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This
valuable cheetah can only been seen in our country. The cheetahs
of Iran exist in very low numbers, and divided into widely separated
populations. Their population, has declined steeply in recent
years; there were said to be over 200 cheetahs in Iran in the
mid-1970s (E. Firouz, pers. comm.1974), although some experts
consider this figure an over-estimate. B. Dareshuri estimates
the Iranian population to be fewer than 50, with the north-eastern
province of Khorasan being the stronghold (Karami 1992).
In ancient Iran, domestic cheetahs were used by aristocrats
for hunting together with dogs (Tazi's) and hawks.
Features
Cheetah's face is marked by conspicuous "tear stripes" running
from the corners of the eyes, down sides of nose and reaching
the corners of lips. Tip of the tail in Iranian cheetahs is
black. Head and body length is about one and half meters long,
tail being 60-80 cm and weighs between 40-70 kg. Cheetah's coat
is a yellowish -red color on the back and a white color below
and above the eyes, muzzle and the under parts. The body is
completely covered with round, solid black spots.
Habits
Cheetah usually attacks the weakest and the oldest animals
of a herd and prefers females to males. Cheetahs usually hunt
in pairs. They have greater daytime activity but are also active
on moonlit nights. Cheetahs are social animals and in the wild,
they form two groups; one consisting of a mother and her young
with stay together for up to 2 years before separating and form
a more permanent group. Males and females are only seen together
during the breeding season. Females are solitary except when
they're raising cubs. this period is not too long.
Breeding
Iranian cheetahs start to breed mainly in mid- winter. Gestation
period is between 91-95 days, after which between 1-8 and more
often 2-4 cubs are born by the cubs have closed eyes when born
and they remain with their mother for 17 months. Cheetahs reach
adulthood at the age of one.
Habitat
and Food
Cheetah's favorite habitats are broad plains, expanses of
rolling hills, steppes and arid regions. Cheetah's main prey
consists of animals like goitered gazelle, jabeer gazelle and
hares; Iranian cheetahs also feed on sheep, ewe, goat, bustard
and even small rodents such as wood mouse and jerboa. In Iran,
cheetahs outside protected areas with gazelle populations are
reported to prey mainly on hares, an abundant food source because
they are not usually taken by Muslim hunters (M. Karami in litt.
1990).
Distribution
- A
small number of cheetahs live in the provinces of Khorassan,
Semnan, Tehran, Isfahan, Yazd, Kerman and Fars.
- Some
cheetahs have been seen in "Kavir National Park" (south of
Varamin),
- 4
or 5 in "Kharo-Turan" protected area in Shahrud,
- 3
or 4 in Bafgh (Yazd) and some near Tabas.
- The
Asiatic cheetah was thought to have become extinct in south
Iran, but was "re-discovered some years ago. According to
the Iranian Radio, In 30 november 1989 one Asiatic cheetah
was seen by the nature controllers in Bahram-Gur protected
zone in Neiriz of Fars when it was chasing after a prey.
Past
and Present Situation of Cheetahs
The Iranian cheetah has disappeared from those regions that
once formed its habitat, and the only surviving population,
which total between 50-200, live in Iran. In April 2000 one
unofficial source in Iran classified this nomber Max. 30. This
small number points to the reality that Iranian cheetahs are
in danger of extinction and unless a serious program of protection
is devised, this species will face extinction as did the Iranian
lion and tiger before it.
According to the latest categories of IUCN, (International
Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources), Iranian
cheetah is grouped as being in serious danger of extinction.
CITES (Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species)
has acknowledged the protection of cheetahs as its main task.
According to the laws governed in Iran, cheetah is amongst
the protected mammals and its hunting or the trade of its products
is prohibited. A more substantial threat to cheetah's survival,
is poaching for pleasure and trade. Other factors also include,
reduction in the number of its suitable prey such as gazelle,
sheep and ewe due to poaching, loss of habitat and land- use
changes, all leading to the cheetah's own disappearance as well
as its prey. It has been experienced that proper conservation
of habitats and the strict prohibition of poaching, will lead
to a rapid population increase of the cheetah race.
While protected areas comprise a key component of cheetah
range, management needs to be improved. For example, grazing
of domestic stock is reported to be particularly serious in
Irans Khosh Yeilagh Reserve (Karami 1992), once known to hold
an important resident cheetah population (Harrington 1977).
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