The cheetah, the fastest land animal, is a large cat inhabiting the grasslands and savannas of Africa. The direct answer to whether cheetahs eat plants is no; they do not consume vegetation for nutrition. The cheetah is an obligate carnivore, meaning its survival is entirely dependent upon nutrients found only in animal flesh. This specialized diet reflects its unique physiological and metabolic requirements.
The Obligate Carnivore
Cheetahs are classified as obligate carnivores, meaning their diet must consist solely of meat to meet all nutritional needs. Their digestive system is relatively short and simple, reflecting their inability to process tough plant matter, which is rich in cellulose. Herbivores possess specialized digestive tracts for the fermentation and breakdown of plants, but the cheetah lacks this biological machinery.
The necessity of meat is tied to the cheetah’s metabolism and specific nutritional requirements. They lack the metabolic pathways to synthesize certain compounds from plant sources. For instance, the amino acid taurine, abundant in muscle tissue, must be consumed directly because cheetahs cannot produce it in sufficient amounts.
Similarly, they cannot convert the plant pigment carotene into usable Vitamin A, which must be sourced from animal tissues and organs. A diet lacking these meat-derived nutrients would lead to severe health issues, such as blindness or heart failure, demonstrating the need for animal protein and fat.
What Cheetahs Hunt
The cheetah’s diet consists of fresh meat from medium-sized ungulates. Their preferred prey includes Thomson’s gazelles, impalas, springboks, and young calves of larger species like wildebeest. They also occasionally hunt smaller prey such as hares and large birds.
The hunting strategy is dictated by the cheetah’s exceptional speed and lean build, which is built for explosive acceleration rather than prolonged physical confrontation. They stalk their prey to within striking distance before initiating a burst of speed that can reach up to 70 miles per hour. The chase is typically short, lasting only 20 to 30 seconds, and the captured animal is killed quickly with a suffocating bite to the throat.
Once the prey is secured, the cheetah consumes the meat, organs, and sometimes the soft bones of smaller animals quickly. This is done before larger predators like lions or hyenas arrive to steal the meal. This rapid consumption ensures they ingest all necessary nutrients, including the highly digestible animal fiber found in skin, tendons, and cartilage.
The Role of Grass Ingestion
While cheetahs do not eat plants for sustenance, they are sometimes observed chewing and swallowing grass or other vegetation. This behavior is non-nutritional and functions to aid digestive health. The ingested grass acts as a purgative, helping the cat to regurgitate indigestible materials like fur, feathers, and bone fragments swallowed during a meal.
Consuming grass can also help move materials through the digestive tract, acting as a form of dietary fiber. This ingestion is a natural behavior seen in many carnivores, serving to clean out the system rather than provide caloric benefit. The cheetah’s dependence on grass is therefore indirect, serving as a digestive tool rather than a food source.