How do cheetahs run so fast?The cheetah is a large cat native to Africa, Southwest Asia. It is the fastest land animal, estimated tobe capable of running at 80 to 98 km/h Adults weigh between 21 and 72 kg. Its head is small androunded, with a short snout and black tear-like facial streaks. The coat is typically tawny to creamywhite or pale buff and is mostly covered with evenly spaced, solid black spots.The cheetah is a lightly built, spotted cat characterised by a small rounded head, a short snout, blacktear-like facial streaks, a deep chest, long thin legs and a long tail it also has enlarged nostrils foroxygen intake and a flexible spine for stretching to its full length. Its slender, canine-like form is highlyadapted for speed. The cheetah also has a smaller flattened rib cage for greater leg movement aswell as a long tail for counterbalance and steering. The cheetah spends up to 80% of its running timein the air as it practically leaps forward. It can also accelerate over 10km/h in a single stride.There are 4 different subspecies of the cheetah such as the Asiatic cheetah which is criticallyendangered and only 12 are left in the whole world. Secondly we have the Southeast African cheetahwhich genetically diverged from the Asiatic cheetahs and have the biggest population of nearly 4,000sparsely distributed individuals. Thirdly, we have the Northeastern African cheetah this subspeciesoccurs in the northern Central African Republic, Chad, Ethiopia and South Sudan in small and heavilyfragmented populations of around 250 individuals. Lastly, Northwestern African cheetah whichoccurs in Algeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger.In conclusion, the cheetah is the fastest land animal and is a wonderful animal that should beprotected in the future.ii
