Acinonyx jubatus

African Range States of the African Lion (Panthera leo), Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus), Leopard (Panthera pardus) and African Wild Dog (Lycaon pictus) met from 1 – 4 May in Uganda and agreed on a set of key priorities for the urgent conservation and sustainable management of these four carnivore species. The meeting was convened jointly by the Secretariats of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) under the African Carnivores Initiative (ACI).

29 Jun 2023

More than 30 countries hosting African Wild Dog, Cheetah, Leopard and Lion met in Bonn from 5 to 8 November 2018 to establish the African Carnivore Initiative. The initiative constitutes the first Africa-wide commitment towards saving African Wild Dog, Cheetah, Leopard and Lion. Habitat loss and fragmentation, prey depletion, retaliatory killing of carnivores by owners of livestock and increasing trade in lion specimens and live cheetah are the main reasons for these animals’ rapid decline across most of Africa.

13 Nov 2018

With World Wildlife Day this year being celebrated under the theme Big Cats - Predators Under Threat, Bradnee Chambers, executive secretary of the UN Convention on Migratory Species, examines some of the difficulties involved in reconciling the interests of wild animals and the people who have to live alongside them.

27 Feb 2018
Description: 

The Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) is the fastest land mammal and can move at a speed of up to 103 km per hour over a distance of hundreds of meters. Cheetahs mostly hunt during the day and their main prey comprises small- to mid-size ungulates, especially gazelles. 

Main threats to the Cheetah include poaching and habitat degradation. The habitat degradation is caused by overgrazing and severe droughts resulting from natural and human-induced changes. Grazing and agricultural activities are permitted even inside most protected areas, placing additional pressure on Cheetahs and their prey through disturbance and harsher competition with livestock. Herders kill Cheetahs, as they believe they pose threat to domestic animals. 

Conservation:

The Cheetah was listed on the CMS Appendix I in 2009 (except the populations of Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe).

The African Cheetah, with several subspecies occurring in different African countries, is listed as a vulnerable (VU) species on the IUCN Red List. The Cheetah in Africa, together with the African Wild Dog (Lycaon pictus), Lion (Panthera leo), and Leopard (Panthera pardus) is covered by in the Joint CITES-CMS African Carnivores Initiative (ACI).

The Asiatic Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus venaticus), the subspecies of Cheetah that is found in Iran, is listed as critically endangered (CE) by the IUCN. The Asiatic Cheetah was included in Central Asian Mammals Initiative (CAMI) in 2014.

 

 

Le guépard (Acinonyx jubatus) est le mammifère terrestre le plus rapide et peut se déplacer à une vitesse allant jusqu'à 103 km à l'heure sur une distance de plusieurs centaines de mètres. Les guépards chassent généralement pendant la journée et leurs principales proies sont des ongulés de petite et moyenne taille, en particulier des gazelles.

Les principales menaces qui pèsent sur le guépard sont le braconnage et la dégradation de l'habitat. La dégradation de l'habitat est causée par le surpâturage et de graves sécheresses résultant de changements naturels et anthropiques. Le pâturage et les activités agricoles sont autorisés même à l'intérieur de la plupart des zones protégées, ce qui exerce une pression supplémentaire sur les guépards et leurs proies en raison des perturbations et de la concurrence plus rude avec le bétail. Les éleveurs tuent les guépards, car ils estiment qu'ils représentent une menace pour les animaux domestiques.

 

Conservation :

Le guépard a été inscrit à l'Annexe I de la CMS en 2009 (sauf les populations du Botswana, de la Namibie et du Zimbabwe).

 

Le guépard africain, dont plusieurs sous-espèces sont présentes dans différents pays africains, est inscrit comme espèce vulnérable (VU) sur la liste rouge de l'UICN. Le guépard d'Afrique, ainsi que le lycaon (Lycaon pictus), le lion (Panthera leo) et le léopard (Panthera pardus) sont couverts par l'Initiative conjointe CITES-CMS sur les carnivores africains (ACI).

Le guépard d'Asie (Acinonyx jubatus venaticus), la sous-espèce de guépard que l'on trouve en Iran, est classée en danger critique d'extinction (CE) par l'UICN. Le guépard d'Asie a été inclus dans l'Initiative pour les mammifères d'Asie centrale (CAMI) en 2014.

 

Assessment information
CMS InstrumentsCMS, Central Asian Mammals Initiative, African Carnivores Initiative
IUCN StatusVulnerable
Date of entry in Appendix I2009
Geographic range
Countries Algeria, Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo (Kinshasa), Egypt, Ethiopia, Gambia, Iran, Kenya, Libya, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Niger, Pakistan, Senegal, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, Uganda, United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia
Common names
EnglishCheetah
FrenchGuépard
SpanishChita
GermanGepard
Taxonomy
ClassMammalia
OrderCarnivora
FamilyFelidae
Scientific name Acinonyx jubatus
AuthorSchreber 1775
Standard referenceWilson, D.E. & Reeder, D.M. Eds., 2005. Mammal Species of the World. A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference. Third Edition. John Hopkins University Press

Other details
Additional notesExcept the populations of Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe. Sauf les populations du Botswana, de la Namibie et du Zimbabwe.

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