 © A. Sliwa |
Zoo Programs -- SSP: While cheetahs are easily tamed and
have been kept in captivity for thousands of years, they are difficult to breed
and are susceptible to many diseases. Research is being performed on their
reproductive behavior. Studies in eastern and southern Africa have found that
the extant species of cheetah has very little genetic diversity because they
seemed to have survived the massive Pleistocene extinction that affected other
genera of cheetahs in other regions by surviving a genetic bottleneck some
10,000 years ago. Despite these obstacles, there are now over 300 cheetahs in
the SSP program. Blood tests of the population are being used to determine which
individuals may be carrying the highly fatal FIP disease. Nutritional,
behavioral and reproductive evaluations of all SSP cheetahs have been done as
well. The results of this work were documented in a special issue of Zoo Biology in 1993. To date (7/99) ten
litters of cubs have been produced using assisted reproductive technology
(artificial insemination). In November 1995, the first litter of cheetah cubs
conceived by the use of frozen semen was produced in North America with
germplasm collected in Namibia from a free-ranging cheetah. Conservation: Cheetahs have worldwide legal protection. However, in many national parks and reserves, they are persecuted by stronger predators. Outside protected areas they are killed by livestock owners because of predation. In February 1996, a Population Habitat Viability Analysis (PHVA) was held in Namibia which brought together all the stake-holders in cheetah conservation to address various concerns. This workshop assessed the threats to wild cheetahs in Namibia and identified steps needed for their long-term survival. The Cheetah Conservation Fund is working closely with farmers to minimize livestock losses to cheetahs and reduce killing. |
Education: Almost all zoos holding cheetahs have some form of public education program about this species. The SSP is working on developing an educational/informational brochure. The Namibian-based Cheetah Conservation Fund is working to educate ranchers and children on the importance of cheetahs in their countries.
Contact:
North American SSP Coordinator: Jack Grisham, Director of Animal Collections, Saint Louis Zoological Park, One Government Drive, Saint Louis, MO 63110; e-mail: grisham@stlzoo.org: tel: 314-781-0900, ext. 229