African Cheetahs

WHY IN NEWS?

The Supreme Court on Tuesday lifted its seven-year stay on a proposal to introduce African cheetahs from Namibia into the Indian habitat on an experimental basis.

ABOUT REINTRODUCTION OF AFRICAN CHEETAHS

• With India’s own cheetahs vanishing, a plea for this had been filed by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), seeking permission to introduce the African cheetah from Namibia.
• ‘Reintroduction’ of a species means releasing it in an area where it is capable of surviving.
• Before Namibia, India had approached Iran for Asiatic cheetahs, but had been refused.
• The Asiatic cheetah is classified as a “critically endangered” species by the IUCN Red List, and is believed to survive only in Iran. From 400 in the 1990s, their numbers are estimated to have plummetted to 50-70 today, because of poaching, hunting of their main prey (gazelles) and encroachment on their habitat.
• In 1952, the cheetah was officially declared extinct from India.
• The Southeast African cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus jubatus) is the nominate cheetah subspecies native to East and Southern Africa. The Southern African cheetah lives mainly in the lowland areas and deserts of the Kalahari, the savannahs of Okavango Delta, and the grasslands of the Transvaal region in South Africa. In Namibia, cheetahs are mostly found in farmlands.
• The Asiatic cheetah also known as Iranian or Persian cheetah, is a Critically Endangered cheetah subspecies surviving today only in Iran.
• Asiatic Cheetahs are smaller and paler than the African cheetah. Has more fur, a smaller head and a longer neck. Usually have red eyes and they have a more cat-like appearance.
• African cheetahs are IUCN Red Listed as Vulnerable.

Prelims Question

Q. Consider the following statements regarding African cheetahs:
1.African Cheetahs are smaller and paler than the Asiatic cheetah.
2.African cheetahs are IUCN Red Listed as Critically Endangered.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
a)1 only
b)2 only
c)Both 1 and 2
d)Neither 1 nor 2

Answer to the Prelims Question