Animal	Cheetah
Scientific Name	Acinonyx jubatus
Type	mammal
Diet	Carnivore
Lifespan	10 – 12 years
Size	1 m – 1.4 m
Weight	35 – 64.8 kg
Phylum	Chordata
Conservation status	Least concern > Near threatened > Vulnerable > Endangered > Critically endangered > Extinct in the wild > Extinct

Cheetahs are well known for their speed and can be found in Africa’s savannahs and deserts. It is the only big cat that has no ability to roar.

Speed

As previously mentioned, cheetahs are very well known for their blazing speeds of up to one-hundred-thirty kilometers per hour, and they can accelerate from zero to ninety kilometers in just a couple of seconds. This makes them the fastest mammal on land.

They have many adaptions to suit their speed, which includes their long tail, muscles, and light build. Using their long tail, they could switch directions while sprinting mid-air.

Hunting & Diet

To hunt, the cheetah would camouflage into the grass and use its eyesight to find any of its prey, which consists of hares, impala, gazelles, and others. When it does, the cheetah sprints towards it to knock it down and kill it. After that, the cheetah drags the dead prey over to a hiding spot to hide it from other animals.

Breeding

Cheetah’s mating behavior is polygynous, meaning each male has multiple female mates, but the female only has one male mate. After a gestation period of a little less than one hundred days, one to five cubs are born.

Newborn cubs only weigh less than one-third of a kilogram. While full grown cheetahs have no natural predators, cubs have lots of them such as lions, leopards, baboons, and hyenas. Only a quarter of all cubs survive.

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References:

• Cheetah on Wikipedia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheetah
• Cheetah on National Geographic – https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/c/cheetah/
• Cheetah on The Animal Files – https://www.theanimalfiles.com/mammals/carnivores/cheetah.html
• Cheetah on Animalia.bio – http://animalia.bio/cheetah