About 10,000 to 12,000 years ago, around the end of the last ice age, an extinction event took place that wiped out North American and European cheetahs. The extinction of the early cheetah species left only Asian and African variants of the cheetah.

In the past, there were only 7 cheetahs left in the world but some people suggested inbreeding reduced the size of the gene pool, which lead to problems such as decreased genetic variability and the persistence of potentially harmful mutations.

Cheetahs face extinction pressure from climate change, hunting by humans, and habitat destruction, which is reducing the size of their population. Cheetahs’ genes also pose a challenge to their survival. Cheetahs have a low rate of reproductive success, meaning that as a species they are not always able to reproduce. With fewer offspring, the population can neither grow nor adapt to changes in the environment.

If cheetahs were to go extinct, there would be a domino effect referred to as the trophic cascade. There would be too many herbivores resulting in loss of vegetation, greater soil erosion, less available water, and a negative impact on the health of the ecosystem. Cheetahs’ main prey is herbivores. Without cheetahs, these populations would grow out of control.

You can donate, or support their research, education, and conservation efforts with a bequest. They have a stabilized cheetah population in Namibia, and with your help, you can hasten their research.

RELATED STORIES:

https://www.bbcearth.com/news/the-race-to-save-the-cheetah

https://cheetah.org/canada/about-us/why-save-the-cheetah-from-extinction/

https://www.nationalgeographic.co.uk/animals/cheetahs-are-dangerously-close-to-extinction

give/#:~:text=There%20are%20many%20ways%20to,the%20cheetah%20in%20the%20wild.

https://cincinnatizoo.org/conservation/field-projects/cheetah-conservation-angel-fund/

TAKE ACTION:

https://cheetah.org/get-involved/ways-to-give/