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Endangered Species: The Cheetah

The cheetah is the world's fastest land animal and can run up to 70 miles per hour. Cheetahs have distinctive black spots covering their fur and black streaks on their cheeks. They live in grasslands in Africa and Iran, with the largest populations in southern Africa totaling between 7,000 to 10,000 cheetahs. The cheetah population has declined sharply due to hunting and loss of habitat, dropping from 28,000 in the 1950s to half that number within 20 years. Conservation efforts include protected reserves and introducing cheetahs to new wilderness areas with few predators.

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Lissette Echeverria
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162 views2 pages

Endangered Species: The Cheetah

The cheetah is the world's fastest land animal and can run up to 70 miles per hour. Cheetahs have distinctive black spots covering their fur and black streaks on their cheeks. They live in grasslands in Africa and Iran, with the largest populations in southern Africa totaling between 7,000 to 10,000 cheetahs. The cheetah population has declined sharply due to hunting and loss of habitat, dropping from 28,000 in the 1950s to half that number within 20 years. Conservation efforts include protected reserves and introducing cheetahs to new wilderness areas with few predators.

Uploaded by

Lissette Echeverria
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Endangered Species: The cheetah

By Gale, Cengage Learning, adapted by Newsela staff on 01.05.18


Word Count 524
Level 680L

Image 1: Cheetahs are famous for their round, black spots, which help them to hide in the tall grass where they live. Photo from: Wikimedia
Commons.

The name cheetah comes from the Hindi word chita. It means "spotted one." Round black spots
cover the cheetah's fur. A black streak runs down each cheek. An average cheetah measures about
4.5 to 5 feet long. It stands between 27 and 34 inches high at its shoulder. It weighs between 80
and 145 pounds.

Cheetahs are the world's fastest land animal. They can run at speeds of up to 70 miles an hour.
However, cheetahs do not just rely on raw speed. Instead, they use their agility to catch prey. Their
long tails help them balance their weight. This allows the cheetah to quickly change direction.

Unlike other cats, a cheetah cannot draw its claws in. The claws dig into the ground as the cheetah
runs. This helps to give it more speed. Other large cats, such as tigers, like to surprise their prey.
But cheetahs prefer to chase down their prey. This uses up a lot of energy. Cheetahs often need a
rest before they can eat their kill. They cannot wait too long, though. If they do, other carnivores
will try to steal it. Common cheetah prey includes gazelles, wildebeests and antelope.

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.


Male cheetahs often live in groups with their brothers.
Females live alone. They join the males only when it is
time to mate. After a pregnancy period of 90 to 95
days, a female cheetah gives birth to cubs. There may
be one to five cubs in a litter. The mother nurses them
for two months. Once the cubs are about 6 months
old, the mother will bring small, live prey to them.
This helps the cubs develop their hunting skills.

Habitat

Cheetahs prefer to live in flat grasslands. These areas are known as savannas. Cheetahs now are
found only in Africa, except for a small population in Iran. The largest number of cheetahs is
found in southern Africa. Scientists believe the total population ranges from 7,000 to 10,000. In
Iran, the population numbers between 60 and 100.

History And Conservation

Cheetahs once ranged over Africa, the Middle East


and India. In the 1950s, the world cheetah population
was believed to be 28,000. Within 20 years, that
number was cut in half.

The main causes of this decline are hunting and loss


of land. In most countries, cheetahs are protected. But
poachers still hunt them for their fur. Farmers also
kill cheetahs, believing the animals might harm their livestock. Also, wild grassland is increasingly
being turned into farmland. This has left cheetahs with less space to live. That makes it more
difficult for them to hunt.

In Africa, reserves have been set up to help animals such as cheetahs. These are protected areas
where the animals can live in peace. They are not perfect, though. Cheetahs living here have to
compete with other predators. Some African countries have tried to introduce cheetahs into new
wilderness areas. In these spaces, the cheetahs would face few predators.

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.

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