Cheetah vs Red Fox

Acinonyx jubatus compared with Vulpes vulpes

Key Differences

  • Cheetah is Vulnerable while Red Fox is Least Concern.
  • Cheetah is carnivore while Red Fox is omnivore.
  • Cheetah is 8.3x heavier than Red Fox.
  • Cheetah lives longer (12 years vs 5 years).

Taxonomic Classification

Rank Cheetah Red Fox
Kingdom same Animalia (動物) Animalia (動物)
Phylum same Chordata (脊索動物) Chordata (脊索動物)
Class same Mammalia (哺乳類) Mammalia (哺乳類)
Order same Carnivora (ネコ目) Carnivora (ネコ目)
Family Felidae (Cats) Canidae (Dogs & Wolves)
Genus Acinonyx (Cheetahs) Vulpes (Foxes)
Species Acinonyx jubatus Vulpes vulpes

Evolutionary Relationship

Cheetah and Red Fox share a common ancestor at the Order level: Carnivora. (ネコ目)

Conservation Status

Cheetah

VU — Vulnerable

Population: ~6.7K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Red Fox

LC — Least Concern

Trend: Stable →

Physical Characteristics

Attribute Cheetah Red Fox
Diet Carnivore Omnivore
Average Lifespan 12 years 5 years
Average Length 1.5 m 70 cm
Average Weight 50.0 kg 6.0 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.

Red Fox

Habitat

Typically found in a wide range of habitat types.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Cyprus, Israel), Europe (8 countries), North America (United States), Oceania and the Pacific (Australia), and South America (Argentina).

Cheetah

地球上で最も速い陸上動物で、アフリカとイランの草原において短距離走で時速112kmに達する。深い胸部、長い脚、独特の黒い涙縞模様を持つ細身の体型が特徴だ。他の大型ネコ科動物とは異なり、チーターはチャープ音やパー音で鳴く。生息地の分断と大型捕食者との競争により、残存個体数は約7,000頭のみとなっており、危急種に分類されている。

Red Fox

アカギツネ(Vulpes vulpes)は地球上で最も広く分布する野生肉食動物であり、北半球全域とオーストラリアの移入地域において北極ツンドラから都市環境まで多様な生息地に適応している。赤みがかった茶色の毛皮、白い腹部、ふさふさした尾で識別できる。高度に適応した雑食性で、ウサギやハタネズミから果物、生ゴミまであらゆるものを食べる。40種類以上の独特な発声でコミュニケーションをとる。

Nature FYI Family

Explore more of the natural world across our sister sites.

Part of the Nature FYI family — FYIPedia