Cheetahs
An adult cheetah has yellow and sometimes tan fur with solid black round or oval spots. The spots cover nearly their whole body; only the white throat and abdomen are unmarked by anything. The tail ends with 4-6 black rings and a bushy, white tuft. The spot pattern plus the ring pattern on the tail helps humans to identify different cheetahs. The head is small with eyes set high and a black “tear mark” running from the inner aspect of each eye down to the mouth.
The young female cheetahs usually occupy the same range as their mother although all of the females are solitary creatures unless they have children. The average female home ranges extend to 833 square kilometers. A female cheetah will raise her cubs alone because the adult male and female cheetahs mix only to mate. The average life span of wild radio-collared female cheetahs is 6.9 years which compares to 11.7 years for females who are in captivity.
The male cheetahs rarely live alone. Generally 2 or 3 cheetah males, often brothers, will form a coalition. This small group will live and hunt together for life and will usually claim a large area or range which may overlap several female territories. The average size of male territories is 37.4 square kilometers (14.4 square miles). Young males find an area as far away from their parents as possible.
Cheetahs are carnivorous animals who eat a range of smaller animals. The cheetahs are mainly diurnal creatures who hunt early in the morning and then later in the afternoon instead of at night. They rely mostly on sight to hunt rather then smell by scanning the countryside from a tree limb and even on top of a termite mound. The cheetah chases 3.4 miles (5500 meters) at an average speed of 45 miles per hour (72 kilometers per hour).
Their stalk is as important as their sprint. Usually it will creep within 50 yards (46 meters) of an intended victim before the final acceleration. Full sprints last about 20 seconds and almost never exceed 1 full minute. Cheetahs will eat their meals quickly. If they are overly challenged by their prey then they will forget it because they rarely win a challenge.