Cheetah - Acinonyx jubatus
The cheetah is one of Botswana's conserved
mammals. Despite protection, numbers are on the decline as they
lose their range to man. Infrequently seen in former strongholds
such as Nxai Pan and Makgadikgadi due to cattle encroachment, as
well as the reduction in prey species following the droughts of
the eighties. Easily tamed, and capable of running 96 to 120 km/h,
cheetahs are the world’s fastest land animal. The ancient
Sumerians, the Egyptian pharaohs and even William the Conqueror
trained cheetahs to help them on hunting expeditions.
Once plentiful across most of Africa, Asia Minor, and India, the
cheetah has been hunted to extinction in India, and the only significant
populations left are in the game reserves of eastern and southwestern
Africa.
In the wild, their most important prey are medium-sized hoofed animals
such as gazelles, impala, and waterbuck. Having eaten their fill,
cheetahs rarely return to the kill and will eat carrion only under
dire circumstances.
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