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Sprinting For Survival: The African Cheetah

The cheetah has long been a go-to symbol for speed, grace, guile and austere athleticism. When we think “fast,” we think “cheetah.” Therefore, it may come as a surprise that this creature could soon run out of time on our planet.

Yes, the African cheetah is critically endangered, despite the many evolutionary marvels that make it such an amazing animal. As we all know, cheetahs are fast, but just how fast is still pretty astounding. In a full dead sprint pursuing prey, cheetahs can reach speeds of up to 70 mph over short distances, and can accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in as little as 3.4 seconds. That’s lethal, unheard-of speed, easily making them the fastest land animals on the planet.

But it’s not all about raw speed: Cheetahs have other adaptations to put that amazing acceleration to good use. Their claws are only semi-retractable, a rarity for big cats, that allows them to act like cleats for athletes, gripping the ground as the cheetah sprints. Their slender paws also help them turn on a dime at lightning speed, so it’s not all about winning a drag race with the antelopes and other savanna wildlife they hunt; they can shift, twist and pursue with agility to match their acceleration.

The stripes on their face act like the eye black that athletes wear under their eyes to reduce the sun’s glare, and their tails act like stabilizing rudders to maintain balance and poise as they crank the sprint to maximum. Their cute spots are meant to camouflage them in the grass and underbrush of their habitats. Literally every part of this animal evolved in service of the takedown.

There are currently less than 8,000 African cheetahs left alive, and while significant efforts are underway to protect the cheetahs that remain from poachers, the habitat loss cheetahs suffer from is hard to recover. Considering cheetahs are perfectly adapted to hunt in wide, open spaces, and to hunt prey that can only live in wide, open spaces, the encroaching effects of civilization, pollution and ranching are twofold upon their survival.

The cheetah’s range once spanned Africa, but those that remain only live in about 25% of that original spread. Conservation efforts are being made by the African countries in their current range to save the cheetahs, our symbol of speed.

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