Cheetah

Cheetahs are fast, spotted cats that live in Africa. They are the fastest land animals, chasing prey with incredible speed! Cheetahs have slender bodies and tear-shaped marks on their faces. Ready to learn paw-some facts about cheetahs? Join Albert as he explores amazing cheetah facts for toddlers, preschoolers and kindergartners? Click on the images to hear silly sounds and then read about fun cheetah facts like what do cheetahs look like?, what sound do cheetahs make?, how big are cheetahs?, what do cheetahs eat?, where do cheetahs live?, and more fun facts about cheetahs!

What do cheetahs look like?

Cheetahs are mammals which means that they are warm-blooded, feed their babies milk and have fur.

Cheetahs are cats. They are much bigger than your pet cat but they look similar.

They have long, thin legs, a narrow body and a long tail. They are yellowish-brown with black spots.

These features are called adaptations. They help the cheetah survive in its environment. The long legs and muscular body help the cheetah to run fast so it can catch antelope who are also super fast. The long tail helps with balance when it is running at high speeds. The color of the fur makes the cheetah camouflaged so that it can stay hidden from its prey.

What sound do cheetah make?

Click the the image to hear the sound!

Cheetahs make lots of different sounds.

They make growls, chirps and purrs when they are happy. But can also yelp, moan and hiss when they are angry.

How big are cheetahs?

Cheetahs are between 3.5 and 5 feet long (1 to 1.5 meters). That’s about the same length as a park bench.

But, that’s just the head and body. Their tails are between 24 and 31 inches (60-80 centimeters) long.

What do cheetahs eat?

Cheetahs are carnivores which means that they only eat meat.

They like to hunt antelope like gazelles and impala. They also eat warthogs and smaller animals like birds and hares.

For their first 3 months, baby cheetahs, called cubs, only drink their mother’s milk.

Where do cheetahs live?

Cheetahs mostly live in hot habitats in Africa. They live in open grasslands and savannah and places with shrubs and bushes.

More fun facts about cheetah for kids

If you look at a cheetah’s face it looks like it’s crying. There is a long black “tear mark” running down its cheeks. The cheetah isn’t really crying though, the tear mark helps the cheetah see in the bright sunshine. We sometimes wear sunglasses to stop the glare of the sun. Cheetahs don’t wear sunglasses, so they use the black tear mark instead.
Cheetahs are the fastest land animal in the world. They can run up to 75 miles per hour! That is faster than your car goes on a highway! They can accelerate faster than most sports cars, going from 0 to 60 mph in 3 seconds!
The spots on a cheetah are unique. That means no 2 cheetahs look exactly the same. They have up to 3000 spots which are all different shapes and sizes.
Baby cheetahs, or cubs, stay with their mothers for up to 2 years.
Interestingly, female cheetahs are usually live alone while the males stay in groups. Often with big cats, it’s the other way around with females sticking together and males roaming on their own.
Unlike other wild cats like lions, cheetahs can’t roar.
Cheetahs are very agile. That means that they can change direction very quickly. Their long, strong tail helps. It can be used a bit like a rudder on a boat to help steer the cheetah when it’s running after prey.
Cheetahs can go without drinking water for 4 days. That’s a long time in the hot sun, especially when they do a lot of running!

Sources: Wikipedia, Live Science, Creative Commons, Britannica.com and Freesound.org