SPECIES
Cheetah
Acinonyx jubatus
The cheetah can accelerate into one of the fastest sprints of any land mammal.
A sprint lasts only moments, but it demands an extraordinary body. Cheetahs combine speed with keen awareness of the open landscape.
How big is a cheetah?
40–60 in, excluding tail
What does a cheetah eat?
gazelle, impala, young antelope
Where does a cheetah live?
eastern and southern Africa
Built for a sprint
Long limbs, specialised paw pads and a balancing tail help a cheetah chase prey at high speed.
Where the land opens
Most remaining cheetahs are in eastern and southern Africa, with a small Asiatic population in Iran.
A shrinking range
Cheetahs now occupy only a small part of their historical African and Asian range.
Sources
Records of where it has been seen come live from GBIF; observed interactions from GloBI. Draft — not yet reviewed by a person.