| THE SPEED QUESTION |
Some questions often asked at The CheetahSpot
are "What proof is there of the cheetah's great running speed?"
and "Who measured the speed?" and "How was it measured?"
Here is one quote ( from a source listed in the Bibliography) regarding
the running speed: "Estimates of
maximum speed in the cheetah vary from 60 miles per hour to nearly 80 miles
per hour. The slower speeds have been made in artificial situations, for
example on a dog racing track with a hare as bait. Observations in the wild
that employed stop watches and measurements of distances convered should
more accurately assess top speeds. One such record shows that a cheetah
covered more than 700 yards in 20 seconds, which is a rate of more than
71 miles per hour (Bourliere, 1954:6-7). My own observations do not corroborate
Bourliere's. A cheetah seldom runs at top speed for more than 200-300 yards.
Moreover, in Florida a captive cheetah was accurately clocked at 71 miles
per hour top speed (K. Sevrin, pers. comm.) for a short distance."
Quoted from Page 4, THE CHEETAH By Randall L. Eaton, 1982, Robert
E. Krieger Publishing Company, Inc. |
| See also: Vs.
Horse, Prints, Stride,
Claws, Speed |
|