EPOW - Ecology Picture of the Week

Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus)
Masai Mara, Kenya

Explanation:  Taking some time for a sitting rest is this cheetah in a vast grassland of southern Kenya, east Africa.  

Often referred to as the world's fastest land animal, the cheetah can occasionally reach a top speed of 70 mph (112 kph).  However, its sprints are short-lived, usually lasting only 300 yards before it overheats and reaches oxygen debt and is forced to stop.  They can be described as ambush-dash hunters.

Studies have shown a lack of genetic diversity among cheetahs, signaling that the species went through some historic bottleneck, perhaps at the end of the last ice age about 10,000 years ago.  Some sources suggest that all living cheetahs might even have descended from a single female.  

Cheetah conservation is a concern for many, and a number of funds and programs have been established.