Once claimed as a species in its own right was the so-called "king cheetah", which was given the Latin name ''Acinonyx rex'' early in the 20th century, and for years afterwards was the subject of cryptozoology. This particular cheetah - with its blotchy spots and thick back stripes - was determined to be a mere color morph of the normal cheetah, the result of a mutated gene. | Once claimed as a species in its own right was the so-called "king cheetah", which was given the Latin name ''Acinonyx rex'' early in the 20th century, and for years afterwards was the subject of cryptozoology. This particular cheetah - with its blotchy spots and thick back stripes - was determined to be a mere color morph of the normal cheetah, the result of a mutated gene. |