TEHRAN – With the cooperation of the private sector, the Department of Environment (DOE) plans to expand the Persian cheetah habitat within the protected area of Turan, northcentral Semnan province.

The Department of Environment also plans to increase the number of prey and rangers in these areas, ISNA quoted Hassan Akbari, the DOE’s director for natural environment and biodiversity, as saying.

Also known as the Asiatic cheetah, the animal is an endangered species whose territory is currently limited to some parts of Iran and its number is dangerously low.

To protect this species in the habitat, several measures have been taken so far. As a result, the number of cheetahs has increased and some have also been observed in areas outside Turan's protected area.

Moreover, the DOE has placed priority on increasing the variety and number of prey in Turan and its marginal habitats. Deer, ram, sheep, and rabbits are among the main prey.

Increasing the number of rangers in the Turan protected area and other habitats around it to ensure the security of the cheetahs is the other measure taken by the DOE.

Educational programs provided to people in surrounding villages and other areas are among other steps taken to protect the Persian cheetah.

Iran, the last habitat of Asiatic cheetahs

The shocking decline in Cheetah populations in the last decades, due to the expansion of human settlements, poaching, and habitat loss, stresses the need for a global effort to preserve these iconic cats.

Education and awareness campaigns are crucial, as fostering a sense of responsibility and understanding is key to securing the future of cheetahs

Considering the fact that Iran is the last remaining habitat of the Asiatic cheetah, this species is of particular importance.

The Department of Environment has focused on breeding in captivity, and maintaining the cheetah population in the habitat.

Stating that in the last two years, many good things have been done to revive the cheetah population, Akbari went on to say that the situation of the cheetah, in general, is concerning in the country, but it does not mean to give up hope for the increase in Asiatic cheetah population.

Efforts to save cheetah

The battle to save Asiatic cheetahs and prevent their extinction, complicated by various natural and human-induced threats, is in full swing in habitats across Iran.

In 2007, Iranian wildlife experts decided to mark August 31 as 'National Cheetah Day' in a bid to encourage and promote the idea of preserving the last remaining population of Asiatic cheetahs on Earth — in Iran.

The Asiatic cheetah is relatively smaller than its African cousin. It has distinctive black tear marks running from its eyes down the side of its nose, fawn-colored fur that is paler on the sides, and small black spots scattered on its body.

Also known as the 'Persian cheetah', the species became extinct in virtually all countries in Asia and only a small population continues to live in Iran. It is categorized as critically endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List.

They inhabit desert-like mountain areas in central, eastern, and southeastern parts of the country, in wildlife refuges located in the provinces of Semnan, Yazd, Kerman, and north, south, and Razavi Khorasan.

Camera traps installed by environmental bodies in their habitats monitor the endangered species' population to evolve ideal strategies for protecting them.

However, serious threats primarily posed by habitat fragmentations, drought spells, prey loss, persecution by livestock herders and their dogs, road accidents, and illegal poaching are shrinking the vulnerable population of the world's fastest mammals.

MT/MG