Why should I stretch? Does a cheetah stretch before it chases its prey? ~ Ken Griffey, Jr.
I’d argue that Mr. Griffey, fast as he was, wasn’t built the same way as the fastest land creature on earth. While humans win at endurance against any other land animal, even Usain Bolt could not beat a Cheetah in a sprint.* They can move up to 75 MPH. So, yes, they’re agile, but what else?
*Check out the LADBIBLE site for a video simulation of a Usain/cheetah competition.
Cheetahs and Jaguars and Leopards, Oh my!
The first time I ever gave Cheetahs a thought was in an insurance agent’s office. Brown & Brown, Inc. is big on this cat, and if you walk into one of their offices, you’ll see a Cheetah image on the wall. They’ve even trademarked the phrase, Bite hard and leave a mark.™ I take the point. That is, be prepared; be agile; make an impression. That soaked in, but the actual characteristics of the Cheetah? Not so much. I never considered the difference between that cat and any other. Time to remedy that. Cheetahs aren’t like other wild cats and the few similarities are spotty. Seriously. Let’s start with appearance, based on Owlocation.
Cheetahs’ spots are all black with an even pattern. Both Jaguars and Leopards’ spots are two-toned rosettes, but the spacing on Jaguars is not as tight. Take a look at the top row of the animal.photos site for a visual. Also, the Cheetah’s face has a distinct marking. It looks to me like mascara running from the corner of the eyes down to the mouth. Oddly enough, there’s a practical reason for this coloring. Like football players, this dark patch reduces the glare and improves their odds with prey. Beyond the hairstyles, though, there are other differences.
Cheetahs
- Head – Comparatively small.
- Claws – Semi-retractable and blunt to support traction and speed.
- Tail – flat, long for balance and steering
- Weight – between 45-160 lbs.
Jaguars
- Head – broad, with powerful jaws.
- Claws – retractable and sharp.
- Tail – tubular, shorter than the Leopard’s or Cheetah’s tail.
- Weight – between 120-210 lbs.
Leopards
- Head – large and powerful jaw, but smaller than a Jaguar
- Claws – retractable and sharp.
- Tail – tubular and longer than the Jaguar.
- Weight – between 50-70 lbs.
Cheetah habitat and hunters
Cheetahs have habitats in only two areas, apart from zoos–either Africa or central Iran. I know. So odd. Why the 1000-mile gap? The other “big cats” mentioned didn’t seem to get split up this way. Maybe part of the answer is that Cheetahs don’t roll like “big cats” because they don’t belong to the Panthera* genus. Cheetahs are the only surviving species of the Acinonyx genus. And sorry, Margaret, but there’s no such species as Panther. If you see a totally black Leopard or Jaguar, you can call it a panther if it makes you happy.
Cheetahs are special in other ways as well. As I mentioned in an October ’23 post, they can purr. But they don’t roar, and they can’t climb. Here are a few other fun facts, courtesy GVI:
- Cheetahs prefer dry, grassy plains, but not deserts.
- A group of Cheetahs, often comprised of siblings, is called a coalition.
- A female with cubs is very protective of her litter and usually stays away from groups.
- Adult Cheetahs don’t have [wild] predators, but young cubs are often killed by lions. The new mom has to move her family frequently in the first few weeks to keep them hidden.
- Since Cheetahs can’t climb, they can’t stow their kill in trees, and sometimes their meals are stolen by lions or hyenas. There’s a name for that, believe it or not: kleptoparasitism. Yes, animals steal, too.
And from SeaWorld, there are no documented cases of a wild Cheetah killing a human. Conversely, Cheetahs are sometimes in danger from ranchers who are concerned about their livestock.
What does all that cattiness tell me?
The Cheetah, with its almost super-power speed has limitations. Though their stride is about 7 yards when they’re running full-bore, they aren’t good for the long haul. They can’t protect themselves by climbing a tree, and they aren’t big enough or strong enough to fight the “big cats.” Yet they still manage to live, on average, 12 years in the wild. They capitalize on their strengths and don’t whine about what all the other cats can do. Well, not that I know of.
But the other reminder I received when researching this topic was the real possibility of finding erroneous information. I’m not referring to people who intentionally mislead, but rather to the “sometimes wrong, never in doubt” folks. As I was looking for images I found several which were labeled as Cheetahs, but which I know now were not. Does that matter to you–or anyone else beyond a wildlife biologist? No. I am simply illustrating the point that sometimes we place too much confidence in our search results.
I leave you with two quotes, one of which is a favorite of my brother’s. First, from the Greek philosopher Aristotle, “The more you know, the more you realize you don’t know.” And then, from Mark Twain, “It ain’t what you don’t know that gets you into trouble. It’s what you know for sure that just ain’t so.”
Love cheetahs. Always found it interesting that they were not considered true cats because of their inability to retract they claws. Seems prejudicial to me.
My daughter work a for Memphis zoo. The jaguar is by far the most dangerous animal they have. A born killer. He is too of the list for a kill order by security should he escape.
Thanks for your dedication to this blog and to the cove as well.
Thank you for your kind words, Walt. You know how much I enjoy both the blog and the Cove. They help me center down.
I now love Cheetahs, too. But I do feel sorry for them, since they can’t climb. Seems to put them at a distinct disadvantage, but neither they–nor we–can expect to excel at everything.
I’ve been reading a book about Antelopes, “Built for Speed” by John Byers. He writes about their amazing speed in spite of the fact that there is nothing in North America that can run fast enough to catch them. A 30 day old fawn runs numerous loops.”hey look this – I’ve run 2 miles in 3 minutes and I still have something left” Why then are they built to run so fast? He theorizes that it may because 10,000 years ago they were being chased by cheetahs, lions, and fast hyenas!
I guess we can all do better when we have to. We just don’t usually “have” to. 😉
Cheetahs have long been my favorite of the big cats. I always think of them as the smallest of the big three. I guess it’s because they are long and lean, while the leopard is shorter and so appears stockier. That’s my story, and I’m sticking to it.
If you ever have the chance to watch Big Cat Diary or Big Cat Tales, do. They follow a group of lions, a cheetah family or two and a leopard family. They filmed once a year, and were familiar with the lineage of the various cats. It’s fascinating. It’s a BBC production, so might show up on Acorn or BritBox. I used to watch it on PBS and Animal Planet.
Based on weights, I think they are generally smaller. I suppose their speed is intended to offset their disadvantage with size. Their numbers are dwindling, based on what I read, but much of it is due to other animals stealing its supper and the expansion of farms.