The Cheetah

            The cheetah is sometimes called hunting leopard but it is quite a distinct animal. The body is more slender and the legs are longer, while its coat has single spot, not rosettes. It reaches a length of just over 1 meter, with a tail about 75 centimeters long. Cheetahs live on open plains in southern Africa. In India the cheetah is now extinct.
            Cheetah hunts alone or in small groups. They prey on small antelopes which run down at great speed. Over a short distance the cheetah is probably the fastest land animal, reaching speeds of more than 100 kilometers an hour. Unlike other cats, the cheetah cannot retract its claws into sheaths.