By Khalida Sarwari
Fewer than three seconds … that’s the amount of time it takes the cheetah to go from 0 to 60 mph. It’s no secret that cheetahs are the world’s fastest mammals, but what some may not realize is that they’re also fast disappearing. If we don’t change our conservation policies and act today, in 20 years there will not be enough cheetahs existing in the wild to save them from extinction.
This is the news Laurie Marker, a Namibia-based conservation biologist and leading cheetah expert, wants to convey on her visit to the Mountain Winery on Sept. 20. With fewer than 10,000 of the big cats remaining and one-third of them being in Namibia, Marker will focus her talk on the issue of survival of the cheetah in today’s world. The message she wants to impart is that while the problem is an urgent one, it’s not entirely hopeless.
“People have the ability to save cheetahs and other endangered species for future generations, but we’ll only be successful if we come together to talk about the problem and share ideas for solutions,” Marker said via email from Namibia. “It’s up to us. Humans are the only thing that stand between cheetahs and extinction.”
Marker, who founded and now heads the Cheetah Conservation Fund, will also touch upon how CCF’s programs address the problems cheetahs face in Namibia, and the cheetah’s outlook for the future.
“I will talk about how the research we do in the field and in our genetics lab informs our work and enables us to develop successful model programs that can be adapted to help other predator species,” she said.
Though originally from Oregon, Marker has been calling Namibia home since 1991, shortly after Namibia achieved independence. She began working there 14 years prior to that, traveling not just to Namibia but other countries in Africa for her work.
Stateside, she spends most of her time in Santa Cruz, where her parents reside, or the San Jose area. She said she is looking forward to seeing her friends and parents and visiting her dentist on this trip. She won’t be sticking around too long, though, as Saratoga is just one stop in her 18-city North American tour that runs from Sept. 15 through Oct. 26.
She’ll bring one of those friends on stage with her at the Mountain Winery. Themba, a 4-year-old male ambassador cheetah from The Wild Cat Education & Conservation Fund in Occidental, will likely steal the spotlight once he descends on the stage. Pat Puder, a longtime Saratoga resident and a field executive for the Northern California chapter of CCF who is coordinating the event, noted that the animal will be on a leash and controlled by two handlers.
“This is not a cheetah for petting, so we can’t promise individual photos with the cheetah and petting the cheetah,” Puder said.
Following the presentation, Marker will sign copies of her new book, “A Future for Cheetahs,” which details the magnificent creature’s evolution.
The Sept. 20 event includes a silent auction, live music, wine tasting from the Mountain Winery’s Estate Series, food served al fresco and a no host bar. Entertainment will be provided by Bay Area jazz guitarist Ed Johnson, the acoustic jazz guitar duo of Michael Simpson and Kamlapati Khalsa, and a performance of “Dance with the Cheetahs,” an original song by 13-year-old singer-songwriter Paris Shewfelt of Boulder Creek.
“We have a lot of people that have been supportive of CCF in this area and we want to provide them with an event to hear Dr. Marker and become more involved with the Cheetah Conservation Fund,” Puder said.
The event is from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at 14831 Pierce Road in Saratoga. Tickets are $125 for adults; $175 for couples; $200 for a family of four; $75 for students 13 to 20; and $50 for children under 13. To buy tickets, visit cheetah.org.
