Tag: Cheetah

Originally Posted on Quora

Sparked by this great question, a lot of salient information spilled forth on this time-tested subject while adding other traditional cheetah prey such as the springbok, impala, Thomson’s gazelle (unless this is the gazelle referenced in the question – there are several species). and, ultimately, the tdessebe, yet another high-speed African creature. In some searches, the goitered gazelle comes out on top, and in others, it’s the springbok which is noted for both speed and high-speed agility.

By all appearances, the tsessebe appears to be the most formidable opponent for the cheetah, having much more muscle mass and a step up in overall size, but far less is known about the species in the context of being cheetah prey. I do not know of its level of agility while running flat-out. It’s difficult to think of any form of gazelle besting the springbok in that criteria. Whatever the case, the cheetah’s top speed is listed at between 61 and 70 mph, depending on where you get your numbers. On the low-end, approximately 60 mph, some antelope can come awfully close to matching its straight-line speed. At the high-end of 70+ mph, it is several mph faster than anything on land.
While all of this makes for fascinating reading, the question uses the words “better runner” and not “faster runner”. There are several aspects of running which can be measured, but the one thing that was not discussed, at least not at length, is endurance. In the natural world, the typical equation has prey animals being faster while predators rely heavily on stamina, or endurance. Aside from the cheetah, cats tend to be ambush predators that, like the quarter horse, can attain their highest speeds very quickly but, at the same time, can only hold that speed (generally between 35 and 50 mph) in relatively short bursts. Then there are the wild dogs which include dozens of species found throughout the world. These predators tend to work in strategic packs by running down their prey over far greater distances. They tend to have a relatively high success rate by carefully looking for weaknesses among a single prey item and home in on that older, younger, sick, or injured individual.
But where does man fall into the spectrum of endurance-based hunters? The answer might surprise you, but even today, a highly athletic human being can out distance any creature on land. Through the eons, it is thought that man began early in our evolution to learn from animals like wolves and dogs like the African Wild Dog as to how to run prey to ground. On the vast, open plains of the Serengeti, those who were deemed as providers for a given tribe morphed over time into being tall (to see long distances, particularly when jumping up and down to take snapshots of the view and keep their game in sight). They were long and lean and carried long, lightweight spears. These hunters succeeded by having ample endurance beyond that of their prey species. They were “running prey to ground” much like wolves do when chasing caribou over long, open distances.

Not enough is known to quantify an accurate success rate or qualify our status as a hunter species using the same basic approach to downing animals as wolves or wild dogs, but they were successful enough to, along with herding cattle and goats, feed the many hungry mouths of the tribe. The Masai of today’s Kenya and Tanzania have continued to evolve in much the same manner as their ancestors and continue ceremonial hunts which are identical to those conducted by Masai tribes centuries ago.

In terms of pushing the limits of human endurance, there is the modern-day example of the Tarahumara people who are indigenous to Copper Canyon, located in Mexico and several times the size of the Grand Canyon. It is the world’s largest. I’m not sure of the particulars. but these people play a ball game which travels up and down the walls of the canyon and going between communities non-stop for days at a time. In the early 90’s, the Tarahumara were “discovered” by a team of American archeologists who have since written books on these special people. The late 80’s and early 90’s marked the dawn of many extreme sports including long distance running races in the mountains of Colorado. The Leadville 100 was among the most covered by the worldwide media. A one hundred mile race with elevations ranging from 9,500 to almost 14,000 feet. The archeologist in charge of the Tarahumara program thought it would be fun to invite two of their strongest runners and enter them in the race. For some reason, the Tarahumaran’s had no footwear for such an event so they were pointed in the direction of the Leadville dump whereupon they fashioned some running sandals from some leather and old tires. I believe the race was to begin on the following morning. From here, I’m sure you can see where this story is headed. There they were in their homemade sandles standing amongst some of the best endurance trail runners in the United States, dressed in the finest and lightest running gear there was at the time, perhaps finishing some high-tech breakfast or protein rich exercise bar.
The gun went off (I’m just going by memory here) and a couple of days later, the Tarahumara finished one and two. Some spectator even handed one of them a beer a couple of miles from the finish and he happily drank it down.
There have been several books written on the tribe and its running culture, the most read of which is probably “Born to Run” by Christopher McDougall.

Being a competive endurance trail runner and cyclist myself, I never cease to be fascinated by the athletic abilities of many animals, man included. It is interesting that we are comparitively poorly put together when compared to the most beautiful and athletically prone species found throughout the world and, unless carrying weapons that can even the odds or make them certain, few would argue that we are easy prey for most medium to large-sized predators. It’s too bad that we’re caught and immobilized quickly enough that our one strength, physical endurance, virtually never comes into play.