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A Standard Comparison of Africa’s Savannah Cats

By August 17, 2016Africa Travel

African-Savannah-LionThere are about 36 species cats in the world however the Savannah cats are just about 3 species namely the Savannah lions, the cheetahs and the African leopards. The cheetahs, lions and leopards are commonly found in sub Saharan regions of Africa and some area some of Asia. Although they belong to the family, they are also different in many ways including the physical appearance, ways of living.

Their Physical Appearance

The cheetah is the fasted among all the 3 but also the fasted animal on land. Physically, it has a very has narrow waist and deep chest, it is also short fur that it is not visible from a distance. Its coat is tan in color with black spots but the underbelly is spotless and towards the end of the tail are 4 up to 6 dark rings. They usually slander which explains why they can run really fast compared to any other. The male ones are usually bigger than female ones in size and also they also have semi-retractable claws.

The leopard’s legs are relatively short although the body its self is long with lots of skulls and also very powerful jaw muscles which are very helpful when tearing up the prey’s skin. A grown up leopard is about 35 to 75 inches and the tails grow to between 24 to 43 inches long. Male leopards are like 30% bigger than females and then in color, their fur is yellow with tiny black spots within the polygonal rosettes.

Meanwhile the lions are the largest out of these 3 cat animals. Its skull is just like that of a tiger with the front region is a lot more flattened than. The color of their coat depends on the amount of light is reflected on the body which why sometimes they appear to be yellowish, sometimes reddish and other times they are brown. The lower areas around the belly often have a lighter shade and the cubs are born with spots like those of a leopard but the spots fade with time as they grow older.

Their Natural Habitat

Cheetahs are mainly seen in Africa more so in the sub Sahara region and also in the southwestern parts of Asia but there is also a small population of them in the Khorasan province in the republic of Iran. Cheetahs prefer to stay in vast pieces of land with where they can find plenty of prey and these areas often have semi desert like kind of weather, in prairies and with thickets.

Leopards are also seen in the sub-Saharan regions of Africa The-Cheetah-Africawith a small population living the in southwest and central of Asia as well as in the subcontinent of India. Unfortunately, they are really in danger of extinction in the Northeast Asia regions. In these regions they are said to be, they often concentrate in areas with grasslands, woodlands and also in the riverine forests.

Like the leopards and the cheetahs, lions too prefer the grasslands in the sub Saharan regions. They are also commonly seen in areas with scattered acacia trees which provide the shade where they can rest from. In places like India, they stay in places with dry savanna forest and the dry scrub forest. All these animals have the same hunting style and they will not give up until they have their prey.

Behavior

Cheetahs don’t have the ability to roar but instead they do purr or growl or yowl when they want to send a message to others warning them of a danger or existence of a prey. For that reason they are considered the lesser cats along with the clouded leopards, the puma and the snow leopards and those that can roar are considered the greater cats. They are carnivorous animals, they mainly feed on mammals especially the small ones like the gazelle, the bush and water bucks, the springbok, impalas and many more. When they are in a group, they also hunt zebras as well as the wildebeests. Cheetahs don’t like spending out under the hot sun which is why they often hunt very tend to hunt very early in the morning or later in the evening. Mainly, they depend a lot on their sight while hunting rather than their sense of smell therefore they have a very good sight. They like stalking their prey before they attack and when they start chasing them, they don’t quit until they have them.

Leopards are very solitary in nature and the only time 2 leopards spend time together is when they are mating. They spend their day night hiding away and they come out in the night that is why they are called the nocturnal animals. They are so swift, very good swimmers which explains why they also feed on aquatic life like the fish. The leopards’ general diet includes stuff like the dung beetles to those male giant elands and they also attack domestic animals like the goats, birds like the chicken and everything else that has blood. They also have the ability to attack and bring down a huge prey, one that is even 3 times larger the leopard itself. Because their prey s usually not that heavy, they often carry it up to the tree branches to feed from there in order to avoid any interruption form other predators like the lions especially.

The lions just like the leopards like spending the day rest especially during the hot days but they know they have to hunt before night fall. They there spend about 20 out of the 24 hours of the day just resting. Despite the fact that they can be active at any time, they prefer to go active after dusk and they spend some time socializing and grooming as well as defecating. When they go out to hunt, they spend about two hours of the whole day just walking and only 50 minutes feed and the rest of the time they rest before heading back to their hiding area.

Life Span and Reproduction of These Cats

Leopard-savannah-africaThe life span of Cheetahs is about 8 to 10 years while living in the wilderness but if it’s in captivity, it can live up to 17 years. At the age of 21-22 months old, the females are ready to reproduce therefore breeding begins. They breed during the dry season and they give birth at the start of the rainy season and they normally give birth to 1 to a maximum of 3 cubs each time but in some cases, they can give birth to up to 9 cubs. They will breast feed for 3 months after which they are weaned meaning they are ready to hunt for their own food with the help of their mothers.

The leopards live for 12 to 17 years in the wild and can survive for 21 years if they are in captivity. Because the leopards live a solitary life, they only meet when it’s time for mating and that can be any time of the year therefore, they don’t have a specific period during which they mate. A female leopard usually give birth to 2 up to 4 cubs and they will stay with the mother until they are 18 or 24 months old when she considers them grown up enough to survive in the jungle

The lions are grown up and ready to reproduce at the age of 4 years and just like the leopards, lions don’t have a specific period during which they mate therefore if a female is on heat, it will mate will more than one male. Once it is conceives, it gets a gestation period of 110days after which it will give birth to 2-4 cubs, they are born blind but eyes open up after a week, they are able to crawl after about 2 days and they can walk after 3 week after birth. The cubs suckle from the den whenever the mother returns from hunting which she does close by the den to be sure her little ones are safe from predators like the jackals, marital eagles, leopards, snakes and hyenas among so many others.

Savannah Cats’ Conservation Status

The cheetahs are among the animals listed as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. There are roughly 12,400 cheetahs left in the wild across the globe and this is a very small number. The main reason for their decline is the high mortality rate of infants which are often attacked by predators like lions and also the hyenas but also due to low genetic diversity, which results into birth defects.

Leopards are also mentioned by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and their decline is attributed to the declining in their natural habitat where they are safe from human and animal attacks. Today, their population is estimated to be at only 50,000 leopards still living in the wilderness.

And then regarding the lions, the largest population of lions is found in the eastern and southern parts of Africa but also, their number is decline every year at a rate of 30–50% decline in every 20 years. Within the latest 2 decades, the population of the African lion was estimated to be between 16,500 to 47,000 animals living in the jungle and yet in 1990s, they estimated a total to be about 100,000 and 400,000 animals were estimated to be in the jungle in 1950s. These figures show a huge decline and the main cause of this is probably diseases that don’t get treated and also human interference for example illegal hunting and destruction of their natural homes.
For more information about the wild cats in Uganda, visit http://www.adventureugandasafari.com/

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