Cheetah swap in hope of a better match
Thursday, 18 January 2024
On Thursday, 11 January 2024, Safaripark Beekse Bergen, Hilvarenbeek, and Royal Burgers' Zoo, Arnhem, swapped two female cheetahs in the hope of a better match with the male in Arnhem. The female from Hilvarenbeek is related to the males there and is being paired with an unrelated male in Arnhem for that reason.
Dutch Coordinator for the European Population Management Programme
Safaripark Beekse Bergen, located in Hilvarenbeek, The Netherlands, coordinates the European population management programme for the cheetah and holds all data, including the bloodlines, on all cheetahs in participating European zoos. As coordinator, the zoo is responsible for keeping the zoo population genetically as diverse as possible for the future.
Looking for a Click
Like most other felines, cheetahs generally lead a solitary lifestyle—lions are an exception to this rule. As such, males and females in zoos are kept separated from each other outside the mating season, just like in the wild. Cheetahs are also quite picky in their choice of mates, and, unfortunately, the 7-year-and-3-month-old female (born in Arnhem) and 5-year-and-10-month-old male (born in Dvur Kralové) at the Arnhem Zoo did not seem to be a good match.
Stutter Call
Males looking for a female utter a "stutter call" or "stutter bark". This extraordinary call is thought to stimulate ovulation in the female. When the female is in heat, several mating sessions take place over a few days, after which the animals lose all interest in each other and go their separate ways.
Temporary Coalitions
Sometimes cheetahs form temporary coalitions in the wild, usually mothers with nearly adult cubs. It is also common for young siblings to form temporary coalitions until they can successfully hunt independently. Adult male territories overlap those of multiple females, and males make their advances when the females are in heat.
