In the African country of Namibia this month, a short rainy season brings some relief from the one hundred degree plus heat. And that means a spurt of activity for Namibian wildlife, especially that fastest of all land animals – the cheetah. I’m Jim Metzner, and this is the Pulse of the Planet, presented by the American Museum of Natural History.
“The sound we’re listening to right now is a cheetah purring. Cheetahs purr usually mothers to cubs, males to males when they’re licking each others faces. It’s a very soft sound. It’s a sound that I think gives them a lot of confidence and security with each other.”
Laurie Marker is the founder and director of the Cheetah Conservation Fund, based in Namibia.
“Right now, the cheetahs are actually in their breeding season. And the short rains are breaking up the intense heat that’s going on. And with that wild game is moving to grassy areas. The cheetahs are following behind this game. And this is the time when it’s a little bit cooler from the intense heat, and the female cheetahs usually start cycling at this period of time.”
Although female cheetahs may be ready to breed, finding a mate can be difficult.
“Where cheetahs are living in Namibia, they’re actually covering an area about the size of California, about 2500 animals. So they have a hard time actually finding each other. And they go to areas and they mark what are called ‘play trees’ — play trees are sloping trees that cheetahs go into where they urinate and defecate and these are a very important part of their territorial marking and also cheetahs finding each other. So marking these play trees provides them information whether a female’s in heat, and what males are around.”
We’ll hear more about cheetahs in future programs. Pulse of the Planet is presented by the American Museum of Natural History. I’m Jim Metzner.