Friday, November 30, 2012

Cheetah Running Slo-Mo


(Video link) A cheetah running full speed covers about 22 feet during each stride. Notice how the head stays steady as the rest of the body moves around its cycle.


(Video link) This video shows how the photographers got the shots. They built a long dolly track at the Cincinnati Zoo, with a slow motion camera following the cheetah. The trainers worked with the animal to be sure she didn't get distracted.
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More at National Geographic

6 comments:

Laura said...

Whoa! That was fantastic! :D I loved how you could see all the muscles moving during each phase of the cheetah's posture as it was running. XD

Here is a video of birds of prey flying in slow motion that I found to be quite amazing as well! :) I love how their feathers, like the cheetah's muscles, move independantly to control the flight of the kite. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AYOx-iCMZhk

Meera Rao said...

Very cool! Thanks for sharing!

Casey Crowe said...

Amazing! The San Diego zoo has a cheetah run where you can see this in person. I had the pleasure of checking it our recently and lemme tell you, seeing those cats reach top speed in person is just staggering. Great to see the slo-mo version too.

Anonymous said...

Pure, unadulterated elegance. - mp

Anonymous said...

This is what is rightfully referred to as "nature porn."

Vicki said...

This is fabulous!
Two comments: The back legs move together like a rabbit's (until they are way ahead of the front legs, which I assume is part of what gives cheetahs their his great speed), but then the feet touch down one at a time. Do dogs and other running (as opposed to hopping) digitigrade mammals run with that same gait, I wonder? Or does each animal have its own peculiar gait, not shared with others?
Comment #2: I hope that after having him chase that rolled up plastic bag, they actually gave him a piece of meat.