Common name for a large cat, found mainly in Africa but with small populations in Iran and northwestern Afghanistan, that has a similar body weight to the leopard (50 to 60 kg/110 to 130 lb) but has a longer body, much longer legs, and a smaller head. The head and body, without the tail, are about 1.1 to 1.5 m (about 3.6 to 4.9 ft) long, and the claws are short and lack the sheath that covers retracted claws in other cat species.

The coat is yellowish-brown with black spots; the cub also has a spotted coat, but over the back and head is a mantle of long, silky, gray hair that remains for up to four months. Female cheetahs are solitary animals, except when with their cubs. Mature males generally travel alone or in coalitions of two to three males, often siblings, joining females only at mating time.

The body of the cheetah is adapted for taking prey by running rather than by leaping from ambush, as with the leopard, and the cheetah hunts by sight rather than by smell. Over short distances it is the fastest ground animal on earth, being able to attain speeds up to about 113 km/h (70 mph). It hunts by day, feeding mainly on antelope. The cheetah was formerly trained and used for hunting in Asia, Libya, and India; it is now extinct or endangered in much of its range. In tropical Africa, where it lives on open plains, the cheetah is an endangered species. Wild cheetahs are highly inbred, as evidenced by the extreme lack of genetic variation in modern populations.

Scientific classification: The cheetah belongs to the family Felidae. It is classified as Acinonyx jubatus.