the subfamily of the cheetahs is a very original group of cats, who exists virtually unchanged since the beginning of the ice age-age. Today, they are only represented by a type, the cheetah.
Shape With 140-150 cm of length, the cheetahs are amply sheepdog-big. its torso is slim and stretched, the paws are small. They dull, not re-ductile claws don't sit in claw-vaginas. The short, wiry fur is whitish ocher at the back until brightly gray-yellow and at the underside. From the neck up to the withers, it is short, extends comb-nicely. The body is scored points or spotted, the tail cross-striped. A black bond runs from the inner eye-corner across the nose-edge of the mouth-corner.
Spread Cheetahs were widespread far over Africa and Asia once. Today, remainders only exist in south - and East-African protectorates and south from the Kaspischen sea. The last Indian cheetah, A. j. veniaticus, beginning of the 1950er years was shot.
Habitat As habitat, these cats prefer the open steppe with sprinkled in islands from dense hedge. They position also its silence and throw-places in such thickets. As pure ground-animals, they don't climb on trees, diagonally towering trunks like to use as overlooks, however.
Way of life Over the natural way of life in the wild is only little known. Adult animals live usually individually, however females often stay together with its boys. Male-herds, that the females visit at the reproductive-time, exist beside it. One determined on that occasion that the males always must be in the majority in order to put the female into combination-mood. From this "admirer-flock", the female then picks itself its solid partner, who mates with it.
The animals seem not to defend any precinct. Several groups obviously live in the same areas, avoids meetings, however, but avoids each other.
Hunt-manner, nutrition The herausragendste quality of the cheetah is its extraordinary run-fortune, that turns it into the fastest country-mammal. Without effort, it reaches 75 km per hour, with what its maximum speed should be with 110 km per hour. However, the cheetah is able to persevere such speeds only over short routes. On longer distance, a well trained Reitpferd is superior for it. However, the big performance of the cat is not in the high speed itself but in the big sprint-fortune. The cheetah sneaks as far as possible at its loot along in order to strike down the last meters loszurasen and it in maximum speed on the loot-animal with hits of the front-feet. Prematurely notice it a stalked animal, so the cheetah only rarely pursues it.
The loot with a Kehlbiß is killed and then is opened at the stomach. As first, the cheetah eats the innards and only later the muscle-meat, always however also skin and hair.
As loot-animals, gazelles and other small antelopes and their young, as well as hares, primarily probably come rodents and also Einhufer, like for example semi-donkeys and zebras, in question.
Reproduction After the combination-times, that are different regionally and coincide in some areas with the throw-times of the antelopes, the pairs live together narrowly for some time. After a Tragzeit of 90-95 days, one to five 250-280 g were born heavy boy, whose eyes open after 8-11 days. The Säugezeit amounts to approximately six weeks, and after three gets the boys the first meat-food. Until 10 weeks, they carry the typical back-mane. Still up to the 15. The boys are capable week to draw in the claws. Also the father, who even takes care of the already disaccustomed boys after a possible death of the mother, should take part in the Aufzucht. Die at illnesses or as victims of lion, leopard, hyena or game-dog 50 percent of the boys in the first eight months.
Endangering The cheetah is threatened even in the protectorates in its continuance today. it falls under the regulations of the Washingtoner Artenschutzübereinkommens. today
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