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By Pat Graham
August 27, 2009
What can go from 0 to 70 mph in four seconds?
Certainly not my diesel truck. I can barely get it out of first gear in that time. Only one animal on Earth can go that fast — the cheetah.
Cheetah evolved in North America 8.5 million years ago and spread to Asia, Africa and Europe. Then 12,000 years ago some climatic condition all but wiped out the species. The population grew slowly and reached nearly 100,000 across Africa and Asia in 1900.
Today the number is less than 10,000. The largest wild population is in Namibia.
Cheetahs Race to Co-Exist
While no one can out-race a cheetah, they remain very vulnerable. In Namibia, 95 percent of them occur on private land. Though killing cheetah is regulated, their fate will be determined by cooperation, education and creative programs that allow ranchers and cheetah to co-exist.
The Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF) is the foremost authority on cheetahs, collaborating with countries around the world.
Today, I’m meeting with Matti of CCF. He grew up north of Etosha National Park in a highly populated area where more than half of the country lives, mostly on small farms. He is Owombo, the largest indigenous group in Namibia.
Matti does game counts and habitat assessments for cheetah.
What makes good cheetah habitat?
Matti says they like to hang around the edges of the savannah in the bush to avoid being seen. Most importantly, they need a lot of game animals to hunt.
The Predator Ambassador
Sometimes Matti has the tough job of being the predator’s ambassador to ranchers who have long persecuted cheetah.
In areas where game is low, cheetahs turn to goats and cows. So what can be done? Matti encourages ranchers to herd their livestock and put them in corrals at night. Plus, taking good care of the range means more grass for wildlife, the cheetah’s preferred food.
CCF was founded in Namibia by Laurie Marker in 1990. Laurie, always looking for innovative ways to solve conflicts, came up with the idea of using Anatolian shepherd dogs from Turkey. When bonded to their flock at age 6-8 weeks, they will defend them ferociously as adults. And they are big; big enough to take on predators.
While at CCF, I saw the state-of-the-art genetics lab where they work to understand more about the cheetah. They use genetic markers in scat to monitor this wide-ranging and elusive cat. When I heard this, I suggested to Rudi at Save the Rhino Trust that this same approach might be useful to identify the presence of hard to locate black rhino. Rudi and Laurie both agreed.
Finding Alternatives to the Gun
Commercial conservancies formed on private land similar to the communal conservancies on land held in trust by the state. They organized into a group called CONAM and are committed to sustainable management and use of wildlife. They’re mainly ranchers who raise cattle and have wildlife on their property. They seek ways for both to thrive.
Some are experimenting with fence removal between cooperating ranches to assist in the movement of wildlife, including cheetah.
While most of us only get a glimpse of these endangered creatures, those working on the land live with them every day. And, they bear the cost.
Matti says most ranchers are now happy to talk to him about how to solve the problem of predation. They don’t reach for the gun first.
And what is the most rewarding part of Matti’s young career?
“We in conservation are often responding to something negative that happens. In my work now, ranchers are more accepting of what we do. And that means there is a future for cheetahs.”
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Nature picture credits (top to bottom, left to right): Photo © Pat Graham/TNC (cheetah); Photo © Pat Graham/TNC (cubs); Photo © Pat Graham/TNC (herding pup and goats).
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