Energetics

Measurements of daily energy expenditure and water turnover showed that energy expenditure in cheetahs was not significantly greater than expected, but water turnover was low. There were no sex differences in daily energy expenditure, but when hunting along riverbeds cheetahs used more energy than when hunting in the dunes, probably because they moved further in the riverbeds. There were no differences in daily energy expenditure between females in different stages of reproduction. Energy expended chasing prey differed; small prey being least costly and large species most costly. Analyses of prey chases using both GPS and accelerometer loggers revealed that there were two phases; an initial rapid acceleration to catch up with the prey, followed by a slowing phase as cheetahs followed twists and turns of the prey as the distance between them closed. A visualization of five phases recorded from accelerometer data during a successful steenbok hunt is presented.