Cheetah
cheetah
an animal – mammal – belongs to the ‘big cat’ family; long thin body with rough short fur (hair/coat), tan in colour with round black sports on the body and tail, and
- tear marks
relatively small head with black “tear marks” (= black lines) from inner corner of the eyes running down the sides of the nose and mouth; grows to about 2-3 feet tall at the shoulder, 4-5 feet long with a 2½ long tail, weighs up to 40-60 Kg.; feeds on (eats) (antelope) gazelle, young wildebeest & zebra, Guinea-fowl and even hares; lives for 6-11 years in the wild; formerly found from North Africa to India, but now limited to some parts of Africa – of the five subspecies (kinds), four are found in Africa, one is found in Iran and a few individual numbers in India and Pakistan.)
male ~~ male
female ~~ female
baby ~~ cub
group ~~ coalition (only the males)
voice (call) ~~ { Cheetahs cannot roar like other ‘big cats’ – lion, tiger, leopard, etc.!} purr, bark; ‘chirping’ (mother and cubs); ‘churring’ or ‘stuttering’ (during meeting other cheetahs – social gatherings); ‘bleat’ – like a “meow” (when in need of help); growling (when angry, upset or threatened)
Special Features:
The ‘cheetah’ is the national animal of Kenya.
- fastest four-legged
The cheetah is the fastest four-legged land animal; every part of its body is made to help it run fast – the deep chest, narrow waist, long slim legs, the claws (which unlike other big cats cannot be folded into the paws completely), the nose with big openings, the lungs, the tail to keep balance and to take sharp turns when chasing a fast-running animal! Equipped with all these body (physical) features, a cheetah can run at 71 miles per hour (114 km/h) for short distances.
The name ‘cheetah’ comes from the Sanskrit language of India, which means the “spotted one”.
Cheetahs were so popular in India at one time that Akbar the Great was said to have 1,000 cheetahs in his possession.
Cheetahs were kept as pets by the royal families of the past; and were trained to help hunt the big animals by the serious hunters, like a hunting dog we keep these days!
- cheetah skin bag
In olden days, cheetahs’ fur was regarded as a status symbol. (And some animal lovers suspect that the same tradition is continued even to this day.)
{It is a punishable crime to hunt or kill, or even keep parts of cheetahs in one’s possession. (parts of a cheetah include skin, teeth and claws)}
The ‘King cheetah’ is different from other cheetahs because it has a slightly stout body, and the spots are large, blotchy and merged.
- king cheetah
Mr. Kumar, an English language teacher, having taught in many countries around the world including Ethiopia and Oman shares this English Language Reference website using material that he has written and compiled during the past 20 years.
One Response to “Cheetah”
[...] ~ caterpillar ~ catfish ~ cattalo ~ cattle ~ cavy ~ centipede ~ chaffinch ~ chameleon ~ chamois ~ cheetah ~ chick ~ chicken ~ Chihuahua ~ chimpanzee ~ chinchilla ~ chow ~ chub ~ cicada ~ cichlid ~ civet ~ [...]