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Gail Hennessey
The CHEETAH!
A recent news story stated that the giraffe is in trouble. Now, a new report released says the cheetah is heading towards extinction.The world's fastest mammal's number have dwindled down to only about 7,100 in the wild. A carnivore(meat-eater), the cheetah is in trouble because it is killed for its coat,is losing its habitat and because of conflicts with humans. Baby cubs are also in demand where each can be purchased for $10,000. Most of these cubs that are captured for sale, die. The remaining wild cheetah live in countries in south Africa. At one time, they also roamed the continent of Asia but less than 50 are believed to remain in the wilds of the country of Iran. Currently, the cheetah is listed as "vulnerable" on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature's Red List. Conservationists would like the listing to be changed to "endangered", a more serious category.
DiD You KNOW?
1. A cheetah can run for short periods up to 70 mph. Next time you are in a car traveling about this speed, just THINK about just how fast this is!
2. The strong muscular tail of a cheetah helps it steer when running and helps with balance.
3. Cheetah are NOT tree climbers. They have bad night vision so they hunt during the DAY.
4. The black "tear stain" marks of a cheetah runs from the corner of their eyes to their mouth. Just that a football player places solid black strips under their eyes to keep the sun's glare from their eyes, the "tear stains" of a cheetah help to keep the sun's glare out of their eyes.
5. Cheetah do not roar. They are the only member of the cat family that do not roar. Instead, they chirp and purr.
6. Many people confuse a cheetah with a leopard. To tell the difference, the spots of a cheetah are more round and leopards do NOT have "tear stain" marks. The cheetah is also taller and thinner.
7. Very intelligent, the cheetah has been trained to help humans hunt dating back to 3000 BC.
8. If you could stop a cheetah and count its spots, you'd see that they have about 2000-3000 on their body.