cheetah or gazelle?

if you were to choose between being a cheetah or a gazelle, which would you rather be?

the cheetah--- a natural born hunter on the savannah... has non-retractable claws, paired with sharp teeth attributed to all big cats... famed for its capability to run at breakneck speed... stealthy... plainly put, the predator.

the gazelle (thomson's gazelle, to be exact)--- smallest of the gazelle species... mounted with a ringed horn on top of it's head, with the females of the species having relatively shorter horns... built to perform leaps and bounds in the air... has an excellent field of vision... the cheetah's prey...


now, for most of you who have been asked this question, the gazelle is the least likely choice... let's be realistic here... we have all been programmed to opt for the strong, the domineering, the winner, and the survivor... from what we all have been taught since grade school, (and thanks to a couple or more cable shows about matters like these) the predator will conquer its prey... 50 to 70 percent of the time.

BINGO! what about the other 50 or 30 percent? in nature's playing field of eat or be eaten, such a margin of non-occurence is not taken lightly... but to be fair, let's see what the stats are, shall we?


Cheetah, weighs 60 kilos on avearge... the Tommie (Thomson's Gazelle), 23 kilos.
both animals have the average life expectancy of 12 years.
the Tommie's top speed clocks in at an average of 85 kilometers per hour, which puts it at top 3 in its species, despite its size... and the Cheetah? an astonishing maximum speed of 104 kilometers per hour! making it the fastest land animal in the world.

it seems that the odds are stacked up against our Tommie... but that's just how we like it.

if you've seen a Cheetah sprinting at top speeds, the animal is just marvelous... its non-retractable claws provide the traction and horizontal propulsion needed to attain its infamous record, with its feet barely touching the ground for a fraction of a second... its streamline body, perfect wind resistance posture (with the Cheetah's back straightened and completely parallel to the ground), and lightweight frame... the Cheetah is virtually flying when on the run.

the obvious gap between the two animals' speeds is a deceptive variable... what counts, is reaction time.

Tommies are vigilant sentries... they constantly monitor the plains for threats such as our Cheetah here... they stay in heards, so there are about ten eyes out on the watch at any given time... they keep an invisible perimeter fence around them... sort of a tolerance barrier for other approaching animals... of course, this varies, depending on the perceived threat of the oncoming company... for most fellow grazing animals, they may come as close to the Gazelles as food may allow... for Baboons, 10 to 30 meters is observed... but for the Cheetah, it's 300 meters... any closer than that, and the Gazelles scramble like a S.W.A.T. team on high alert... they will have progged to relative safety before the Cheetah even breaks into a sweat.

so you see, the Cheetah's job is not as easy as it looks... running down a Gazelle is just part of the story... coming in close enough to lunge and chase after them is still priority one.

however, in the event that predator and prey break into a chase... the stakes are raised... very high...
in the human world, a race is considered a sport... there may be wagers involved, and it's usually money, property, or something of material or monetary value...
but in this race... it's a matter of life and death... especially, for the Gazelle.

Cheetahs are built for speed... and, sadly... for nothing else. their slanky frame has been stripped of all unnecessary body mass... and as such, this makes them very vulnerable to attacks... even from their prey... a broken bone, or damaged muscle could cripple the Cheetah's chances for survival... that is why, this speed machine cannot afford to break down.

now, despite the Cheetah's obvious advantage in terms of speed, mother nature has still given our Tommie a fighting chance to survive... if both animals were to run at their top speeds in a predator-prey rundown, it is almost always certain that the Tommie will lose... and it pays with its life... the Cheetah's speed is just too much for the Gazelle... but it comes at a price.

the Gazelle's speed may be inferior, but it is built for stamina and strategy... its body has been designed for optimal results with minimal efforts. the Gazelle's sense of balance is uncanny... in its flee to safety, don't expect it to run in a straight line... it is capable of zigzagging its trajectory... the Gazelle's physiology allows for it to sprint in such angles and change that in rapid succession while keeping its torso on a stationary position... such a tactic is used to throw off a predator... misdirection. a Cheetah may very well lose its footing if it attempts such a tactic. so, in a chase, the Cheetah has no margin for error... after about 300 yards at full sprint, the Cheetah starts to run low on its reserves... and after about 30 seconds or so, it will concede... the Tommie, on the other, can still hold up for about a couple of minutes more. on a flat out race, the Cheetah will win any day... but on a slalom, the Gazelle has the upper hand.

so you see, it's not all about speed... stamina is also to be considered. not to mention, a little bit of luck for either animal. because in nature, the fast and the furious don't always survive.