Big Cats, Here Today and Gone Tomorrow

In this course we will be studying Cheetahs, Lions, Tigers and Leopards. We will examine the history and the evolution of each species, along with their similarities and differences in behavior and habitat. We will study: Cheetahs -the fastest of all land animals and threatened with extinction. Also, lions the most recognized and once the most numerous of all the big cats and tigers the largest of all the big cats and the most endangered. Finally, leopards once the most geographically dispersed of all large cats, now having lost 75% of their historic range. We will also look at human and cat interactions and conflicts as well as the geopolitical influences which will either save these animals for future generations or will result in their extinction in the wild.