Cheetah

1. The word “Cheetah” is derived from the Hindi word “Chita” meaning “spotted one”.
2. The world’s fastest land mammal is racing towards extinction.
3. Apart from an isolated pocket of Iran, the cheetah is already extinct in Asia and in Africa it has been driven out of 91% of its historic range.
4. As human populations grow and expand, agriculture, roads, and settlements destroy the open grasslands cheetahs need to survive.
5. Human encroachment also contributes to the loss of the cheetah’s prey.
6. Cheetahs still face the continual threat of poaching for their pelts and other body parts and risk losing their cubs to the illegal pet trade.