undeRliRcs Posted August 31, 2005 Share Posted August 31, 2005 (edited) It's amazing what a remote camera will pick up. This remarkable image of Asiatic cheetahs was captured by automatic equipment in an isolated region of Iran's Dar-e Anjir Wildlife Refuge. The picture shows mum and her four youngsters resting in the shade of a tree. It is quite a catch as the big cat is now extremely rare. Once ranging from the Red Sea to India, the Asiatic cheetah today numbers fewer than 60 animals on the entire Asian continent, mostly on Iran's arid central plateau. "As a species the cheetah is still in dire straits in Iran, so it is extremely encouraging to see an apparently healthy family in their native habitat," said Dr Peter Zahler, from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), which has been working with Iranian biologists to survey the cats since 2001. "Images like these give hope to conservationists that there is still time to save these magnificent animals." Initiated by a major grant and ongoing support from the United Nations Development Programme's Global Environment Facility, WCS began its collaboration with Iranian scientists by surveying five protected areas where cheetahs were still thought to exist. The group found a variety of suitable habitats, but also discovered that prey species, such as jebeer gazelle and urial sheep, were scarce. The latest photographs hint at the gradual recovery of prey populations. "Cheetahs in Iran live on a knife-edge in very marginal habitat," said Dr Luke Hunter, coordinator of WCS's Global Carnivore Program. "The fact that this female has managed to raise four cubs to six months of age is extremely encouraging. "Hopefully, this indicates there are areas where the cheetah's prey species are coming back, a goal the Iranian Department of Environment and UNDP has been working very hard to achieve." Story source here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4201180.stm Edited August 31, 2005 by liferay Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sin-ergy Posted August 31, 2005 Share Posted August 31, 2005 Nice looking animal :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheTerminator Posted August 31, 2005 Share Posted August 31, 2005 Cheetahs are awesome. Good to hear thats there still some healthy ones roaming around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BroChaos Veteran Posted August 31, 2005 Veteran Share Posted August 31, 2005 damn, thats pretty amazing. looks like that one has a cut on it's leg. hope they can continue to repopulate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hupp Posted August 31, 2005 Share Posted August 31, 2005 awesome, and cool pictures Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brodel Posted August 31, 2005 Share Posted August 31, 2005 nice, what's the difference between those and 'regular' cheetahs? Is it just the location? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vincent Posted August 31, 2005 Share Posted August 31, 2005 nice, what's the difference between those and 'regular' cheetahs? Is it just the location? 586460003[/snapback] exactly, cheetahs are known to populate mainly in Africa, seeing as how these are named i'm assuming these are in Asia somewhere..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
undeRliRcs Posted August 31, 2005 Author Share Posted August 31, 2005 Here's a little bit of info on Asiatic cheetahs. There are 2 Asian subspecies: Acinonyx jubatus raddei (Caspian Sea area) and Acinonyx jubatus venaticus (India and Middle East). These differ somewhat from their African cousins by having a darker color, longer fur and a somewhat larger body. A. jubatus raddei, sometimes called the Transcaspian cheetah, is possibly already extinct. A. jubatus venaticus once ranged from Asiatic Cheetah North Africa and Israel eastward to India. European and Asian royalty have hunted it to the point of near extinction. Today it is believed that only about 200 remain, existing as small isolated groups, in northeastern Iran. The Khosh Yeilagn Protected Area in Iran is thought to contain the highest population of Asiatic cheetah. Some argue that the African cheetah should be introduced to boost any remaining Asiatic populations. Others think the two should not be mixed. No comparisons of blood and tissue specimens between the Asian and African species have ever been made and some theorize that the Asiatic Cheetah is simply an African Cheetah whose ancestors were brought from Africa to be used for sport. --The Cheetah Spot (http://www.cheetahspot.com/asiatic.php) For anyone who's interested in the conservation project, please visit http://cheetah.irandoe.org/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leedogg Posted August 31, 2005 Share Posted August 31, 2005 Go cheetah mom!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShadowPHP Posted August 31, 2005 Share Posted August 31, 2005 We'll always have Cheetor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laz Posted August 31, 2005 Share Posted August 31, 2005 Those are some tough cats to be living out in a harsh environment such as that one.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NeoXY Posted August 31, 2005 Share Posted August 31, 2005 Go cheetah mom!! 586460387[/snapback] :laugh: :laugh: ...getting a bit busy are we?...:shifty: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Behelit Posted August 31, 2005 Share Posted August 31, 2005 Thanks for the info... I love cats and find this extremely cool... I have quite a muscular domestic cat. There are times that I just stare at him and try to appreciate the feline species... cat's are quite gracefull animals :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tiagosilva29 Posted September 1, 2005 Share Posted September 1, 2005 Is it possible to make them breed a lot in captivity, as in, some zoo/lab/facility? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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