Today is International Cheetah Day. Cheetahs are the fastest land animal in the world reaching 112km/h in just three seconds. At full pelt, their stride is 6-7m with their feet only touching the ground twice between each stride. Unlike other big cats, cheetahs don’t roar – they growl when facing danger and bark when communicating with each other. Cheetahs have built-in sun glare protection around their eyes which helps reflect the glare of the sun when they are hunting during the day. Their fur is covered in solid black spots and so is their skin – the black fur actually grows out of the black spots on their skin. Queenie has successfully raised 8 cubs to adulthood in Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe. A truly incredible achievement where there are only 25 adults in total. Sadly, these beautiful cats are threatened by loss of habitat and prey, as well as conflict with humans. As a result, the cheetah is classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN red list as only just over 7,000 remain in Africa.
