Connecting the spots: Understanding cheetah reproduction to improve assisted breeding and population management

Abstract

The North American cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) population serves as both an insurance population for their rapidly decreasing wild cohorts as well as a research population to understand the unique biology of this species. This review focus on the complexity of the female cheetah reproductive system and the recent advances that have been made towards understanding basic biology and reproductive function, and application of assisted breeding technologies to enhance reproduction and maintain genetic diversity of this species in human care. Cheetah females are non-seasonal breeders that exhibit lengthy periods of anestrus that are not associated with age, environment, or reproductive potential. It is possible to collect good quality oocytes, that support fertilisation and successful early embryonic development, regardless of female age (from 2 to 12 yr old). However, the prevalence of uterine pathologies increases with age and prevents middle to advanced age females from establishing pregnancy. Pregnancy can be diagnosed in non-sedated cheetah females via ultrasonography (first month), steroid hormone analysis (second/third month) or radiography (third month). Fecal biomarkers, such as Immunoglobulin J, show great promise for diagnosing pregnancy at an early stage as well as other physiological states. Several decades of basic research have led to efficient management of natural breeding and recent successes in assisted reproduction.