1. Class : Mammalia

2. Order : Carnivora

3. Family : Felidae

4. Genus Species : Acinonyx jubatus

5. Size : Adult body length 112 - 135cm; tail length 66- 84 cm; shoulder height 73+cm; weight 34-54kg; The male is slightly larger than the female

6. Weight : 80 - 140 lbs

7. Description : The cheetah has a slender, long-legged body with blunt semi-retractable claw. Its coat is tan coarse and short. The cheetah has a head with high-set eyes. Black "tear marks", which run from the corner of its eyes down the sides of the nose to its mouth, keep the sun out of its eyes and aid in hunting.

8. Lifespan : 8 - 12 years

9. Reproduction : Sexual maturity occurs at 20 - 23 months for both male and female species.

10. Gestation : 95 days

11. Habitat : Cheetahs thrive in areas with vast expanses of land where prey is abundant.. In Namibia, cheetahs have been found in a variety of habitats, including grasslands, savannahs, sense vegetation and mountainous terrain. 95% live on commercial farms.

12. Diet : Small antelopes, young of large antelopes, warthog, hare and game birds

13. Endangered : Endangered

14. Special Features : The cheetah's flexible spine, oversized liver, enlarged heart, wide nostrils and increased lung capacity and thin muscular body make this cat the swiftest hunter in Africa. Covering 7 - 8 metres in a stride with only one foot touching the ground at a time, the cheetah can reach a speed of 110 km/h in seconds. At two points in the stride, no feet touch the ground.

15. Social Organization : Cheetahs have a unique, well-structured social order. Females live alone except when they are raising cubs. The female raises the cubs on her own. At about 2 years, the female siblings leave the group and the young males remain together for life. Males live alone or in coalitions, made up of brothers from the same litter. Some coalitions maintain territories in oreder to find females with which they will mate. Territories are often located in areas where there is a rich supply of wild game and/or water. Fierce fights between male coalitions, resulting in serious injury or death, can occur when defending territories.

16. Conservation Status : Protected under the Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF) in 1990 to directly confront certain issues and to implement techniques for cheetah conservation in their natural habitat. The CCF's primary mission is to focus on conservatory and management strategies outside of protected parks and reserves and conducts research, disseminates information and implements conservation management techniques that will lead to the long-term survival of free-ranging cheetah.

17. Behaviors : Cheetahs hunt in the late morning and early evening. They capture their prey by stalking until the prey is within 10 - 30 meters before chasing. The prey is suffocated when a cheetah bites the underside of the throat. Chases last about 20 seconds and rarely longer than 1 minute. About half of the chases are successful. In Namibia, cheetahs use playtrees (trees with sloping trunks and large horizontal lings, usually camelthrons) to observe their surroundings and mark the area. Cheetahs make chirping sounds, and hiss or spit when angered or threatened. They purr very loudly when content.

18. Population Areas : Only 12,400 cheetahs remain in 25 African countries and 200 cats survive in Iran. Namibia has the world's largest number of cheetahs, yet only 2,400 remain in the wild.