Cheetah

•   Kingdom    :     Animalia
•   Phylum       :     Chordata
•   Class           :     Mammalia
•   Order          :     Carnivora
•   Family        :      Felidae
•   Subfamily   :     Pantherinae
• Genus            :     Acinonyx
• Specie Name :     Acinonyx jubatus

The cheetah /ˈtʃiːtə/ (Acinonyx jubatus) is a large felid of the subfamily Felinae that occurs mainly in eastern and southern Africa and a few parts of Iran. It is the fastest land animal. The only extant member of the genus Acinonyx, the cheetah was formally described by Johann Christian Daniel von Schreber in 1775. The cheetah is characterised by a slender body, deep chest, spotted coat, small rounded head, black tear-like streaks on the face, long thin legs and long spotted tail. Its lightly built, slender form is in sharp contrast with the robust build of the big cats, making it more similar to the cougar. The cheetah reaches nearly 70 to 90 cm (28 to 35 in) at the shoulder, and weighs 21–72 kg (46–159 lb). Though taller than the leopard, it is notably smaller than the lion. Typically yellowish tan or rufous to greyish white, the coat is uniformly covered with nearly 2,000 solid black spots.

Cheetahs are active mainly during the day, with hunting their major activity. Adult males are sociable despite their territoriality, forming groups called coalitions. Females are not territorial; they may be solitary or live with their offspring in home ranges. Carnivores, cheetah mainly prey upon antelopes and gazelles. They will stalk their prey to within 100–300 metres (330–980 ft), charge towards it and kill it by tripping it during the chase and biting its throat to suffocate it to death. Cheetahs can reach speeds of 112 km/h (70 mph) in short bursts, but this is disputed by more recent measurements. The average speed of cheetahs is about 64 km/h (40 mph). Cheetahs are induced ovulators, breeding throughout the year. Gestation is nearly three months long, resulting in a litter of typically three to five cubs (the number can vary from one to eight). Weaning occurs at six months; siblings tend to stay together for some time. Cheetah cubs face higher mortality than most other mammals, especially in the Serengeti region. Cheetahs inhabit a variety of habitats – dry forests, scrub forests and savannahs.

Thanks to its prowess at hunting, the cheetah was tamed and used to kill game at hunts in the past. The animal has been widely depicted in art, literature, advertising and animation.

Classified as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the cheetah has suffered a substantial decline in its historic range due to rampant hunting in the 20th century. Several African countries have taken steps to improve the standards of cheetah conservation. By late 2016-early 2017, the cheetah's global population had fallen to approximately 7,100 individuals in the wild due to habitat loss, poaching, the illegal pet trade, and conflict with humans, with researchers suggesting that the animal be immediately reclassified as "Endangered" on the IUCN Red List
Etymology
The vernacular name "cheetah" is derived from the Hindi word चीता (cītā), which in turn comes from the Sanskrit word चित्रकायः (citrakāyaḥ) meaning "bright" or "variegated". The first recorded use of this word has been dated back to 1610.An alternative name for the cheetah is "hunting leopard".[6] The scientific name of the cheetah is Acinonyx jubatus.The generic name Acinonyx originated from the combination of two Greek words: akinetos means motionless, and onyx means claw.[8][9] A rough translation of the word would be "non-moving claws", a reference to the limited retractability (capability of being drawn inside the paw) of the claws of the cheetah relative to other cats'. The specific name jubatus means "maned" in Latin, referring to the dorsal crest of this animal.
The cheetah is the only extant species of the genus Acinonyx. It belongs to Felinae, the subfamily of Felidae that also includes lynxes, wildcats, and the puma. The species was first described by German naturalist 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) and the jaguarundi (Herpailurus yagouaroundi).These three species together form the Puma lineage, one of the eight lineages of Felidae.The sister group of the Puma lineage is a clade of smaller Old World cats that includes the genera Felis, Otocolobus and Prionailurus.

Although the cheetah is an African cat, molecular evidence indicates that the three species of the Puma lineage evolved in North America two to three million years ago, where they possibly had a common ancestor during the Miocene.They possibly diverged from this ancestor 8.25 million years ago.The cheetah diverged from the puma and the jaguarundi around 6.7 million years ago.A genome study suggests that cheetahs experienced two genetic bottlenecks in their history, the first about 100,000 years ago and the second about 12,000 years ago, greatly lowering their genetic variability. These bottlenecks may have been associated with migrations across Asia and into Africa (with the current African population founded about 12,000 years ago), and/or with a depletion of prey species at the end of the Pleistocene.

Cheetah fossils found in the lower beds of the Olduvai Gorge site in northern Tanzania date back to the Pleistocene.The extinct species of Acinonyx are older than the cheetah, with the oldest known from the late Pliocene; these fossils are about three million years old.These species include Acinonyx pardinensis (Pliocene epoch), notably larger than the modern cheetah, and A. intermedius (mid-Pleistocene period).While the range of A. intermedius stretched from Europe to China, A pardinensis spanned over Eurasia as well as eastern and southern Africa.A variety of larger cheetah believed to have existed in Europe fell to extinction around half a million years ago.

Extinct North American cats resembling the cheetah had historically been assigned to Felis, Puma or Acinonyx. However, a phylogenetic analysis in 1990 placed these species under the genus Miracinonyx.Miracinonyx exhibited a high degree of similarity with the cheetah. However, in 1998, a DNA analysis showed that Miracinonyx inexpectatus, M. studeri, and M. trumani (early to late Pleistocene epoch), found in North America, are more closely related to the cougar than modern cheetahs.

In 1775, Schreber described a stuffed cheetah skin from the Cape of Good Hope.In the 19th and 20th centuries, several cheetah specimen were described and proposed as subspecies:

South African cheetah (A. j. jubatus) (Schreber, 1775) is the nominate subspecies.It occurs in Southern African countries such as Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Mozambique and Zambia, but is extinct in the Democr

atic Republic of the Congo.It is the most numerous cheetah population. Introduced in the Hlane Royal National Park of Swaziland and reintroduced in the Liwonde National Park of Malawi.Separated from the Asiatic cheetah nearly 0.32–0.67 million years ago.[26] In 2007 the population was roughly estimated at less than 5,000 to maximum 6,500 adult individuals.The South African cheetah populations are increasing in South Africa, Namibia and Botswana. Once thought to be extinct for 30 years, wild cheetahs were reported to persist Iona National Park in southwestern Angola for the first time in 2010.Since 1999, they suffered a massive decline in Zimbabwe, as well as in Mozambique following the civil wars during 1980-90s.
Asiatic cheetah (A. j. venaticus) (Griffith, 1821): Also called the Iranian or Indian cheetah. Formerly occurred across the Middle East, Central Asia and the Indian subcontinent.According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), it is confined to Iran, and is thus the only surviving cheetah subspecies indigenous to Asia. It has been classified as Critically Endangered.A 2004 study estimated the total population at 50 to 60.Later, a 2007 study gave the total population in Iran as 60 to 100; the majority of individuals were likely to be juveniles. The population has declined sharply since the mid-1970s.As of 2012, only two captive individuals are known.
Sudan cheetah (A. j. soemmeringii) (Fitzinger, 1855): Also called the Central or Northeast African cheetah. Fragmented in the central and northeastern regions of the continent and the Horn of Africa. This subspecies was considered identical to the South African cheetah until a 2011 genetic analysis demonstrated significant differences between the two.
Northwest African cheetah (A. j. hecki) (Hilzheimer, 1913): Also called the Saharan cheetah. Found in northwestern Africa; the IUCN confirms its presence in only four countries: Algeria, Benin, Burkina Faso and Niger. Small populations are known to exist in the Ahaggar and Tassili N'Ajjer National Parks (Algeria); a 2003 study estimated a population of 20 to 40 individuals in Ahaggar National Park. In Niger, cheetahs have been reported from the Aïr Mountains, Ténéré, Termit Massif, Talak and Azaouak valley. A 1993 study reported a population of 50 from Ténéré. In Benin, the cheetah still survives in Pendjari National Park and W National Park. The status is obscure in Burkina Faso, where individuals may be confined to the southeastern region. With the total world population estimated at less than 250 mature individuals, it is listed as Critically Endangered.
Tanzanian cheetah (A. j. raineyi syn. A. j. fearsoni) (Heller, 1913): Also called the East African cheetah. Found in Kenya, Somalia, Tanzania, and Uganda. The total population in 2007 was estimated at 2,572 adults and independent adolescents. Significant populations occur in the Maasai Mara and the Serengeti ecoregions