Cheetah speed test

The Cheetah is built for speed, with a deep chest, wasp -like chest, and proportionately longer limbs than cats of comparable size.
In most mammals, the collar bone forms a brace for the front part of the torso. In cats the reduction or absence of this bone allows the shoulder blade to swing freely back and forth, forming an extension of the forelimb and thereby increasing stride length, This is best seen in the Cheetah, which is built for speed, with its deep chest, wasp-like waist, and proportionately longer limbs than cats of comparable size. The Cheetah’s spine is very flexible in the dorso-ventral direction, which allows the animal to flex its body up and down during running. It has been calculated that the gain in stride length due to this flexibility is more than 10 proc. This, together with the loss of clavicle, gives the Cheetah a huge stride length relative to the length of its limbs and is part of the secret to its remarkable running speed.
A running cheetah covers about 7 meters with each stride, the same distance as a galloping horse.
The cheetah’s stride length is also increased by the flexion and extension of the spine. During the extended phase of the stride, the cat’s back is hyperextended, allowing the hindlimbs to push against the ground longer and the forelimbs to reach out farther. In the flexed phase of the stride, the cat’s back is so bowed that its hindlimbs land further forward than where the forelimbs landed. Overall, this action adds another 76 centimetres to the cheetahs’ total stride length. At 53 kilometers per hour, a cheetah’s stride length is about 4,3 meters, at 90 kilometers per hour, it increases to 7 meters.
The ankle joint is tightly fixed.
Prominent sharp dew claws, set well up on the front foot, used as hooks to trip up fast-running prey.
Adult Cheetah’s blunt claws remain exposed, lacking the skin sheats found in most other felids, providing additional traction like a sprinter’s spikes. The digital and metacarpal pads are extremely hard and pointed at the front, an adaptation to sudden breaking. Palmar pads with a pair of prominent longitudinal ridges serve as anti—skid devices. The long, laterally flattened tail provides balance as the Cheetah swerves during the chase.
Cheetahs are designed for a short, explosive sprint.
Cheetahs store about 90 percent of the heat they produce while sprinting, by comparison African hunting dogs and domestic dogs store only 20 percent of the heat they produce during a run. (source: Handbook of Mammals in the World; Wild Cats of the World, Mel Sunquist, Fiona Sunquist)


Gepard to najszybsze zwierzę lądowe na świecie. Potrafi biec z prędkością do 120 kilometrów na godzinę, a do 100 kilometrów na godzinę rozpędza się w trzy sekundy.
Jego smukłe ciało jest wprost stworzone do osiągania dużych prędkości. Jest lekki i ma małą głowę, mocne mięśnie udowe i relatywnie (jak na swoją wielkość) długie kończyny.
Szyja geparda jest gruba i umięśniona, co pozwala mu utrzymywać podczas biegu podniesioną głowę. Gepard ma duże serce i płuca oraz szerokie nozdrza. Podczas biegu liczba oddechów zwiększa się z 60 do 150 na minutę.
Wysunięte pazury, niczym korki w butach, zapewniają mu dobrą przyczepność. Długi ogon umożliwia mu zachowanie równowagi podczas biegu oraz niczym kierownica pozwala mu skręcić pod kątem prostym, nawet gdy zwierzę rozwija maksymalną prędkość. Gepard potrafi przyspieszać i zwalniać najszybciej ze wszystkich ssaków lądowych Elastyczny kręgosłup zachowuje się niczym harmonijka, zwija się (tylne nogi „wyprzedzają” przednie) i rozwija. W biegu może „przelecieć” siedem metrów!