Press Release Archive

Contact: Aimee Yamamori, Director of Media and Public Relations, Phoenix Zoo
(602) 914-4305 or pager (602) 223-8222

Date: May 11, 2006


PHOENIX ZOO IS SEEING SPOTS
New Cheetahs Debut on Exhibit

The Phoenix Zoo is pleased to announce the debut of two male cheetahs. The cheetahs make their public debut beginning Friday, May 12, 2006. The cheetahs are two year old brothers that come to the Phoenix Zoo from Wild Safari in Oregon.

The cheetahs are a favorite of Zoo visitors, but have been missing from the collection after the Zoo's remaining female cheetah passed away in Jan. 2005. The Phoenix Zoo has had 14 cats born since they housed cheetahs in the 1970s, which made them one of the first zoos to breed cheetahs in captivity. Only 18 percent of all cheetahs in captivity reproduce, and there are currently 230 in North American zoos.

The cheetah is the world's fastest land mammal, but just as quickly as it can run, the cheetah's numbers are dwindling. The cheetah is critically endangered, and while the animal was once found throughout Asia and Africa, only about 8-10, 000 now remain in the wild. The largest numbers of free ranging cheetahs are in Namibia, South Africa.

At top speeds, the cheetah can run as fast as 70 miles per hour, and can travel as much as 92 feet in only one second. At two points in the cheetah's running stride, no feet touch the ground at all. The cheetah was built for speed—it has a flexible spine, enlarged heart and wide nostrils and large lungs for efficient breathing.
 
A typical cheetah chase will last about 20 seconds, and no longer than one minute. Only about half of the cheetah's chases for prey are successful.
 
Cheetahs are one of only two kinds of social animals in the big cat family. The others are lions—but unlike the lion, cheetahs cannot roar. Cheetahs can purr, and they hiss when angry. They also use chirping, yelping and stutter sounds to communicate.
 
Cheetahs thrive in areas with large expanses of land where prey is abundant. In the wild, a cheetah's diet consists of antelope, warthog, hare and game birds. Their life span in the wild is about five to eight years, but they typically live eight to 11 years in captivity.

The cheetah's debut weekend will feature a variety of cheetah-related activities including cheetah talks with Zoo naturalist, cheetah spotting, hands on activities with animal artifacts and a high energy interactive presentation called "Will the real cheetah please stand up!?"

Kids are also invited to participate in a cheetah contest in which they are asked if they know how many spots a cheetah has. Submissions can be made at the Zoo exit or they can be mailed to the Zoo. The winner (random drawing of correct answers) will win a cheetah prize package! The contest will run throughout the month of May.

Learn more about cheetahs here!