Title
Chapter Title: The conservation status of the cheetah
Book Title: Cheetahs: Biology and Conservation
Author(s)
Durant, Sarah M.; Mitchell, Nicholas; Groom, Rosemary; Ipavec, Audrey; Woodroffe, Rosie; Breitenmoser, Christine; Hunter, Luke T. B.
Published
2018
Abstract
The global cheetah population is estimated at approximately 7100 individuals, now confined to 9% of its historical distributional range. Most cheetahs (76%) persist within two transboundary populations in southern and eastern Africa. The species is subject to multiple threats, including habitat loss and fragmentation, persecution, loss of prey, and illegal trade. These threats result from numerous ultimate drivers, such as lack of capacity, resources, and political will, which must also be addressed if declines are to be halted. Two-thirds of cheetahs live outside protected areas (PAs) and scenario modeling predicts the global population to halve within 15 years, assuming that threats outside PAs suppress population growth rates there. Susceptibility of cheetah to sudden decline is evidenced by recent rapid contraction in range, particularly outside PAs, providing credibility to simulation results. This evidence supports uplisting IUCN Red List threat assessment to Endangered. Conserving low density and wide-ranging species like cheetah necessitates a paradigm shift in conservation toward a holistic approach that incentivizes protection and promotes sustainable human–wildlife coexistence across large multiple-use landscapes.
Keywords
large carnivores; human-wildlife conflict; illegal wildlife trade; population viability analysis; landscape conservation; land use change; transboundary conservation
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PUB23969