Cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus) are among the most enthralling big cats of Africa. These elegant predators feature yellow or tan short coarse fur with solid black spots, small heads with high-set eyes, teardrop-shaped facial streaks and tear-like patches along their cheeks.
Hunters in open savannah or grassland habitat hunt by day, using their incredible speed to chase down prey and capture it. Once caught, they often trip it during pursuit and bite its throat to kill it quickly and efficiently.
Grassland Prey
Cheetahs are predators of grassland animals such as gazelles, warthogs and hares; however they also prey upon small birds and even antelopes for sustenance. Most commonly they hunt in an open savanna where their bursts of speed help catch prey quickly.
Cheetahs are active during the day, with peak hunting activity at dawn and dusk. Their keen eyesight enables them to scan the landscape for prey animals; once one has been identified, the stalking begins until they can approach at high speed and trip it with its claw before driving canine teeth into its throat to suffocate it.
Female cheetahs typically hunt on their own or with their cubs, while males form coalitions which are less nomadic and establish larger territories than the nomadic females. Male cheetahs sometimes fight among themselves for territory and females – marking their territories by spraying urine onto objects or defecating, making their presence known by emitting loud calls – while marking them by defecating or spraying urine onto it to mark its boundary lines and marking it visually by marking urine to mark its presence – males also fight between males for territory and females when it comes to female dominance disputes over territory and female dominance battle between other males over territory and female dominance – while marking territory and marking female dominance battle among themselves over resources and fight with other males for territory and female dominance battle over territory and female dominance and fight over territory and female dominance through marking urine spraying and defecation, marking and making loud calls that announce their presence by spraying urine or defecating within it, then marking its presence by making a loud call out loudly marking its territory with defecation and spraying urine on it to mark it out its territory by marking its territory, then fighting with other males over territories and females with fight over territories and females over fighting over territories and females over territory and females fighting over territory or female dominance over territory and fight over territorial ownership via defecation/defecation to marking urine spraying urine marks their territory by marking with defecation to mark its presence by marking with defecation, while also making loud call loud call that makes their presence known by defecation to mark its territory and defecation to defecation and defecation marking their presence by marking with defecation to mark territories, marking males over territory/feces spraying female rivalry over territory/fecation by making loud call out the female territory battle over female territory and fighting over battle for territory and females fought over female territory fight for territory, fight with defeation to mark marking by marking by defation or defation, making louderation/deceation by making angrideation marking their territory by marking by marking infating marking marking them marking marking defating with spraying spraying their presence known via defcation defencating and defected while defscation marking their female territory with other males as well as fight over male fight battle over territories using urine spraying etc s or defcation as well as marking territory which males which made known through de defations marking and defating or by marking defece releasing loud calls then by defcation marking spraying by making loud calling calls when making or def reeces causing by de containing by de fcating marking their presence as make called makes known their territory by marking themselves by marking, spraying marking their male marking territory by fighting etc marking which make or female territory fighting others using loud calls also made known through fight fights fighting all fighting over female territory with other males fighting over females making presence known by calling calls marking their territory marking out forcing their presence known by making their presence known by making calling calling making noise making loud calls by making noise calls made knowns before defected to marking, defing using defex with other male fighting all fighting! which marking urine/defic
Cheetahs are among the most efficient hunters, able to kill prey 60 times faster than they can consume them as energy sources.
The Cheetah is one of the fastest land animals, yet one of the world’s most endangered species. Only 9 percent of its historic range has cheetahs living today due to human activities like livestock ranching, habitat fragmentation and farmland development; additionally they are targets of illegal trade with only one captive cub out of every six making it through.
Wildebeest
Cheetahs are agile hunters with fast speeds that specialize in taking down small mammals and antelope, such as those found during the Great Migration of wildebeest herds across eastern Africa. These prey animals provide ample food sources for this predator that can reach speeds up to 60 miles per hour in seconds!
As the fastest land animal on Earth, the Cheetah uses speed over strength to hunt its prey. Unfortunately, they can only sustain top speeds for short amounts of time and hence 40-50% of hunts ultimately fail. To avoid being caught by larger predators or herds of wildebeest, Cheetahs usually stalk their prey through stalking; crouched and waiting until their target turned their eyes away before striking with surprise attacks on those exposed to danger.
This video, shot at Maasai Mara National Reserve in Kenya, depicts this exact scenario: one cheetah stands directly behind its prey herd and waits until an opportunity presents itself before quickly moving in and pouncing on their leg or neck for prey.
Cheetahs differ from most big cats by hunting during the daytime with their excellent vision and use rocks or termite mounds to gain a better view of their surroundings.
Once a cheetah catches its prey, they begin devouring immediately – starting with the most nutritious parts such as liver and heart – raising their head every few minutes to ensure no threats are approaching and devouring larger bones as quickly as possible while leaving their skin unharmed for later consumption.
Hares
Cheetahs are carnivorous predators. As their name implies, they hunt small mammals and antelopes that weigh between 2.5-3kg (5.5-6lb). Cheetahs usually target medium-sized prey such as impalas or gazelles but may also prey upon young wildebeests and zebras as well as taking down rabbits or even guinea fowl.
Once a cheetah identifies its target, it moves quickly towards within 30 meters (10-20 yards) to stalk and bring down their prey. They attempt to suffocate it by running up on it and driving their front teeth into its throat until death occurs – then carry their kill to an uncluttered area where it won’t be threatened by larger predators like lions or hyenas.
Cheetahs consume their prey quickly to avoid being attacked by larger predators while they eat, and start by devouring any nutrient-rich parts first, before continuing onto other parts. They try their best to avoid bones; if any large ones get in their way they may leave it behind.
Cheetah cubs are nursed until their milk teeth come in, at which time they begin learning how to hunt from their mother by following in her footsteps. At approximately 18 months, most cheetahs become proficient enough at hunting on their own and leave their family. In captivity, most cheetahs typically eat horse meat, chicken meat, rabbit and meat-based feed specifically tailored for carnivores; if separated from its mother or experiencing stress they may drink cow’s milk instead; such chirping noises will echoed loudly much like how dogs bark or cats meow when separated – similar to how dogs bark or cats meow!
Antelope
Antelope are one of Africa’s largest prey animals, weighing 75 to 140 pounds (34 to 64 kilograms). These herbivores use markings on their rumps, heads and legs as signals among members of their species and male antelopes during mating season to use their horns against rival males during mating season. Some dulkers and springboks even confuse predators by raising all four feet off the ground to “stot.” Furthermore, their fast speeds make them excellent escape candidates from prey animals such as this species.
Some antelope have evolved defensive mechanisms against predators. Dama gazelle and hirola, for instance, may defend themselves by biting at predators. Others, like the saiga species, have long, sharp horns they use to either knock out predators or defend against members of their own species – leading some cultures to believe antelope horns act as potency aphrodisiacs!
Antelope have an arsenal of senses in addition to their impressive horns. Their eyes are placed at the sides of their heads, which allows for wider field of vision than most animals. Furthermore, their ears and noses have acute structures which help detect danger even at night when most predators may be out for prey.
Antelope are generally solitary creatures or live in small herds of two to five females and one male, though larger forest antelope such as dik-diks and lechwes may engage in lek breeding, whereby males compete to attract female attention by gathering on high grounds to display their horns and antlers, enabling females to assess them and select the one they wish to mate with.
Smaller Animals
Cheetahs hunt a variety of smaller animals, such as hares and gazelles. Additionally, they prey upon young of larger prey such as zebras, hartebeests, oryxes and roans; small antelope such as springboks, steenboks and duikers may also be targeted as prey items. Cheetahs may even eat ground birds like guinea fowls as well as reptiles but snakes usually remain unsusceptive prey items for these predatory beasts.
Cheetahs’ ability to capture prey at high speeds is largely attributable to their keen eyesight. Their retina features black dots and white patches which help absorb light more effectively in low light environments and improve vision in low-light situations. Their long tail also aids them when hunting in tall grass or other terrain environments.
Cheetahs use sight, rather than smell, for orientation; thus it takes them some time to approach their target before initiating full acceleration and sprinting for about 100 yards (91.4 meters). Each full sprint lasts 20 seconds giving a distinct advantage to this predator over competitors.
Once they’ve caught a meal, cheetahs take some time to rest and recover before beginning their feast. Cheetahs tend to consume the most nutritious parts first such as liver and heart before moving onto other sections such as skin. Unlike many predators, however, cheetahs don’t chew their meat all the way down to bone like other predators do, and can sometimes bypass larger bones which might prove more challenging for swallowing.
Cheetahs will often leave food behind during their recovery periods to deter competitors and prevent any food being stolen by other animals; it also serves to conserve energy for their next hunt.