Northwest African Cheetah: Facts About the Critically Endangered Subspecies

Nov 18, 2025 0

The Northwest African cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus hecki), also known as the Saharan cheetah, is a cheetah subspecies living in the Sahara and the Sahel. It is listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List. The Northwest African cheetah is quite different in appearance from the other African cheetahs.

This article delves into the unique characteristics, habitat, diet, and conservation status of this fascinating and endangered animal.

Saharan cheetah in Niger.

Physical Characteristics

The Northwest African cheetah is unique in its appearance:

Coat: Its coat is shorter and nearly white in color.
Spots: Spots fade from black over the spine to light brown on the legs.
Face: The face has few or even no spots.
Tear stripes: The tear stripes (dark stripes running from the medial canthus of each eye down the side of the muzzle to the corner of the mouth) are often missing.

Male and female Northwest African cheetahs can be identified by their black spots that create a broken stripe effect. A male cheetah will usually have thicker stripes than a female, as well as bigger forelimbs and larger heads.

Read also: Northwest Africa

The Northwest African cheetah is smaller than other subspecies such as the East African cheetah since it evolved to live in an area where food is scarce, but still has large paws so it can run fast over hot terrain for short distances. It has large nostrils so that they may breathe more efficiently while running at high speeds. Its claws are not retractable like most cats, which means they must wear down as the cheetah runs. This is done by running on soft sand, which is much harder than the hard-paved surfaces that most other cats typically run on.‍

Cheetah vs Leopard.

Habitat and Distribution

This cheetah ranges in the western and central Sahara and the Sahel in small, fragmented populations. In Niger, populations occur in the northern parts of the country in the Ténéré desert and in the southern savanna region of W National Park. Records in Togo date to the 1970s.

In the Sahara desert, day-time temperature exceeds 40 °C (104 °F), water is scarce and rainfall irregular.

Diet and Hunting Habits

The main prey of the Northwest African cheetah are antelopes which have adapted to an arid environment, such as the addax, Dorcas gazelle, rhim gazelle, and dama gazelle. It also preys on smaller mammals such as hares.

General Cheetah Facts

To better understand the Northwest African cheetah, let's explore some general facts about cheetahs:

Physical Attributes

Speed: Cheetahs are aerodynamically built for speed and are the fastest land mammal.
Acceleration: Cheetahs can accelerate from zero to 45 miles per hour (zero to 72 kilometers per hour) in just 2.5 seconds.
Adaptations for speed: Special paw pads and semi-retractable claws provide great traction.
Body Structure: Cheetahs have small collarbones and vertical shoulder blades, which are not attached to the collarbone, as well as hips that swivel on a flexible spine. These structural adaptations help lengthen their stride and provide superior acceleration.
Tail: The cheetah's tail acts as a rudder for quick turning, counteracting its body weight.
Eyes: Cheetahs' eyes have elongated retinal foveas (the small, rodless areas of the retina), giving them a sharp, wide-angle view of their surroundings.

An adult cheetah weighs 75 to 140 pounds (34 to 64 kilograms), is about 30 inches (77 centimeters) tall at the shoulder and 44 to 56 inches (112 to 142 centimeters) long with another 26 to 33 inches (66 to 84 centimeters) in tail length. Males are slightly larger than females.

Cheetahs' spots may serve as camouflage for both hunting and hiding. Their spots may offset the shadows in the gray-hued grasses they often inhabit, allowing them to blend in with their surroundings.

Behavior and Social Structure

Vocalizations: Cheetahs do not roar, but they make sounds including purrs, barks, growls, hisses and chirps that are unlike those of any other cat.
Hunting: While most cats are nocturnal predators, cheetahs are primarily diurnal, hunting in the early morning and late afternoon.
Social Order: Adult females are solitary, while adult males are not.

Hunting and Diet

Diet: Cheetahs are carnivorous and eat a variety of small animals.
Hunting Technique: Cheetahs usually creep within 100 yards (91.4 meters) of an intended victim before the final acceleration.
Prey: Cheetahs eat small antelope including springbok, steenbok, duikers, impala and gazelles, as well as the young of larger animals including warthog, kudu, hartebeest, oryx, roan and sable.

Reproduction and Life Cycle

Sexual Maturity: Sexual maturity occurs at 18 to 23 months.
Gestation: The gestation period is about three months, and the average litter size is three to six cubs.
Cub Characteristics: Cubs are smoky-grey in color with long hair, called a mantle, running along their backs.

Cheetah cubs are born after a 93-day gestation. Litters usually contain 1-6 cubs, though up to 8 have been recorded. Mortality is high, especially in protected areas where lions, hyenas, and other predators are common. Between 18 and 24 months, young cheetahs learn to hunt and begin living more independently. In the wild, cheetahs live an average of 10-12 years.

Conservation Status and Threats

The Asiatic cheetah is genetically related, but distinct, from the African cheetah. Today, the Cheetah has been listed by the IUCN as a species that is Vulnerable to extinction in its natural environment in the near future. Habitat loss along with the increase of natural parks that are home to a large number of competing predators has led to drastic declines in the world’s Cheetah population.

Currently, cheetahs are listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. In Namibia, they are a protected species. Under the Endangered Species Act in the United States, they are considered Endangered. The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) lists them as an Appendix 1 species. Most wild cheetahs exist in fragmented populations in pockets of Africa, occupying a mere 9 percent of their historic range.

Unlike other large cats and pack predators, cheetahs do not do well in wildlife reserves. These areas normally contain high densities of other larger predators like the lion, leopard, and hyena. Predators such as these, compete with cheetahs for prey and will even kill cheetahs given the opportunity. In such areas, the cheetah cub mortality can be as high as 90%.

Cheetahs require vast expanses of land with suitable prey, water, and cover sources to survive. As wild lands are destroyed and fragmented by the human expansion occurring all over the world, the cheetah’s available habitat is also destroyed.

In many parts of the world there are strong cultural associations to keeping cheetahs as companions. In contemporary times, cheetahs are still viewed as status symbols. Though cheetah ownership and exotic pet ownership has been outlawed in many countries, there is still a high demand for cheetahs as pets.

Sadly, the IUCN estimates that there are only 6,517 mature adult cheetahs left in the wild.

Cheetah range map.

What You Can Do

Accredited zoos around the world participate in captive breeding programs that track the genetic suitability for mating pairs. Accreditation criteria differs between accrediting organizations. Accreditation in most cases requires that zoos holding captive cheetahs must support conservation work. Cheetah Conservation Fund manages the International Cheetah Studbook for captive cheetah populations.

The problem facing the cheetah is complex and multifaceted. When a predator threatens a farmer’s livestock, they also threaten the farmer’s livelihood. Farmers act quickly to protect their resources, often trapping or shooting the cheetah.