Cheetah
From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) is a large feline that lives in Africa. It is the fastest land animal and can run at up to 110 kilometres per hour for a short time.
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[edit] Appearance
Cheetahs have short yellow fur with small black spots. They are thin and slender, and their heads are small and round. On their face, they have a black line that goes from each eye to their mouth. They are weaker than other big cats and animals that live in the same area.
There are also cheetahs with a different fur, called a King Cheetah. These cheetahs have bigger spots and also stripes on their fur, because of a mutation.
[edit] Habitat
Most cheetahs live in Africa, but very few can be found in South Asia. They also live in savannas in African plains.
[edit] Life
Cheetahs are active during the day, and hunts in the early morning or late evening. They hunt and eat mostly gazelles and other animals that are not very heavy or strong. They also eat small mammals and birds if they are very hungry.
When the cheetah hunts, it slowly and secretly moves toward its prey. When it is close to the prey (about 10-30 meters), it runs after it very fast. The cheetah makes the prey trip, so that it falls down. The cheetah then bites the throat of the prey, so that it dies because it cannot breathe. The cheetah then eats as fast as it can, because it cannot defend itself against lions or hyenas who would take the cheetah's prey away.
After a pregnancy of about 95 days the female gives birth to usually 1 - 3 babies. Young cheetahs become mature at about 3 years. Cheetahs can live to be 15 years old.
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