South African cheetahs to India

Twelve cheetahs from South Africa will be delivered to India in February in an attempt to reintroduce the feline to the country after 70 years of absence.

India plans to bring in twelve cheetahs every year for the next eight to 10 years following an agreement with South Africa and Namibia.

Cheetah populations are declining in almost all countries. The exception is South Africa, where the cheetahs are instead running out of space.

In September, eight cheetahs were transported from Namibia to India and released in the Kuno National Park in central India.

India used to have Asiatic cheetahs, but the tribe was declared extinct in 1952 after extensive hunting and habitat loss.

There are fewer than 7,000 adult cheetahs in the world and they live on nine percent of their original habitat.