HOME | DD

Description
It's this time of the year again. No, I don't mean your holidays. I mean December 4th. International Cheetah Day.

You know, cheetahs. The cute little spotty things from Africa. They are still endangered. In fact, they have been endangered all along, throughout the past 365 days that haven't been their International Day. And chances are they will be for the next 364 too, until the next one. Why: 1) because of habitat fragmentation and loss to humans - actually a global threat for countless wild species, humans tend to destroy all natural habitats while expanding their artificial ones; 2) because of human farmers killing them to protect their lifestock - or thinking they do so while in fact cheetahs are very rarely responsible for livestock loss, but they are nevertheless murdered for it; 3) because of illegal trade with cubs for pets - cubs are being kidnapped and the few who survive are being illegally sold by guess who, humans again. Add to that also: 4) the critically low genetic diversity in cheetahs - this is due to historical bottleneck events in their population, to which however humans have also contributed a lot; 5) the fact that cheetahs are in a disadvantegous position when directly confronted by other local predators - for which reason they cannot thrive in protected areas where competing predators are abundant and thus they are forced to live predominately closer to the humans who, as shown already, are such a favourable factor for them. Seems like the odds are simply against them. That's a pity.
The cheetah is the fastest land animal, capable of running at up to 112 km/h. It is also considered to be the most effective solitary hunter on land. It is highly specialized, its body slender and built for extreme sprint, much lighter than the dominating predators in its habitat. A cheetah can fell smaller prey compared to lions and leopards, but it is far more successful than them in hunting. However, due to its smaller size, its prey is often stolen away by larger or more numerous predators. That and the fact that both lions and leopards chase cheetahs and their cubs and seek to kill them, makes areas populated by the larger cats - such as natural parks and reserves - unfavourable for the cheetah. It is a remarkable animal, specialized for effective hunting, evolved into an amazing sprinter.... and sadly paying a high price for it.

I admit, the cheetah hits my personal soft spot in many ways. First, because it's a cat. Then because it is very unique and different even among cats, because of its slender but strong body, truly amazing in its capabilities - an astonishing masterpiece of Nature and example of what it is capable of. It is amazing what it has achieved in its evolution, it is amazing to watch it sprint - nothing can compare to that sight, and it is such a powerful testimony of the perfection evolution can reach, of how life defies all limits. It is also a very indicative example of how indiscriminative is the devastation caused by human hands onto the natural world. The cheetah evolved to the verges of physical possibility and yet it is facing extinction because.... why really? Because they are vile predators that must die; or because farming and industry are more important than wildlife; or because they are so pretty you want them as pets; or because - and that is the real reason - humanity hardly cares. Biodiversity is not profitable. Set on your scales against money, every species is doomed to lose the chase. Now you can tell me you evolved into something higher than cheetahs and thus achieved world domination fairly - and yeah, it's sad they will go exinct, but isn't that the way of Nature - more adaptive species push away the less adaptive ones. Sure. But dear Crown Of Evolution, you haven't evolved into anything which can survive without the natural world around it. As the old saying goes, the day when man cuts down the last tree and kills the last deer they will realize money cannot be eaten. My logic is, if the human is such a crown of evolution for its intelligence, it should be able to realize this obvious plain truth before said final and irreversible event. So far, that does not happen.

So, now you are getting ready to celebrate your whatevers. Now, despite the pending depletion of natural resources, you are waiting with bated breath for the next i-something which you will only use for a couple of months before you throw it away for the next one. Now you are about to celebrate the peak and absolute triumph of your consumer society and culture - yes, I AM, in fact, speaking of your holycrap December 25. And now one species is struggling for survival. In fact, it is not one. It is thousands. Doesn't seem quite fair, does it? It isn't.
Don't worry about them. There are pictures of them. Your children and their children will watch the pictures on the super modern i-things of the future.... provided that there is future for them at all. This might be the final sprint for cheetahs and many more, but then your own is not set for too far ahead along the line.

References for the poses (left to right):
drscdn.500px.org/photo/8290921…
animals.sandiegozoo.org/sites/…
static.grindtv.com/images/1/00…
i.ytimg.com/vi/vRTcixZlbtM/max…
No. I did not ask permission to use them. Such a criminal.
2B - 6B on 30 x 20 cm paper. 3-4 hours perhaps. Quite a speed drawing really.... Nevertheless, tradition is kept.

Edit: some details added and somewhat refined.

Featured:
Common Feature - Friendship

Description
It's this time of the year again. No, I don't mean your holidays. I mean December 4th. International Cheetah Day.

You know, cheetahs. The cute little spotty things from Africa. They are still endangered. In fact, they have been endangered all along, throughout the past 365 days that haven't been their International Day. And chances are they will be for the next 364 too, until the next one. Why: 1) because of habitat fragmentation and loss to humans - actually a global threat for countless wild species, humans tend to destroy all natural habitats while expanding their artificial ones; 2) because of human farmers killing them to protect their lifestock - or thinking they do so while in fact cheetahs are very rarely responsible for livestock loss, but they are nevertheless murdered for it; 3) because of illegal trade with cubs for pets - cubs are being kidnapped and the few who survive are being illegally sold by guess who, humans again. Add to that also: 4) the critically low genetic diversity in cheetahs - this is due to historical bottleneck events in their population, to which however humans have also contributed a lot; 5) the fact that cheetahs are in a disadvantegous position when directly confronted by other local predators - for which reason they cannot thrive in protected areas where competing predators are abundant and thus they are forced to live predominately closer to the humans who, as shown already, are such a favourable factor for them. Seems like the odds are simply against them. That's a pity.
The cheetah is the fastest land animal, capable of running at up to 112 km/h. It is also considered to be the most effective solitary hunter on land. It is highly specialized, its body slender and built for extreme sprint, much lighter than the dominating predators in its habitat. A cheetah can fell smaller prey compared to lions and leopards, but it is far more successful than them in hunting. However, due to its smaller size, its prey is often stolen away by larger or more numerous predators. That and the fact that both lions and leopards chase cheetahs and their cubs and seek to kill them, makes areas populated by the larger cats - such as natural parks and reserves - unfavourable for the cheetah. It is a remarkable animal, specialized for effective hunting, evolved into an amazing sprinter.... and sadly paying a high price for it.

I admit, the cheetah hits my personal soft spot in many ways. First, because it's a cat. Then because it is very unique and different even among cats, because of its slender but strong body, truly amazing in its capabilities - an astonishing masterpiece of Nature and example of what it is capable of. It is amazing what it has achieved in its evolution, it is amazing to watch it sprint - nothing can compare to that sight, and it is such a powerful testimony of the perfection evolution can reach, of how life defies all limits. It is also a very indicative example of how indiscriminative is the devastation caused by human hands onto the natural world. The cheetah evolved to the verges of physical possibility and yet it is facing extinction because.... why really? Because they are vile predators that must die; or because farming and industry are more important than wildlife; or because they are so pretty you want them as pets; or because - and that is the real reason - humanity hardly cares. Biodiversity is not profitable. Set on your scales against money, every species is doomed to lose the chase. Now you can tell me you evolved into something higher than cheetahs and thus achieved world domination fairly - and yeah, it's sad they will go exinct, but isn't that the way of Nature - more adaptive species push away the less adaptive ones. Sure. But dear Crown Of Evolution, you haven't evolved into anything which can survive without the natural world around it. As the old saying goes, the day when man cuts down the last tree and kills the last deer they will realize money cannot be eaten. My logic is, if the human is such a crown of evolution for its intelligence, it should be able to realize this obvious plain truth before said final and irreversible event. So far, that does not happen.

So, now you are getting ready to celebrate your whatevers. Now, despite the pending depletion of natural resources, you are waiting with bated breath for the next i-something which you will only use for a couple of months before you throw it away for the next one. Now you are about to celebrate the peak and absolute triumph of your consumer society and culture - yes, I AM, in fact, speaking of your holycrap December 25. And now one species is struggling for survival. In fact, it is not one. It is thousands. Doesn't seem quite fair, does it? It isn't.
Don't worry about them. There are pictures of them. Your children and their children will watch the pictures on the super modern i-things of the future.... provided that there is future for them at all. This might be the final sprint for cheetahs and many more, but then your own is not set for too far ahead along the line.

References for the poses (left to right):
drscdn.500px.org/photo/8290921…
animals.sandiegozoo.org/sites/…
static.grindtv.com/images/1/00…
i.ytimg.com/vi/vRTcixZlbtM/max…
No. I did not ask permission to use them. Such a criminal.
2B - 6B on 30 x 20 cm paper. 3-4 hours perhaps. Quite a speed drawing really.... Nevertheless, tradition is kept.

Edit: some details added and somewhat refined.

Featured:
Common Feature - Friendship