SA: Cheetahs to arrive in Australia for breeding program

AAP General News (Australia)
02-13-1999
SA: Cheetahs to arrive in Australia for breeding program

By Jennifer Ashcroft

ADELAIDE, Feb 13 AAP - A group of South African cheetahs will arrive in Australia within
weeks as part of an international breeding program to save the species from extinction.

The five male and three female cheetahs, all aged between two and three years old, are
expected to arrive at South Australia's Monarto Zoological Park by the end of March. They will
be part of a breeding program to boost the numbers of the endangered species.

Monarto Zoological Park acting director Mark Craig said the zoo hoped the cheetahs would
begin breeding within two years.

"Cheetahs are quite difficult to breed because they are very fussy about comfort and
privacy," he told AAP.

"But we can provide them with that, so once they settle down and mature a bit they will
start to breed."

Zoos in Australia, New Zealand and Africa are participating in the breeding program.

Mr Craig said the cheetahs, which can reach speeds of up to 120kph, would be quarantined at
Monarto for at least 30 days before being released into a four hectare grass area.

Breeding facilities would also be located at the zoo however these would be located away
from the public.

Mr Craig said only a handful of the spotted cats existed in Australia but these would be
the first cheetahs to live in SA.

"Members of the public will be able to view the cheetahs on guided safari tours where the
only thing that separates the public from the cheetahs is a vehicle window," Mr Craig said.

"Because we will have eight cheetahs, we will alternate between having some in the open
range habitat and some in the breeding enclosures. This way they get their privacy and get to
roam about."

The number of cheetahs has been declining steadily due to a loss of natural habitat and
hunting for their exotic fur.

The cheetahs, three of which are brothers, were born in captivity at the Hoedspruit
(Hoedspruit) Research and Breeding Centre for Endangered Species near Pretoria in South
Africa.

AAP ja/cjh/de

KEYWORD: CHEETAH

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