The recently introduced Cheetah in Kuno National Park and the already resident of Kuno leopard may seem similar, but they are in fact two very different cat species that you can encounter in Kuno National Park at the same time.
So to the differences between leopards and cheetahs during you’re next safari at Kuno National Park, you’ll be able to distinguish the two cats like a pro.
The below guide lists the key differences between leopards and cheetahs.
Some of the differences can be told from a distance like – body shape, behavior, or habitat, while other differences you’ll need to get a little closer to make out, such as markings and claws.
- guide to the cheetah vs leopard question?
- Cheetah Vs Leopard Appearance
- Cheetah vs Leopard Behaviour
guide to the cheetah vs leopard question?
Cheetah
Leopard
Cheetah Vs Leopard Appearance
A Cheetah is quite different from other big cats like lions or Tigers but more similar to Dogs like Greyhounds.
cheetah is a single member of the genus Acinonyx that belongs to the subfamily of small cats.
While The leopard on the other hand is part of the Big cat subfamily, closely related to the other members of the Panthera genus – tiger, lion, snow leopard and jaguar.
Body Shape
Cheetah is built for speed while Leopard is built for power.
The Cheetah is the fastest mammal on the Earth and its body is more streamlined. Small head, long legs, slender body, exposed shoulder blades, pumped chest, and thin stomach, these properties make them exceptionally fast runners
On the other hand, the leopard has a muscular, solid, and strong build. they are shorter than cheetahs but stronger than cheetahs.
Cheetah and Leopard Size Comparison
| Cheetah | Leopard | |
|---|---|---|
| Weight (male) | Up to 54 kg | Up to 90 kg |
| Body length (head to tail) | Up to 120 cm | Up to 190 cm |
| Tail length | Up to 85 cm | Up to 110 cm |
spots and coat
Cheetah vs leopard print – clear round black spots (cheetah) vs clusters of overlapping spots (leopard)
At first glance, it can look like both cats have black spots on a yellow coat, but look closer and you’ll see that:
- Cheetahs have a solid round or oval spot shape, clearly separated from the other spots on their body.
- Leopards have smaller, irregular-shaped spots that are grouped together in circles to form what is known as ‘rosettes’ (rose-like markings).
These two big cats also have interesting and different mutations when it comes to their fur.
- Black leopards, also known as black panthers, occur because of excessive black pigments, but they’ll still have their rosette markings.
- King cheetahs have an interesting mutation where they have dark splotches on their bodies instead of spots and black stripes on their backs.
In both cases, the cat’s spots are used to help camouflage them from other animals, which allows them to get close to their prey before striking.
TEAR MARKS
Cheetahs also have a tear line on their face that makes them easily distinguishable from leopards and other big cats. These tear marks act as reflection absorbers while they are hunting durring sunny days.
One other facial difference is eye colour. Cheetahs have amber eyes, whilst leopards can be anything from bright blue to bright green.
Tail
Cheetah tails are somewhat flat and wide in appearance. When chasing their prey at high speeds, cheetahs use these rudder-like tails as a counterbalance to help them change direction very quickly.
Leopard tails are tubular in shape. Leopards use their tail to help with balance – particularly when walking in trees or pulling kills up trees.
Claws and Footprints
You tell leopard vs cheetah even when you don’t see the animals themselves, simply by looking at their footprints.
Leopards have larger front feet than back feet to support the large and muscular forequarters they have to help hoist carcasses up trees. As is standard with all almost all cats, leopards have retractable claws, only using them when necessary – when climbing trees, fighting, or pouncing on prey.
Cheetahs on the other hand require explosive speed, so have large back feet that help them with their massive acceleration. Another adaption for acceleration and turning at speed is that cheetahs are not able to retract their claws fully – they are only semi-retractible, giving them extra traction.
Cheetah’s footpads are also harder than those of most other cats.
Cheetah vs Leopard Behaviour
Apart from the differences in their appearance, the cheetah and the leopard have a number of behavioural differences that may be helpful for identifying them in an open jungle.
Speed and Acceleration!
A leopard has a top speed of 36 mph (58 km/h). This is significantly slower than a cheetah.
Cheetahs are built for speed. They have been clocked at 122 Km/H (76 mph) for a short sprint. This makes them the fastest land animal in the world. They can also run at an average speed of 64 Km/H (40 Mph).
Cheetahs can also accelerate quickly to that speed, going from 0-100 km/h (0-60 mph) in about three seconds.
Climbing and Jumping
Not to be outdone, African leopards have a special skill of their own. They are excellent climbers.
They can jump over 3 m vertically, will rest up in trees, and climb down from there leading with their heads.
Hunting behaviour
the cheetah is the only cursorial hunter in the cat family. Its hunting strategy is based on its ability to sustain a high-speed chase across the open savannah. This incredible cat is capable of reaching a speed of 120 km/h and taking sudden sharp turns at high speed.
Once the prey is within the striking distance, the cheetah brings it down by striking it with its front paw and delivers the killing bite to the throat, suffocating the animal.
Chasing prey at high speed requires open habitat, so you are likely to spot a cheetah out in the open where it has a clear view of the horizon and can easily detect potential prey.
The leopard, on the other hand, is an ambush predator. It relies on its ability to sneak up on its prey until it is within the striking distance.
The leopard’s charge is a powerful burst of speed, but a short-lived one. If it is unable to catch its prey within a few leaps, it will give up the chase and look for luck elsewhere.
If the charge is successful, the leopard will kill its prey either by a crushing bite to the back of the neck or by a suffocating bite to the throat in the case of larger prey.
Active hours
Leopards are nocturnal cats, tending to be more active – and hunting more frequently – at night.
They have a large number of light-sensitive cells in their eyes to help detect movement and shape in the dark, along with large pupils to maximise the amount of light absorbed.
Cheetahs are diurnal, meaning they hunt primarily during the daytime.
This said, cheetahs are often found hunting by the light of a full moon, and leopards occasionally hunt during the day if the opportunity presents itself.
Reproduction and Sociality
the cheetah is not as strong as some of the other predators that it shares its habitat with, and its cubs are vulnerable to other dangerous predators like lions and hyenas.
To compensate for the high mortality rate of their young, cheetah usually has large litters of cubs. It is very common to see a female cheetah with 4 or even 5 cubs.
The leopard, as a stronger predator is better able to defend its cubs and a typical litter for a leopard is 2 cubs.
Like most cats, the leopard is a solitary hunter with males and females coming together only to mate.
Male cheetahs, on the other hand, are known to form coalitions (a collective noun used for a group of cheetahs) of 2 to 3 individuals, often brothers. So if you spot several spotted cats together, they are most likely cheetahs.
Habitat
Although both cats can be found in overlapping terrain, because of their different hunting behavior cheetah and leopard tend to favor fairly different habitats.
Cheetahs need large open spaces to safely complete a hunt at top speed, so are often found in wide grasslands and savannas.
Leopards, on the other hand, hunt by stalking and camouflage, so tend to prefer thicker vegetation and more densely covered areas such as forests, woodlands, and scrub, where it’s easier for them to hide.
Leopards also spend much more time in trees than cheetahs, often lounging and sleeping in a tree all day, before heading out to hunt at night.
And, of course, leopards also favor carrying any kill up into a tree to eat at their leisure, safe from the threat of hyenas or lions taking it from them.
Whilst cheetahs can climb trees – and are often spotted off the ground on fallen trees or termite mounds scanning for prey and predators – they are nowhere near as comfortable in trees as leopards, and are not strong enough to hoist a kill into a tree.
And that’s the lot for this round-up of cheetah vs leopard. What do you think – any difference between leopard and cheetah that surprises you? Or any differences we should add to this post? Let us know in the comments section below!