How does a cheetah differ from a leopard?

In South Africa, the lion is the biggest of all the cat species. The other two big cats found here are the cheetah and the leopard. Here’s how to tell them apart:

• I have a long, slender body, almost like a greyhound.

• I weight 40 – 60 kg. (Do you weigh as much as a cheetah?)

• My tail is 60 – 80 cm long. (Get a measuring tape to see how long that is.)

• I have black stripes that run down the sides of my face like tear marks.

• I can’t retract my claws, so you’ll always see claw marks when you look at my tracks.

• I have a strong and bulky build, with thicker legs and a bigger head.

• I can weigh up to 90 kg. (Ask your dad if he weighs as much as a leopard!)

• The spots on my legs and head look like a cheetah’s, but I have rosettes on the rest of my body. Look closely: Each rosette is a group of black spots with a rusty brown spot in the middle.

• My paws are bigger, and I don’t leave claw marks in the sand.