News Feature: Getting the world`s fastest cat to breed with speed

Amy McDermott; PNAS December 10, 2019 116 (50) 24911-24915

Cheetahs once rarely reproduced in captivity. Today, cubs are born every year in zoos. Breeding programs have turned their luck around—but they aren’t done yet.

Three fluffy cheetah cubs lounge under a tree at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, in Front Royal, Virginia. Off exhibit from the public, the 1-year-old cats roam a large and grassy enclosure behind a high, chain-link fence. They are the newest of 56 cubs born at this facility since 2007 (1).

Breeding cheetahs to produce cubs such as these was once famously difficult. The biggest problem was that zoos were “not paying attention to natural history,” says Craig Saffoe, curator of lions, tigers, and bears at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo in Washington, DC, who in 2004 led the team that produced the zoo’s first litter. Tattoos of cheetahs now adorn his forearms.

Zoos once tried to breed cheetahs very differently, he says, keeping males and females together rather than mimicking their lifestyle in the wild. Out on the savannah, females are solitary and roam vast distances. Males defend smaller territories and mate when females pass through (2). Designing exhibits to reflect that natural history has been a major part of breeding success over the last three decades, Saffoe says.

Success has also come from a better understanding of cheetah reproductive physiology (3). Reproductive studies in the last 30 years have improved breeding by increasing understanding of males’ poor sperm quality, females’ ovulation cycle, and mate choice. Zoos now consistently produce cubs. The majority of North American captive cheetahs are managed by the Association of Zoos & Aquariums (AZA), whose member institutions include the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and other zoos and facilities around the country. The AZA-managed cheetah population averages 43 births per year.

Despite those successes, breeding programs are hitting a wall of sorts, and further progress will be key to maintaining and expanding the genetic diversity of captive populations. More than one-third of AZA-managed captive cheetahs still don’t reproduce due to a mix of health, behavior, and reproductive problems (4, 5). Between 1970 and 2011, more than 70% of females and more than 80% of males died cubless (6).

Assisted reproduction would help maintain the diversity of captive populations, but success has been mixed. Artificial insemination hasn’t worked well in recent years. Embryo transfer has shown signs of progress, however. This past June, researchers completed the first-ever successful transfer in cheetahs.

All these efforts underscore a common theme: When it comes to breeding cheetahs in captivity, natural history matters—a lesson that applies beyond the race to save cheetahs to many other rare, captive cats.

See more: https://www.pnas.org/content/116/50/24911

Figure: Cheetahs have a reputation as stubborn breeders. But the study of cats such as Fatir at the Smithsonian’s breeding facility suggests that a better understanding of natural history and reproductive physiology can dramatically improve captive reproduction. Image credit: Mehgan Murphy/Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute.