07/24/2024
Cheetahs are remarkably adaptable to life in a wide variety of habitats, and are able to hunt and raise their young successfully not only in the open fields, but also in hard-to-reach places, such as hills covered with dense vegetation. Such a habitat helps the female and her cubs to hide for a long time from disturbance by predators and humans. With a rich natural food base and the tolerant attitude of the local population towards predators, a female cheetah with cubs can spend considerable time in close proximity to the boma, feeling completely safe, watching people and livestock, while hunting wild animals in the forest. Such adaptations are important for cubs, who after reaching independence, have to look for suitable habitats. Each generation of ancestors contributes to the development of survival skills. The great-great-grandmother of 4-year-old Siankiki – Amani, was the most successful female in the Mara – she raised 9 cubs in 4 litters to independence. Siankiki’s mother, Sila, had a unique skill – she successfully hunted Impalas in the rocky hills. While raising three cubs of her own in 2020, Sila accepted into the family her younger brother, after his mother Selenkei had raised him to independence. Siankiki developed interesting strategy for raising her litter – she spent the day in an open area, often near a village, and then hunted in the forest, in the mountains, and stayed there for one or two days after feeding. This secretive forest lifestyle most likely explains the fact that the female began to be seen regularly only after the cubs grew up and became able to escape from the lion and hyenas. Since early 2024, we have been receiving reports from rangers that they have occasionally encountered a female with very shy cubs in the mountains of Ol Chorro Conservancy, and it was not possible to approach them for a good photo, which would help us to identify the mother. In March 2024, both rangers and guides began encountering a female with 7–8-month-old cubs in the open areas. The rangers of the conservancies, who have been following the family since its appearance, named the female Siankiki (Young Lady Who Married Recently, in Maa), following the tradition of naming by the first letter of the mother’s name (Sila). Now that the cubs have started their independent life, the rangers have given them names in the Maa language following the same tradition: the male was named Serian (Safety), and his sisters – Sainapei (Successful woman) and Silantoi (God’s Gift). We hope that the skills learnt from their mother will help three young cheetahs settle in the Mara and continue the lineage of Amani and their distant ancestor in the 7th generation – Shakira.
