5 Cheetah cubs

A lovely video of 5 Cheetah cubs born in October at Monarto Zoo in Australia. The announcement was delayed so the cubs could settle as their mum lost her previous litter. They are so cute


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/earthvideo/9803202/Cheetah-cubs-unveiled-at-Australian-zoo.html

littlewid-x-

Fantastic, lovely clip and such great news.

Thanks littlewid.

Lai

They are great at keeping a secret!

Lovely post LW I like how the two boys are described as 'robust'! And some of that grassland looks pURRfect for them.

The cheetah is quickly becoming a FASTourite animal of mine

Anyone know why it is so rare for them to breed in captivity? Or are they just not like s?

I found this link GR - Dr Laurie Marker is an expert on cheetah.

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/specialsections/making-a-difference/rare-breed.html

Lai

Thanks Mrs Kipia

Sperm count of 10% compared to other felines

Oh no; I used to do a lot of running

That's interesting about them having similar immune systems and thus being virtually wiped out in a region when there is a plague. They really are totally different to other cats.

Problems with bigger predators is relatively well known. Keeping kills will always be a battle in itself.

This Laurie Marker woman has had two divorces: men can't compete with her love of the cheetah

True GR, she's totally dedicated to cheetahs and I so admire her and her work, what a she is.

Mrs Kipia
(oooooooooh I've got another AKA - I love it, I must add it to my list Giraffey Boy)

I like this name too because of its greater Kenyan links. I used to have a minor obsession with African long distance runners and Kenyans were well known for their 'Kip's. Kiptanui, Kipketer, Kipkosgei, Kipkoech. The list goes on :)

If I had a cheetah I would call it Kip

They are indeed GR and I think it would be a fun name for a dog. Could it be female though? I prefer to have bitches than dogs.

Tamu is a swahili word which means sweet - Penny came with her name so I didn't want to change it, but Kip has a nice ring to it.

Lai
aka Mrs Kipia

I think that Kip could work for both sexes. It doesn't sound particularly masculine But actually I can't think of any female Kenyan runners just now, though I'm sure many had Kip, though of course these are all just surnames. Kenyans often have rather common first names like Paul, Luke and Daniel. Well, there is a Christian influence for sure.

By the way, I have heard of Kip as a dogs name, but not sure if that was for female or male.

Thats great news, and lovely to see them chasing around, they were really small when they were born, and to think they will gow into such fast animals. Kips a nice name ,and as you say Kenyian, but he was a middle, and long distance runner. I think I would have called the two males Usain & Bolt
WS

Thinking about Kip as a name, I remember one of the guides at Sirikoi camp in Lewa is called Kip, he's a wonderful Samburu. So I'll go with the option of either male or female for a dog

Lai

ps just have to wait until we got another dog though !

Did you know?

For their first three months the cubs have a mantle of long, grey hair.

Some experts believes that this makes them look enough like ill-tempered honey badgers to dissuade other predators from risking an attack.

In the wild the cubs are very vulnerable and moved frequently (between hiding spots) by the mother to avoid predators.

Thanks Chris, yes I did, but I didn't know ....

Some experts believes that this makes them look enough like ill-tempered honey badgers to dissuade other predators from risking an attack.

Lai

Same here Chris I did know about the constant moving of the Cubs to keep them safe, but not about them looking like Honey Badgers. Which when you think is a really good ploy, as I've seen videos of the putting off Lions. Thanks for that info Chris
WS

Thanks for that Chris.Yes we have seen the long grey mantle of hair on cubs but again I am another one that didn't know it was so they could be mistaken for Honey Badgers

It's good to have you back and posting some facts again Chris

littlewid-x-

Hi littlewid-x

Yes I have been missing in action.

Spend the last month refreshing the content on my African wildlife site. It was getting a bit old and stale.

I have been trying to upload an image of a honey badger and a cheetah cub to show how effective the camouflage actually is.

It seems however that it is quite a mission to upload an image from a PC on this forum.

How do you guys do it or is it not encouraged?

Chris

It shouldnt be a problem at all Chris. I am not the best techie here so will pass this to WS for his help and advice.

Sorry to do a sideways pass WS

Lai

Thats OK Lai no problem.
Chris this is a link on how to upload photos from your PC to the Forum, if you have any problems, please feel free to PM me, and I will help you all I can. Looking forward to seeing them
https://wildaboutanimals.forumotion.net/t224-how-to-upload-a-photo-from-your-pc

WS

Hi Chris.
I hope you are able to get the posting of pics sorted, it is quite easy but then again everything is easy if you know how to do it I suppose. The link WS has given you explains how to do it so you should be ok but yes, if you need any further help just PM WS and if he is not around I can always help you out.

Glad you are getting your African Wildlife site sorted, I remember you saying you wanted to refresh it again, hopefully we will soon get to see the finished article.

Looking forward to seeing the Honey Badger and the Cheetah cub comparisons

Remember to shout to either WS or myself if you need any further help.

littlewid-x-

Hope you do not mind Chris if I add some of my own photos showing the similarity. The honey badger and cheetah cubs are indeed very similar, as well as the grey mantle along the back the cheetah cubs also have a very dark body with the spots hardly discernable. The vestiges of the mantle remain until the cub is well over a year old and otherwise full size.



Honey badger



3 six week old pretend "Honey Badgers" having a drink!!



The mantle and dark body are clearly visible


Safariman

Safariman, those are great photos to compare and clearly show the mantle on the cubs.

Lai

Obviously you guys are too quick for me. Thanks for the instructions. I will use it next time I need it.

The question I have is - if you were a predator would that really confuse you?

There are accounts of Honey badgers that have killed a blue wildebeest, a waterbuck and a 3-meter python. This little animal definitely attacks fearlessly when threatened and apparently even lions avoid them.

The antelope victims apparently bled to death after having the scrotum torn off.

I assume the camouflage works well enough for predators to not take a chance just in case it is a badger.

My refreshed website is at http://www.africa-wildlife-detective.com/

I would love to hear your opinions and suggestions about how to improve it.

I've only had 5 minutes to take a quick look Chris but will certainly take time tonight. It looks like an interesting and fun website.

I've just watched David Attenborough on Eden and the zebra stripes came up for discussion - less flies on striped object than a dark, brown or white object (They put 4 in a field with a sticky substance on them all to see who attracted the least flies and it was the stripes).

It's great to learn new facts about African animals so I shall enjoy taking a look around your website tonight.

Lai