How Cheetahs Hunt: Speed, Strategy and Watching a Hunt Responsibly

Few wildlife sights are as dramatic as a cheetah hunt: a long, patient approach, a sudden explosive sprint and a chase that is often over within seconds. Cheetahs are famous as the fastest land animals, but their hunting success depends just as much on stealth, timing and agility as on raw speed.

This explainer covers how a hunt unfolds, why cheetahs lose so much of what they catch, and how safari visitors can watch these vulnerable cats without affecting the outcome.

The approach: stealth comes first

Unlike lions, which often hunt in groups at night, cheetahs usually hunt alone or, in the case of male coalitions and mothers with older cubs, in small groups, and mainly during the day, especially in the cooler morning and late afternoon. That daytime habit is partly a way of avoiding lions and spotted hyenas, which are more active at night.

A hunt typically begins long before the chase. A cheetah scans from a termite mound, a fallen tree or even the roof of a vehicle, picks out a target and then stalks, using grass and terrain for cover and freezing whenever the prey looks up. The closer it can get before being noticed, the better its chance.

The sprint

When the cheetah breaks cover, the chase is short. Most sprints last well under a minute and cover a few hundred yards at most; cheetahs overheat and tire quickly at full effort. Popular sources often quote top speeds of 60 to 70 mph, but measurements of wild cheetahs during real hunts have recorded lower peak speeds, with researchers emphasizing the cats' extraordinary acceleration, braking and ability to turn sharply as prey dodges.

Several physical features support this:

• A lightweight, slender body and long legs.
• A highly flexible spine that lengthens the stride.
• Semi-retractable claws that grip the ground like running spikes.
• A long tail that helps with balance during sharp turns.
• Enlarged nasal passages and lungs that support rapid oxygen intake.

The kill and what follows

Cheetahs usually trip or knock prey off balance with a front paw, then hold it by the throat until it suffocates. Typical prey includes medium-sized antelope such as Thomson's gazelle, impala and springbok, as well as the young of larger species and smaller animals such as hares.

After a sprint the cheetah is often exhausted and must rest before eating. This is when it is most vulnerable to losing its meal. Lions, spotted hyenas and sometimes vultures, whose arrival can alert other predators, frequently drive cheetahs off their kills. Because cheetahs are built for speed rather than strength, they rarely fight back. Losing kills is a significant pressure on cheetahs in areas with high densities of larger predators.

Mothers and cubs

Female cheetahs raise their cubs alone. Cub mortality can be very high in some ecosystems, with predation by lions and hyenas a major cause. As cubs grow, mothers bring them live, injured prey to practice on, and young cheetahs learn hunting skills over many months before becoming independent.

Cheetah conservation

Cheetahs need very large areas, and many live outside protected parks, on farmland and rangeland where they come into conflict with livestock owners. Habitat loss, declining prey, conflict with people and illegal trade all threaten the species. Conservation groups work with farmers on approaches such as livestock-guarding dogs that reduce conflict. Supporting well-managed parks and conservancies through responsible tourism is one way visitors can help.

For more on Africa's large mammals, read our explainer on the Big Five and our general guide to watching wildlife ethically.

References

• IUCN Red List of Threatened Species — Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus)
• Cheetah Conservation Fund — About cheetahs
• CITES — Appendices I, II and III
• Wilson, A. M. et al. (2013) Locomotion dynamics of hunting in wild cheetahs. Nature 498, 185–189
• Smithsonian's National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute — Cheetah
• Kenya Wildlife Service