The way of hunting, characteristic for a cheetah. Cheetah jump length

The cheetah is a beautiful and graceful animal, considered the fastest runner among predators. The way of hunting, characteristic for a cheetah, is very interesting. When you watch a predator chasing a game, just the heart stops at the speed the beast develops. About how it looks like a cheetah hunts, how it lives in the wild, you can learn by reading this article.

Habitat range of cheetahs

In our days, the life of cheetahs is very difficult. Because of the beautiful hide of the beast, hunting for him was very popular, and the speed with which he runs can not protect him from the bullets of ruthless hunters. Now spotty handsome men live in Africa in the wild, and in the recent past they could be found in Arabia, India, and Iran. Cheetahs were on the verge of extinction, so that the species did not disappear from the face of the Earth, the animals are bred in captivity and protected in a natural environment.

Description

The method of hunting, characteristic of the cheetah, is determined by the structure of the body of the beast, it is aerodynamic. This contributes to streamlining during running, which makes it possible to develop a high speed. The musculature is highly developed, there is almost no fat on the body, it is slender and graceful, at first glance it even seems somewhat fragile. In fact, the animal is strong, its distinctive feature is the speed that it develops instantaneously and uses it during the hunt. We will talk about the very method of hunting later.

Describing the appearance of a cheetah, one can not help noticing its extraordinary beauty, which is very different from that of other wild cats. The head of the beast is small with high-placed eyes, enlarged nostrils, small rounded ears and two black thin strips on the sides on the muzzle. Because of these strips, it seems that the beast is saddened.

The color of the cheetah is sandy-yellow, black small spots are randomly scattered throughout the body. The weight of an adult animal is 45-66 kg, the body length is 110-140 cm, the tail is beautiful and long up to 70-82 cm. The claws are partially retracted, this is a distinctive feature of the species. This feature helps the beast to dramatically change direction at high speed, which again helps him in the hunt.

Cheetah characteristic

In a natural environment cheetahs live 12-15 years, in captivity can live up to 20 years. Males have their own territory, which is labeled with urine and protected. The females of their territory do not have, they are alone and simply follow the prey. The lair of the beast is open, usually settled in prickly thickets, on large termites, under trees or in rocks. Unlike other cats, the cheetah is not clean. His lair often changes, so he does not have the habit of coping with need in the same place. In captivity, it is also impossible to accustom it to purity.

The way of hunting, characteristic for a cheetah, allows him to feast on such game as an antelope and a zebra, and in fact to catch them is quite difficult. This is a very quick artiodactyl, not every predator is able to catch a healthy antelope on an even open terrain, for a cheetah, on the contrary, it is the best option. Hunting spotted predator in the territory with low grass, because he needs a review.

Reproduction

Cheetahs form pairs only during the mating season, after the rut the animals disperse, the female itself takes care of the offspring. Pregnancy lasts three months. In one litter there are 2-6 kittens. Babies appear light and are easy prey for other predators. Therefore, my mother constantly protects them and often changes the place of the den.

The mode of hunting characteristic of a cheetah

Spotted predators have sharp eyesight, to search for prey they climb the hill and can notice the victim at a huge distance. Cheetah hunting takes place either in the morning with sunrise, or in the evening at dusk, males can arrange round-ups together, but female single-daughters, they never hunt together.

Having marked the object of the prey, the animal throws all its forces to catch it. First, the predator, clinging to the ground, creeps to the target at a distance of 150-200 meters, then rushes forward and, developing an incredible speed, catches up with the victim, who has almost no chance to escape. The leap of a cheetah is 6-8 meters, for one such a throw the beast spends half a second. Speed in just 3 seconds this handsome man can develop up to 90-100 km / h. Running at such a tempo wild cat can only a few hundred meters, since a jerk of such power requires a huge flow of oxygen. Cases are noted, especially with young animals, when, after running 200-300 meters, the predator lost consciousness and for a long time could not come to. Experienced spotted hunters, if they do not catch prey on the first hundred distances, just stop pursuing and start looking for a new target.

After catching the victim, the predator cuts it and knocks it down with a blow from the front paw. The inner finger of the paw is armed with a curved sharp claw, at the first strike this claw makes a deep wound in the body of the game. Crushed on the ground prey cheetah strangles at the throat, not unclenching the jaw for 6-8 minutes.

Interesting facts about the life of cheetahs

The life of a cheetah in the wild is extremely interesting, I would like to draw your attention to some curious facts:

• At short distances, the cheetah can easily overtake the racehorse.
• Spotted cat never eats carrion, it is full, it leaves the remains to birds or jackals. Without even thinking of guarding the carcass until the next meal, the beast goes away irrevocably.
• The predator drinks water only once every three to four days.
• Grandees of Assyria and India in ancient times arranged competitions cheetahs, it was considered a royal entertainment.
• Cheetah is easy to tame. Despite the hunting bloodthirsty instinct, this predator is quite calm and affectionate. No cases of cheetah attacks have been recorded per person.
• Russian princes liked to hunt together with a tamed cheetah.