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The Cheetah Height: male: 75 cm (30 inches). WHERE IT LIVES The cheetah is still widespread in sub Saharan savannas and arid zones; wherever suitable prey occurs. They can be seen in South African national parks in Northern South Africa, the Serengeti NP, in medium and long grass plains in Tanzania, the Masai Mara NR and Amboseli NP in Kenya, the Etosha NP and private game ranches in Namibia. ECOLOGY Although the range includes sparsely vegetated subdesert and steppe, the cheetah needs bushes, grass, or other cover to get within sprinting range of prey and to hide from larger predators. The cheetah is specialised as a predator on gazelles, springbok, and the fleetest of plains antelopes. They also prey on smaller antelopes (oribi, bush duiker) and calves of all the larger antelopes as well as warthog, young zebra, and some small game like hares. They can go 4 days or more without drinking and easily goes 10 days in the Kalahari, where it eats melons. ACTIVITY The most diurnal cat, the cheetah is seldom active at night and usually rests during heat of day. Average distance traveled in a day by a female with cubs is 2.3 mi. (3.7 km), compared to 4 mi. (7 km) for males.
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