Cheetah vs Duck Hawk

Acinonyx jubatus compared with Falco peregrinus

Key Differences

Cheetah is Vulnerable while Duck Hawk is Least Concern.
Cheetah is 50.0x heavier than Duck Hawk.
Duck Hawk lives longer (15 years vs 12 years).

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Cheetah	Duck Hawk
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Chordata (Chordates)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Mammalia (Mammals)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Carnivora (Carnivorans)	Falconiformes (Falconiformes)
Family	Felidae (Cats)	Falconidae
Genus	Acinonyx (Cheetahs)	Falco
Species	Acinonyx jubatus	Falco peregrinus

Evolutionary Relationship

Cheetah and Duck Hawk share a common ancestor at the Phylum level: Chordata. (Chordates)

View Phylum: Chordata

Conservation Status

Cheetah

VU — Vulnerable

Population: ~6.7K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Duck Hawk

LC — Least Concern

Population: ~140.0K

Trend: Increasing ↑

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Cheetah	Duck Hawk
Diet	Carnivore	Carnivore
Average Lifespan	12 years	15 years
Average Length	1.5 m	48 cm
Average Weight	50.0 kg	1.0 kg

Habitat & Geographic Range

Cheetah

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, and flooded grasslands and savannas, among 9 distinct biome types spanning the Afrotropic and Palearctic realms. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Distributed across Botswana, Iran, Kenya, Namibia, and Tanzania. Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Duck Hawk

Habitat

Typically found in diverse ecosystems where prey species are available.

Range

Widely distributed across Europe (7 countries), North America (United States), and South America (Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela).

Cheetah

The fastest land animal on Earth, reaching speeds of 112 km/h over short distances across African and Iranian grasslands. Slender build with a deep chest, long legs, and distinctive black tear-stripe markings. Unlike other big cats, cheetahs vocalize with chirps and purrs. Vulnerable, with only ~7,000 remaining due to habitat fragmentation and competition with larger predators.

Duck Hawk

The fastest animal on the planet, peregrine falcons achieve aerial dive speeds exceeding 320 km/h when stooping on prey, stunning or killing birds in flight with a blow from their feet. Found on every continent except Antarctica in diverse habitats from Arctic tundra to tropical rainforest. Nearly extinct in North America and Europe from DDT poisoning in the 1960s–70s, peregrines recovered dramatically following pesticide bans and successful urban nesting programs.