Cheetah at Herberstein Wildlife Park

A Cat That Stands Out
In many ways, the cheetah is a cat with unique characteristics. While other cats prefer to hunt under the cover of darkness, the cheetah roams during the day to avoid direct competition from lions, hyenas, and leopards. If these much more formidable predators happen to be nearby, the cheetah would rather forgo its lunch. It knows full well that after the hunt, it would be too exhausted to defend its prey.

The lifestyles of females and males are completely different. Males like to spend their time in small groups (2–3 animals), which usually consist of brothers but can also include unrelated males. Together, they go hunting and mark their territory with urine and scratch marks. Females, on the other hand, are solitary, unless they have young to care for. Although the young are weaned at 3 months, they remain with their mother for at least a year—and often up to 20 months—primarily to learn the proper hunting techniques.

Did you know?

The cheetah is a sprint hunter, which is an atypical hunting strategy for felines. It is the fastest land mammal on Earth and can reach a top speed of up to 115 km/h.