CHEETAH,
common name for the African species Acinonyx jubatus, of
the CAT FAMILY, Felidae. The cheetah has about the same body weight
as the leopard (50 to 60 kg/110 to 130 lb), but it has
a longer body, much longer legs, and a smaller head. The head and
body, without the tail, are about 1.8 m (about 4.5 ft) long, and
the claws are short and almost nonretractile. The coat is yellowish-brown
with black spots; the cub also has a spotted coat, but over the
back and head is a mantle of long, silky, gray hair that remains
for about three months. Cheetahs are solitary animals, except for
a female with her cubs. Mature males generally travel alone, joining
females only at mating time.
The body of the cheetah is adapted for taking prey by running
rather than by leaping from ambush, as with the leopard, and the
cheetah hunts by sight rather than by smell. Over short distances
it is the fastest ground animal on earth, being able to attain speeds
up to 112 km/hr (70 mph). It hunts by day, feeding primarily
on antelope. The cheetah was formerly trained and used for hunting
in India, where it is now extinct. In tropical Africa, where it
lives on open plains, the cheetah is an endangered species.