High juvenile mortality in the cheetah and its consequences for maternal care

This study quantified cub survival in free-ranging Serengeti cheetahs and analyzed how the threat of predation shapes maternal behavior. By following known mothers and litters, the author found that the great majority of cubs died before independence, with predation at and around the den being the leading cause. Mothers responded by frequently moving cubs between den sites and by balancing time spent hunting against time guarding young. The paper demonstrated that extreme juvenile mortality, rather than poor fertility alone, is a central constraint on cheetah population growth in the wild. These findings reshaped conservation thinking by highlighting predation and habitat structure as key levers, complementing concerns about the species' low genetic diversity.