Pirouz, the last survivor of three critically endangered Asiatic cheetah cubs born in captivity, has died in Iran, according to Al-Jazeera. The cub died in a veterinary hospital in Tehran from "acute kidney failure", the outlet further said. The doctors had started dialysis procedure on Monday night but could not save the cub. Pirouz, which means "victorious" in Persian, had become a source of national pride since its birth in May last year at a wildlife refuge in northeastern Iran.
"I apologise to the people on behalf of myself and all my colleagues because we couldn't keep Pirouz alive," Amir Moradi, the head of Central Veterinary Hospital in the Iranian capital, said in a video message, as per Al-Jazeera.
Pirouz was born on April 30, 2022. The cub's father was named 'Firouz' and mother 'Iran'. They were matched in captivity in the hopes of increasing the population of the endangered species.
Two other cubs born with him died that same month, but Pirouz survived at a time when only a dozen members of the species are left in the wild.
The Asiatic cheetah - Acinonyx jubatus venaticus - is threatened with "dangerous ongoing decline" and is critically endangered, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
According to a 2017 study referenced by IUCN, the sub-species is confined only to Iran where there were "less than 50 mature individuals".
The world's fastest land animal, capable of reaching speeds of 120 kilometres (74 miles) per hour, cheetahs once stalked habitats from the eastern reaches of India to the Atlantic coast of Senegal.
They are still found in parts of southern Africa but have practically disappeared from North Africa and Asia.
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