an [[Niger]]. Smaw populations are kent tae exist in the [[Ahaggar Naitional Park|Ahaggar]] an [[Tassili N'Ajjer Naitional Park|Tassili N'Ajjer]] Naitional Pairks (Algerie); a 2003 study estimatit a population o 20 tae 40 individuals in Ahaggar Naitional Pairk. In Niger, cheetahs hae been reportit frae the [[Aïr Mountains]], [[Ténéré]], [[Termit Massif]], [[Talak, Niger|Talak]] an Azaouak valley. A 1993 study reportit a population o 50 frae Ténéré. In Benin, the cheetah still survives in [[Pendjari Naitional Pairk]] an [[W Naitional Pairk]]. The status is obscure in Burkina Faso, whaur individuals mey be confined tae the sootheastren region. Wi the tot warld population estimatit at less nor 250 matur individuals, it is leetit as [[Creetically endangered species|Creetically Endangered]].
* **Sooth African cheetah** (''A. j. jubatus'') <small>(Schreber, 1775)</small>: Cried the **Namibian cheetah** an aa. Occurs in soothren African kintras sic as [[Namibie]], [[Botswana]], [[Zimbabwe]], [[Sooth Africae]] an [[Zambia]]. Diverged frae the Asiatic cheetah nearly 0.32–0.67 million years ago. In 2007 the population wis roughly estimatit at less nor 5,000 tae maximum 6,500 adult individuals. Nae leetit bi the IUCN.
***Sudan cheetah** (''A. j. soemmeringii'') <small>([[Leopold Fitzinger|Fitzinger]], 1855)</small>: Cried the **central** or **northeast African cheetah** an aa. Foond in the central an northeastren regions o the continent an the [[Horn o Africae]]. This subspecies wis considered identical tae the Sooth African cheetah till a 2011 genetic analysis demonstratit signeeficant differences atween the twa.
***Tanzanie cheetah** (''A. j. raineyi'' [[Synonym (taxonomy)|syn]]. ''A. j. fearsoni'') <small>[[Edmund Heller|Heller]], 1913</small>: Cried the **east African cheetah*' an aa. Foond in [[Kenyae]], [[Somalie]], Tanzanie, an [[Uganda]]. The tot population in 2007 wis estimatit at 2,572 adults an independent adolescents. Signeeficant populations occur in the [[Maasai Mara]] an the [[Serengeti]] [[ecoregion]]s.



==Characteristics==
The cheetah is a [[big cat]] wi several distinctive featuresa slender bouk, deep chest, spottit [[Coat (ainimal)|pelage]], a smaw roondit heid, black tear-lik streaks on the face, lang thin legs an a lang spottit tail. Its lichtly biggit, slender form is in sharp contrast wi the robust big o the ither big cats. The heid-an-bouk lenth ranges frae . The cheetah reaches  at the shouder, an weichs . Sicweys, it is clearly tawer nor the leopard, which staunds nearly  at the shouder. The wecht range o the cheetah owerlaps extensively wi that o the leopard, which weichs . On the ither haund, the cheetah is signeeficantly shorter nor the lion, whase average hicht is nearly . Mairower, it is much lichter nor the lion, amang which females weich  an the muckle hivier males weich . Based on meisurments, the smawest cheetahs hae been reportit frae the Sahara, northeastren Africae an Iran. A [[sexually dimorphic]] species, males are generally lairger nor females.

==Ecology an behaviour==

Cheetahs are [[diurnality|diurnal]] (active mainly during the day), whauras the leopards, teegers, an lions are [[nocturnal]] (active mainly at nicht); diurnality allaes better observation an monitorin o the ainimal. Huntin is the major activity throuoot the day; peaks are observed during dawn an dusk indicatin [[crepuscular]] tendencies. Groups rest in grassy clearings efter dusk, tho males an juveniles eften roam aroond at nicht. The cheetah is an alert ainimal; individuals eften inspect thair vicinity at observation pynts sic as elevations. Even while restin, thay tak turns at keepin a leukoot.

===Organisation an territory===
Apairt frae the lion, the cheetah is the anly cat that is gregarious; houever, female cheetahs tend tae remain solitary. Adult males are teepically gregarious despite thair [[territory (animal)|territoriality]], an mey group thegither for life an form "coalitions". Thir groups collectively defend thair territories. In maist cases, a coaleetion will comprise brithers born in the same litter wha stayed thegither efter weanin. Houever, if a cub is the anly male in the litter, then twa or three lone males mey form a smaw group, or a lone male mey jyn an exeestin group.

===Communication===
The cheetah is a prominently vocal felid. Thay canna roar but instead purr. A wide variety o cheetah vocalisations hae been identified bi several terms, but maist o thir lack a detailed [[Acoustics|acoustic]] description, which maks it difficult tae assess reliably which term denotes which soond. In 2010 Robert Eklund (o the [[Varsity o Göteborg]], Swaden) an colleagues published a detailed report on the purrin o the cheetah an compared it wi that observed in ither felids. The cheetah purrs when content, or tae greet kent individuals. A chairacteristic o purrin is that it is realised on baith [[Egressive soond|egressive]] an [[Ingressive sound|ingressive]] airstreams. Ither vocalisations Eklund identified include:
* Growlin: Eften accompanied bi hissin an spittin, the cheetah growls tae shaw its annoyance, or when faced wi danger. A study shawed that growls conseest o numerous short [[pulse]]s wi a combined duration o up tae five seiconts.
* Moanin or yowlin: This is an escalatit version o growlin an is eften combined wi it. It is teepically displayed when the danger increases. A study foond that yowls coud last as lang as twa seconds.
* Agonistic vocalisations: Eklund uised this term as a reference tae a combination o growls, moans, an hisses that is follaeed bi spittin, a featur mair conspicuous in cheetah nor in ither cats. In addeetion tae spittin, the cheetah will hit the grund wi its front paws.

===Huntin an competitors===
The cheetah is a [[carnivore]] that prefers medium-sized prey wi a bouk mass rangin frae . [[Blesbok]], [[duiker]], [[Grant's gazelle]], impala, [[reedbuck]], [[Springbok (antelope)|springbok]], an Thomson's gazelle are some o the common tairgets o the cheetah. Ither prey ainimals include the [[baukie-eared fox]], [[bushbuck]], [[kudu]], [[hartebeest]], [[nyala]], [[oribi]], [[roan antelope]], [[steenbok]], [[sable antelope]], an [[watterbuck]]; thay prey less frequently on [[African buffalo]], [[gemsbok]], [[giraffe]], [[ostrich]], [[warthog]], [[wildebeest]], an [[zebra]]. A study shawed that a major proportion o the diet o Asiatic cheetahs conseests o livestock; local species sic as [[chinkara]], [[desert hare]], [[goitered gazelle]], [[ibex]], [[rodent]]s, an [[wild sheep]] are an aa huntit. Generally, anly groups o cheetahs will attempt tae kill lairge ainimals sic as hartebeest, awtho mithers wi young cubs will attempt tae secure a lairge prey aw bi themsels. Thare are na records o cheetah killin human beins. The diet o a cheetah depends on the aurie in which it lives. For ensaumple, on the [[East Africae|East Africa]]n plains, its preferred prey is the Thomson's gazelle, somewhit smawer than the cheetah. In contrast, in [[Kwa-Zulu Natal]] the preferred prey is the signeeficantly lairger nyala, males o which can weich up tae . Thay dae, houever, opt for young an adolescent tairgets, which mak up aboot 50% o the cheetah diet despite constitutin anly a smaw portion o the prey population.

=== Speed an acceleration ===
The cheetah's bouk is specialised for speed, an it is the [[Fastest ainimals|fastest]] laund ainimal.

In general, the speed o a huntin cheetah averages  during a chase, interspersed wi a few short bursts when the speed mey vary atween ; the maist reliable meisurment o the teepical speed during a short chase is . The value o the maximum speed is, houever, disputit. The speeds attained bi the cheetah are anly slichtly greater nor thir achieved bi the [[pronghorn]]  an the springbok . Yet the cheetah haes a greater probability o succeedin in the chase due tae its exceptional accelerationit can attain a speed o  in juist twa seiconts. Ane stride or jump o a gallopin cheetah averages . Seemilarly, the ability tae rapidly chynge direction is pivotal in ensurin huntin success. Cheetahs teepically walk at .

=== Reproduction ===

Cheetahs breed throuoot the year; thay are [[Induced ovulation (animals)|induced ovulators]]. Females acome [[sexually matur]] at 21 tae 22 month o age. Females are [[Polyestrous|polyoestrus]]thay hae an oestrus ("heat") cycle every 12days (this can vary frae 10tae 20 days), each oestrus lastin ane tae three days. A female can gie birth again efter 17 tae 20 month; houever, on the loss o a whole litter mithers can mate again.

Gestation is nearly three month lang. The nummer o cubs born can vary frae ane tae aicht, tho the common nummer is three tae five. Birth taks place in a sheltered place sic as thick vegetation. Each cub weichs nearly  at birth; the een, shut at birth, open in 4tae 11 days. Newborn cubs can crawl an spit; thay can stairt walkin bi twa weeks. Thair nape, shouders an back are thickly covered wi lang bluish grey hair. This douny unnerlyin fur, cried a "mantle", gies them a [[Mohawk hairstyle|Mohawk-teep]] appearance; this fur is shed as the cheetah grows aulder. A study notit that this mane gies a cheetah cub the appearance o the [[honey badger]]; this coud act as a camouflage in baith ainimals. Cheetah cubs are heichly vulnerable during the first few weeks o thair life; mithers keep thair cubs hidden in dense vegetation for the first month.

The affspring mey stay wi the mither for 13 tae 20 month, associatin wi ane anither an feedin on kills thegither. Efter weanin, juveniles mey form mixed-sex herds; young females mey stay back wi thair mither, but thare is haurdly ony interaction atween the mither an dauchters. The females in the mixed-sex herd gradually muive oot as thay near sexual maturity. In the Serengeti, average age o unthirldom o 70 observed litters wis 17.1 month. Young females haed thair first litters at the age o aboot 2.4 years an subsequent litters aboot 20 month later. The lifespan o wild cheetahs is 14 tae 15 years for females; thair reproductive cycle teepically ends bi 12 years o age. Males generally live as lang as 10 years.

==Distribution an habitat==

The cheetah indalls a variety o habitats; in Africae it haes been observed in dry forests, [[scrub forest]]s, an [[savanna]]hs. Houever, the distribution o prey mey influence habitat preferences; in a study in the Kruger Naitional Pairk, female cheetahs war foond tae spend a signeeficant amoont o time in widlands, whaur impala occurred. It wis suggestit that tho the forestit aurie wis unsuitable for huntin, the females preferred widlands tae encoonter mair impala. Male coaleetions, on the ither haund, shunned dense habitats an spent maist o the time in open savannahs. An explanation gien for this wis that the coalitions prefer lairger prey than impala. Tho thay dinna prefer [[montane]] regions, cheetahs can occur at elevations as heich as . An open aurie wi some kiver, sic as diffused bushes, is probably ideal for the cheetah acause it needs tae stalk an pursue its prey ower a distance, exploitin its speed. This an aa minimises the risk o encoonterin lairger carnivores. Complete lack o kiver, houever, can be a cause o prey loss an mortality.

In prehistoric times, the cheetah wis distributit throuoot Asie, Africae, Europe, an North Americae. Gradually, it vanished frae Europe an North Americae. Nearly 500 years ago, the cheetah wis still common throuoot Africae, tho it avoidit deserts an tropical forests. Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Palestine, Sirie, an the [[Ganga river|Ganga]] an [[Indus River Valley|Indus]] [[river valley]]s sheltered lairge nummers o cheetahs. Houever, the day the cheetah haes been exterminatit frae the majority o its earlier range. The IUCN estimates that the tot expanse o the range o the cheetah in earlier times wis approximately ; the range (as o 2015) haes syne then reduced tae , a substantial decline o 89%.

In Africae, the cheetah occurs mainly in eastren an soothren Africae; the range across the continent haes declined tae a mere 10% o the historic expanse. The range in eastren Africae haes reduced tae 6% o its oreeginal range, sae that presently it is distributit in an aurie o . In the [[Horn o Africae]], the cheetah occurs in Ethiopie, Kenyae, Sooth Sudan, Tanzanie, an Uganda. The range haes nae reduced as much in the soothren pairt o the continent, whaur it occurs in an aurie o , 22% o its oreeginal range. Tho cheetahs na langer occur in Malawi, signeeficant populations thrive in sooth-wastren Angolae, Botswana, sooth-wastren Mozambique, Namibie, northren Sooth Africae, soothren Zambie, an Zimbabwe. Very few isolated populations occur in the [[Sahara Desert (ecoregion)|Sahara]]; the population density in this region is as law as twa tae three individuals per . Thay occur in very law nummers in northren an wastren Africae. In the past, the cheetah ranged across vast stretches o Asie: frae the Mediterranean an the Arabian Peninsula in the wast tae the Indian subcontinent in the east, an as far north as the Caspian an Aral Seas. Houever, the cheetah haes disappeared frae the majority o its historic range, save for Iran an possibly a few auries in Afghanistan, the Indian subcontinent, an Turkmenistan.

== Status and threats ==
The cheetah has been clessifee'd as [[Vulnerable species|Vulnerable]] bi the IUCN; it is leetit unner AppendixI o the Convention on the Conservation o Migratory Species o Wild Ainimals ([[Convention on the Conservation o Migratory Species of Wild Ainimals|CMS]]) an AppendixI o [[CITES]] (Convention on Internaitional Tred in Endangered Species).

The cheetah is threatened bi habitat loss throu agricultural an industrial expansion; however, the ainimal apparently requires a muckle aurie tae live in as indicatit bi its law population densities. The cheetah appears tae be less capable nor the leopard o coexeestin wi humans. As sic, human interference can disturb the activities, sic as huntin an feedin, o cheetah. Wi 76% o thair range conseestin o unpertectit land, the cheetah are eften taitgetit bi farmers an pastoralists wha attempt tae pertect thair livestock. Houever, cheetahs teepically dae nae prefer livestock for prey. Gemme hunters mey an aa try tae hairm cheetah as thir carnivores can deprive them o valuable gemme. [[Roadkill]] can be anither threat, especially in auries whaur roads hae been constructit near the naitural habitat or pertectit auries. Cases o roadkill involvin cheetahs hae been reportit frae [[Kalmand, Iran|Kalmand]], [[Turan|Tūrān]], an [[Bafq]]. The threat is posed bi infectious diseases is minor, gien the law population densities an hence the minimal chance o infection.

==References==


==Freemit airtins==
* 
* [http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/name/Acinonyx_jubatus Biodiversity Heritage Library bibliography] for *Acinonyx jubatus*
* [http://www.cheetah.org/ Cheetah Conservation Fund]
* [http://english.savechinastigers.org/node/487 Save Cheenae's Tigers tae Fund Wild Cat Conservation Warldwide]
* [http://www.dewildt.org.za De Wildt Cheetah an Wildlife Trust] 
* [http://www.life.com/image/first/in-gallery/35612/on-the-chase-with-cheetahs On the Chase Wi Cheetahs]  - slideshaw bi *Life magazine''
* 110km/h Cheetah attack gazelle Video shawin cheetah's speed, runnin mechanics, an hyenas stealin a cheetah's prey.