Cheetahs are fascinating animals, they are the fastest and can reach speeds of up to 70mph. Cheetahs are known for their speed and agility, but can they climb trees? In this article, we are going to answer exactly that.
Can Cheetahs Climb Trees?
The short answer is yes, cheetahs can climb trees to a certain extent, but they are not skilled climbers and are not able to climb trees with the same ease as other animals.
If a cheetah is desperate enough, it can climb trees to escape predators or find a hideout. They do this by using their powerful claws and flexible legs to climb up the branches of trees that are tall enough.
Why are cheetahs, poor climbers?
When looking at the other big cats, cheetahs are the worst of the bunch when it comes to climbing trees, this is because cheetahs don’t have retractable claws as leopards and tigers do.
This means that cheetahs can’t grip trees with their claws, which is a key feature for climbing. However, this doesn’t stop them from using their powerful legs and flexible bodies to climb up the trunks of trees.
Cheetah’s claws are also very small compared to other big cats and so don’t provide much help when gripping onto trees or branches.
When Do Cheetahs Climb Trees?
Although cheetahs generally don’t attempt to climb trees, there are some circumstances where they will, including:
1. Running away from a Predator:
Cheetahs are very fast, but not always fast enough (especially if a bigger predator is in close range of distance). If a cheetah is being chased by a predator such as African wild dogs or hyenas, then climbing up a tree may be the only way of escaping.
2. Food Opportunity:
If a cheetah spots an opportunity to catch a bird or small mammal in the trees, then it may try to climb after it. Especially if there are no other options, cheetahs will climb trees in order to catch their prey.
Which big cat can climb a tree?
The Answer is Leopards. Leopards are prolific climbers and are capable of scaling trees to heights of around 50 feet (15 meters).
The reason why leopards climb trees is somewhat different than the other big cats. Instead of chasing prey, leopards climb trees to avoid being attacked and hide food from other predators.
In addition to resting in trees, leopards climb them in order to escape larger predators such as lions.
Leopards are ambush hunters and they like to lie in wait for their prey. But if a tree is available, then the leopard will climb it instead of lying on the ground where they would be more easily spotted by other animals.
Can cheetah carry the prey up the tree?
No, it is impossible for a cheetah to carry its prey up the tree. Simply because of two reasons which are
- Not Strong Enough: – Cheetahs are not strong enough to carry their prey up a tree. They have been observed to drag their kill into the bushes and lie on top of it while they eat, but they cannot drag it up a tree.
- Not Good Tree Climbers: Since these felines cant climb trees well, they can’t climb up the tree with their prey either.
Final Thoughts
In conclusion, cheetahs are not very good tree climbers and often avoid doing so. While it is not a common behavior, it does happen. Many people have seen cheetahs climb trees, but only when there are no other options available to them.
Lydia King is a huge animal lover and has always been fascinated with learning about the animal kingdom. She enjoys writing about anything animal related from scientific information about rare species to animal references in pop culture.
