Acinonyx jubatus
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Species name: Acinonyx jubatus
The cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) is an atypical member of the cat family (Felidae) that is unique in its speed, while lacking strong climbing abilities. The species is the only living member of the genus Acinonyx. It is the fastest land animal, reaching speeds between 112 and 120 km/h in short bursts covering distances up to 460 m, and has the ability to accelerate from 0 to 103 km/h in three seconds, faster than most supercars. The word "cheetah" is derived from the Sanskrit word citrakāyaḥ, meaning "variegated", via the Hindi चीता cītā. It is possible, though doubtful, that some cheetahs remain in India. The popular belief is that Cheetahs are extinct in India since 1940s. (Source:Wikipedia)
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Information from Encyclopedia of Life
Details filled in the form
- Species identity and nomenclature
- Current Wikipedia entry
- Binomial Classification
- Description and Morphology
- Habitat and Geographical Spread
- Maps
- Life history and ecology
- Conservation and Management
- Sociocultural significance
- Summary of PubMed articles
- Summary of NCBI molecular data
- External Links
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| Parameter | Value(s) | References See complete references in the References section at the end |
|---|---|---|
| Names of users who have contributed to this species page | Gauravm | |
| Date on which this page was first created | 2011/02/09 | |
| This page was last modified on: | 10 February 2011 04:59:12 | |
| Name of the species | Acinonyx jubatus Link to page on Wikipedia | |
| ID on Encyclopedia of Life | 328680 Link to page on EoL | |
| Synonyms | Please check Binomial Classification section for synonyms. | |
| Common English Names | Cheetah | |
| Common Hindi Names | ||
| Common Indian names | ||
| Origins/Meanings of the common names | The word "cheetah" is derived from the Sanskrit word citrakāyaḥ, meaning "variegated", via the Hindi चीता cītā. The genus name, Acinonyx, means "no-move-claw" in Greek, while the species name, jubatus, means "maned" in Latin, a reference to the mane found in cheetah cubs. | Wikipedia entry |
Taxonomy from Encyclopedia of Life
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Taxonomy filled in form
| Taxon | Value |
|---|---|
| Regnum (Kingdom) | Animalia |
| Phylum | Chordata |
| Class | Mammalia |
| Order | Carnivora |
| Family | Felidae |
| Genus | Acinonyx |
| Source of data | EoL |
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| Division | Taxon details | Taxon morphology details |
|---|---|---|
| Chordata | The phylum Chordata consists of three subphyla: Urochordata, represented by tunicates; Cephalochordata, represented by lancelets; and Craniata, which includes Vertebrata. Chordates are monophyletic, meaning that Chordata contains all and only the descendants of a single common ancestor which is itself a chordate, and that craniates' nearest relatives are cephalochordates. The Chordates arose from a more general superphylum Deuterostomia, which consists of Chordata, Hemichordata,Echinodermata and Xenoturbellida. The Deuterostomes split from Protostomes ~550 mya in the Cambrian era. It is supposed that Chordates arose in the Mid-Cambrian period, however there is controversy regarding that. The controversy arises mainly due to the fact that fossils of early chordates are very rare. | Chordates form a phylum of creatures that are based on a bilateral body plan, and is defined by having at some stage in their lives all of the following: 1) A notochord, 2) A dorsal neural tube 3) Pharyngeal slits 4) A muscular tail that extends backwards behind the anus and 5) An endostyle |
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| Class | Taxon details | Taxon morphology details |
|---|---|---|
| Mammalia | Depending on classification scheme, there are approximately 5,500 species (5,490, according to the IUCN Red List) of mammals, distributed in about 1,200 genera, 153 families, 29 orders The early synapsid mammalian ancestors, a group which included pelycosaurs such as Dimetrodon, diverged from the amniote line that would lead to reptiles at the end of the Carboniferous period. Although they were preceded by many diverse groups of non-mammalian synapsids (sometimes misleadingly referred to as mammal-like reptiles), the first true mammals appeared 220 million years ago in the Triassic period. | Mammals are a class of air-breathing vertebrate animals characterized by the (1) possession of hair, (2) three middle ear bones -malleus, incus and stapes, (3) a neocortex, and (4) mammary glands functional in mothers with young. Mammalian fossils, however, are identified by the presence of the incus and malleus bones in the middle ear. Most mammals also possess sweat glands and specialized teeth, and the largest group of mammals, the placentals, have a placenta which feeds the offspring during gestation. The mammalian brain regulates endothermic and circulatory systems, including a four-chambered heart. Mammals range in size from the 30–40 millimeter (1- to 1.5-inch) Bumblebee Bat to the 33-meter (108-foot) Blue Whale. (Source:Wikipedia) |
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| Order | Taxon details | Taxon morphology details |
|---|---|---|
| Carnivora | The diverse order Carnivora (pronounced /kɑrˈnɪvərə/ or sometimes /ˌkɑrnɪˈvɔərə/; from Latin carō (stem carn-) "flesh", + vorāre "to devour") includes over 13 distinct families and over 260 species of placental mammals. Its members are formally referred to as carnivorans, while the word "carnivore" (often popularly applied to members of this group) can refer to any meat-eating animal. Carnivorans are the most diverse in size of any mammalian order, ranging from the least weasel (Mustela nivalis), at as little as 25 grams and 11 centimetres, to the polar bear (Ursus maritimus), which can weigh up to 1,000 kilograms, to the southern elephant seal (Mirounga leonina), whose adult males weigh up to 5,000 kilograms and measure up to 6.9 metres in length. Carnivorans apparently evolved in North America out of members of the family Miacidae (miacids) about 42 million years ago in the Eocene era. They soon split into cat-like and dog-like forms (Feliformia (cat-like) and Caniformia (dog-like)). | Carnivorans are primarily terrestrial and usually have strong sharp claws, with never fewer than four toes on each foot, and well-developed, prominent canine teeth, cheek teeth (premolars and molars) that generally have cutting edges. The teeth structure and the skull architectures of Carnivores are among their distibguishing features. Members of Carnivora have diverse food habits, although many are primarily carnivorous, and carnivory is widely distributed in mammals, being found in many other orders including Chiroptera, Metatheria, Primates, and Cetacea. |
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Based on classification
More details can be found in the Binomial Classification section.
Information from Encyclopedia of Life
{{#EoLOnlyEcology:328680|Physical description~Description}} If nothing is displayed above in this section, it means the EoL ID has not been defined OR the EoL API service is down. If former, please click on Edit with form button on top and follow the instructions for filling in the EoL ID
General morphology
| Parameter | Value(s) | References See complete references in the References section at the end |
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| General morphological features of the animal |
| Parameter | Value(s) | References See complete references in the References section at the end |
|---|---|---|
| IUCN Conservation Status | Extinct in the Wild (See section External Links to find link to the page on IUCN website) |
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| Indian States in which the species has been documented | ||
| Locations at which the species has been documented | ||
| Biotic zones inhabited | ||
| Details about the habitat | ||
| Is this species native to India? | ||
| Is the species indigenous/endemic to Sub-Himalayan regions? | ||
| Is the species indigenous/endemic to Western Ghats? | ||
| Is the species indigenous/endemic to Eastern Ghats? |
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Animal is not native or native status not filled in |
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Information from Encyclopedia of Life
{{#EoLOnlyEcology:328680|Reproduction~Lifespan, longevity, and ageing~Food Habits~Functional adaptation~Behavior}}
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| Parameter | Value(s) | References See complete references in the References section at the end |
|---|---|---|
| Life cycle | ||
| Life expectancy | ||
| Food habits and feeding strategies | ||
| Functional adaptations | ||
| Behavior | ||
| Pests and Diseases |
Information from Encyclopedia of Life 
{{#EoLOnlyEcology:328680|Conservation Status~Threats~Conservation}}
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| Parameter | Value(s) | References See complete references in the References section at the end |
|---|---|---|
| IUCN Status | Extinct in the Wild (See section External Links to find link to the page on IUCN website) |
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| Conservation sanctuaries in India | ||
| Details of threats to conservation of this species | ||
| Means of management of conservation, national and international laws | Cheetahs have been known to exist in India for a very long time, but as a result of hunting and other causes, cheetahs have been extinct in India since the 1940s. A captive propagation project has been proposed. Minister of Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh told the Rajya Sabha on 7 July 2009, "The cheetah is the only animal that has been described extinct in India in the last 100 years. We have to get them from abroad to repopulate the species." He was responding to a call for attention from Rajiv Pratap Rudy of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). "The plan to bring back the cheetah, which fell to indiscriminate hunting and complex factors like a fragile breeding pattern is audacious given the problems besetting tiger conservation." Two naturalists, Divya Bhanusinh and MK Ranjit Singh, suggested importing cheetahs from Africa, after which they will be bred in captivity and, in time, released in the wild. | Wikipedia |
| Parameter | Value(s) | References See complete references in the References section at the end |
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| Does this species have any cultural significance? | ||
| Religions which mention/give significance to this species | ||
| Cultural and religious occasions when this species is used | ||
| Details of historical, cultural and mythological use |
Pubmed Word cloud
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{{#queryDB:taxonomy |Acinonyx jubatus }}
- If there is an error message above, it means that there is no retrievable information available on NCBI
- If the number of nucleotide sequences is less than 100, very little genomic work has been done on this species. A respectable number of nucleotide sequences is above 500.
- Most of the nucleotide sequences may come from three sources:
- Studies on single genes, where people try to sequence genes such as some specific dehydrogenases important,say, for tannin production
- Sequences of Ribosomal Internal Transcribed Spacer, whose sequence is used for generating molecular phylogenetic trees to establish species relationships
- Expressed Sequence Tags (ESTs) which can tell about which genes are present and expressed in the species at a particular time in the given tissue
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{{#EoLOnlyAdditionalInfo:328680}}
References
Wikipedia (Web): Wikipedia entry, Accessdate=2010-02-9
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