Taxonomy and population status

The cheetah is the only representative of the genus Acinonyx. Four subspecies of the species Acinonyx jubatus are recognized: A.j. hecki that occurs in northwest Africa (mainly in Algeria, Benin, Burkina Faso and Niger), A.j. soemmeringii that occurs in northeast Africa (Chad, Ethiopia and south Sudan), A.j. venaticus that occurs in Iran (Asia) with only approximately 70 individuals left in the wild and listed as Critically Endangered, and A.j. jubatus that occurs in southern Africa (Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, South Africa and Angola) and in East Africa (Kenya and Tanzania) with the largest population.

The cheetah is the most threatened large felid of Africa with a current estimated global number of 7,100 individuals. Its original range covered most of Africa and southwestern Asia. Today, populations are highly fragmented throughout Africa where most cheetahs live outside of protected areas. Southern Africa hosts the largest continuous population of the species with 4,000 estimated individuals. In Namibia and Botswana, most cheetahs live on farmland where conflict with livestock farmers can be intense due to perceived or real livestock losses through predation. Retaliatory killing of cheetahs can threaten their long term survival if no mitigation tools are in place. In habitats with large competitors present such as lions and spotted hyenas, mainly in protected areas, cheetahs often suffer from high cub mortality due to attacks from these predators. Thus, their population dynamic is vulnerable in different environments and thus their conservation of imminent importance.