THE LION, KING OF THE SAVANNAH: DESCRIPTION, HABITAT, FOOD AND REP...

Throughout history, the lion (Panthera leo) has represented courage and strength. The most social felines in the world, they are the largest of all African cats! They are easily recognized by their roar and the male's mane. Lions roam the savannahs and grasslands of the African continent, hunting cooperatively and raising their cubs with pride.

It once roamed most of Africa, as well as large parts of Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. Today, it is found in parts of East Africa  and with a population on the Indian subcontinent. It is the second largest cat species in the world, smaller than the tiger.

African lions, the “kings of the savannah,” are revered around the world, but their population has declined ↘ by half in the last 25 years... Conflict with humans is one of the greatest threats they face.

1) The Lion in 10 Seconds TOP CHRONO

• COMMON NAME: Lion

• SCIENTIFIC NAME: Panthera leo

• BASIC GROUP OF ANIMALS: Mammals

• DIET: Carnivore?

• SIZE: 1.5 to 2.5 meters long (head and tail); 66 cm to 1 m tail length and approximately 1.3 to 2 meters length (head and body)

• WEIGHT: 120 to 250 kg

• GROUP NAME: Pride

• LIFESPAN: 10 to 14 years

• HABITAT: Groups in sub-Saharan Africa and India

• POPULATION: Approximately 23,000 to 39,000 individuals

• CURRENT POPULATION TREND: Declining 

• CONSERVATION STATUS: Vulnerable

2) The Description of this Big Cat

The lion, the proverbial "king of beasts"?, is one of the most famous wild animals since ancient times. They have been admired throughout history as symbols of courage and strength. These iconic animals have a powerful body ; in the cat family, they are the second largest in size after tigers. Also in the cat family, the lion is the only one with sexual dimorphism, which means that male and female lions look different from each other: males are larger than females (lionesses) and have a different physical appearance.

A- The Color of the Lion, its Mane and the White Lion

Lions have strong, compact bodies and powerful forepaws, teeth, and jaws for bringing down and killing their prey. Their coats are golden-yellow, and adult males have shaggy manes that range in color from blond to reddish-brown to black, and dark tail tufts, which conceal the spurs of the tail bones in some specimens.

The length and color of a lion's mane is likely determined by age , genetics, and hormones. Young lions have bright spots ☀ on their fur that fade as they mature. Without their fur, lions and tigers' bodies are so similar that only experts can tell them apart!

White lions are rarely found in the wild. The white coat ⚪ is caused by a double recessive allele. Contrary to popular belief, the white lion is not an albino animal . They have normal skin and eye color.

B- The Size of the Lion

Lions stand between 1 and 1.2 metres at the shoulder. Males reach a length of 3 metres and have a tail of 60 to 91 centimetres ?. They weigh between 150 and 250 kg. Slightly smaller, females stand at 2.7 metres and weigh between 120 and 180 kg.

3) Natural Habitat: Where Do Lions Live?

Historically, they were found across much of Europe, Asia and throughout Africa, but today the species has disappeared from 94% of its historical range . They are mostly extirpated from North Africa, are threatened with extinction in West Africa and with the exception of a small population of the Indian lion subspecies (Asiatic Lions (Panthera Leo Persica)) that remains in the dry deciduous Gir Forest of north-west India, lions are now found only in Africa, from the southern fringe of the Sahara to northern South Africa.

This carnivorous mammal may be called the "king of the jungle," but it is actually absent from equatorial areas - dominated by tropical rainforest. It is also absent from desert areas. Today, these large felids live in a wide variety of habitats ; from open plains to thick scrub, dry thorn forests, and savannas and grasslands, where they find some cover, plenty of water, and can more easily hunt their prey. Lions live in habitats ranging from sea level to mountain slopes up to 4,000 meters above sea level, including Mount Kilimanjaro.

4) 20 Interesting and Fun Facts About Lions

• Solitary male lions defend the pride's territory while females do the hunting. Despite this, males eat first.

• This hunter can run short distances at 80 km/h and jump up to 10 meters .

• The darkness ⚫ of a male lion's mane is a good indicator of his age. The darker the mane, the older the lion.

• A lion's heels do not touch the ground when it walks.

• A lion can sleep up to 20 hours a day.

• A lion's roar can be heard up to 8 km away.

• Although the lion is sometimes called the " king of the jungle ," it actually only lives in grasslands and plains. It is more likely the " king of the savannah "! The expression may come from an incorrect association between Africa and jungles, or it may refer to a less literal meaning of the word jungle.

• These majestic cats are threatened by habitat loss. The lion is listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

• The lion was once found throughout Africa, Asia and Europe, but now exists only in Africa, with one exception. The last remaining Asiatic lions are in the Sasan-Gir National Park in India, which was established primarily to protect the species. Currently, there are about 350 to 400 lions in the park.

• African lions are the most social of all big cats and live together in groups or "prides." A "pride" is made up of about 15 lions.

• Adult males only stay in the pride for about two years ⌚ before being kicked out by competitors.

• The lion has always been a symbol of strength , power and ferocity.

• The African species is larger than the Asiatic (Indian) lion and is the second largest feline, after the tiger.

• The name for lion in Swahili, an African language, is "simba".

• In the wild, they live between 10 and 14 years .

• Every now and then a lioness grows a mane?. No one really knows why.

• Lions are at the top of the food chain, but they are not very good at hunting: they have a success rate of less than 30% .

• Lionesses are attracted to males with black manes.

• Female lions raise the cubs  and are also the primary hunters.

• Without their fur, the bodies of lions and tigers are so similar that only experts can tell them apart.

5) Its Diet: What Does the Lion Eat?

A- The Natural Diet of Lions

These animal species are hyper carnivores, meaning that their diet is composed of more than 70% meat . African lions prefer to hunt large ungulates and feed mainly on large animals that weigh between 45 and 453 kg, such as zebras, deer, African buffalo, gemsbok ( Oryx Gazelle ) , giraffe? and wildebeest. They avoid very large prey (elephant, rhinoceros, hippopotamus) and very small prey (hare, monkey, hyracoid  (Hyrax or Daman) , dik-dik  (Dwarf Antelope)). 

In times of scarcity, they are an exception to the rule and will also catch and eat a variety of small animals, from rodents to reptiles. Lions will also steal animals killed by hyenas , leopards and other predators. Sometimes they may lose their own kills to groups of hyenas. Lions may also feed on domestic livestock, especially in areas near villages.

Lions drink water when available , but otherwise obtain necessary moisture from their prey or from plants such as tsamma melons in the Kalahari Desert.

In India, lions feed on domestic livestock - when available - but they mainly consume wild Chital deer.

B- What do Lions eat in Zoos?

Lions at the zoo are often given cuts of meat such as ground beef, which are commercially produced to meet the nutritional needs of carnivores. At longer intervals (about twice a week), they are given beef shank bones or femurs, and once a week, rabbits or whole dead animals to eat that exercise the teeth and jaws of these predators.

It is good for them to devour the whole animal , because the fur, skin and bones allow them to clean their teeth well. It also helps to "enrich" them, that is, to make them act as they would in the wild.

6) How does the Lion Hunt? Who hunts between the Lion and the Lioness?

A- What are the Lion's Preys?

As we have seen previously, lions prey on a wide variety of animals ranging in size from rodents and baboons to Cape (or African) buffalo and hippopotamuses, but they primarily hunt medium to large sized hoofed animals such as wildebeest, zebra and antelope. Many of these animals are faster than lions, so teamwork pays off.

Prey preferences vary by geographic region and by neighboring groups. A single lion can take down prey twice its size . For example, lions have been known to take elephants and giraffes, but only if the individual is young or particularly sick. They will readily eat any meat they can find, including carrion and fresh carcasses that they scavenge or force-feed from hyenas, cheetahs, or wild dogs.

B- How do Lionesses Hunt?

Lionesses living in the open African savannah do most of the hunting, while males ♂️ usually appropriate their meals from the female's prey ♀️. However, male lions are also good hunters  and in some areas hunt frequently. In scrub or woodland, males spend less time with females and hunt most of their own meals. Nomadic males must always provide their own food.

Females raise the cubs and are the primary hunters, although males sometimes join the females during the hunt. Depending on the prey item, several lions may stalk their prey from different angles up to 30 meters before attacking the target animal.

Although a pride of hunting lions is potentially the most fearsome predatory force on earth, many of their hunts fail . These big cats pay no attention to wind direction (which can transmit their scent to their prey), and they tire after traveling short distances. 

They usually stalk their prey into nearby areas of cover and then rush to crush it in a quick, short run. After pouncing on the prey, the lion will slit its prey's neck and bite until the animal has been strangled.

Prey is usually eaten at the hunting site and other members of the pride quickly rush to feed on the prey, usually fighting for access. Hunts are sometimes conducted in groups, with members of a pride surrounding a herd or approaching it from the opposite direction, then closing in to kill the animal in the ensuing panic. But lions often lose their prey once killed to hyenas and sometimes crocodiles.

These cats typically gorge themselves and then rest for several days nearby. An adult male can consume over 75 pounds of meat in a single meal and rest for a week before hunting again. If prey is plentiful, both sexes typically spend 21 to 22 hours a day resting, sleeping, or sitting, and hunt for only 2 to 3 hours a day.

Although the lion is an apex predator, it becomes prey to humans? Lion cubs are often killed by hyenas, wild dogs and leopards.

7) Lion Behavior and Communication: What Sound Does a Lion Make?

Lions sleep 16 to 20 hours a day . They most often hunt at dawn or dusk, but can adapt to their prey to change their schedule. They communicate through vocalizations, head rubbing, licking, facial expressions, chemical markings, and visual markings. Lions are known for their ferocious roar, but they can also growl, meow, snarl, and purr.

Lions are mostly active at night  and live in a variety of habitats, but prefer grasslands, savannah, dense scrub, and open forests. They live in densities of 1.5 to 55 adult animals per 100 square kilometers. 

Lions play fight to improve their hunting skills. When they play fight , they do not show their teeth and keep their claws retracted so as not to hurt their partner. Play fighting is a training and practice exercise, which allows for effective prey engagement and builds relationships between members of the pride. It is during play that lions determine which members of the pride should pursue and capture their quarry and which members of the pride should go for the kill.

8) The Social Structure of Lions: Pride

A- What do you call a group of lions?

Lions are unique among cats in that they live in groups, or prides; the name for a group of lions is called a "pride" . Lions are the most social felines in the world ?️. Members of a pride typically spend the day in several scattered groups that may join together to hunt or share a meal.

B- The Structure of a Pride

A pride consists of several generations of lionesses, some of which are related, a small number of breeding males and their cubs. The pride can range in size from 4 to 40 members , but the average size is about 15 members.

The abundance of available prey plays a significant role in the size of a lion pride, but a typical pride consists of three males, a dozen females and their cubs. Pride mates associate in subgroups within the pride. In India, lion prides are typically smaller, with two females.

Females typically remain in their mother's pride for their entire lives, unless food shortages force them out. Young males are removed from their prides when they become large enough to compete with the dominant males (usually between 2 and 4 years old). They form coalitions, usually with brothers and cousins, and seek out a pride to take over.

Males that enter a new pride kill any cubs that cannot escape. Adult lions that are lucky enough to gain residency rights within a pride stay for an average of two years, often leaving the pride after being expelled by another lion coalition. In India, male and female lions live separately , only coming together to mate.

There are a number of competing evolutionary explanations for why lions form prides. The large size and high density of their primary prey likely makes group living more efficient for females in terms of energy expenditure ⚡.

Groups of females, for example, hunt more efficiently and are better able to defend their young from infanticidal males and their hunting grounds from other females. The relative importance of these factors is a matter of debate, and it is unclear who was responsible for establishing group living and what the secondary benefits are.

9) The Territory of the Lions

Each lion pride has a well-defined territory consisting of a core zone that is strictly defended against lion intrusions and a peripheral zone where some overlap is tolerated.

When prey is abundant, the territory size can be as small as 20 km² , but if game is scarce, it can be as large as 400 km² . Some prides have been known to use the same territory for decades, passing it on between females.

Males perform most of the defensive duties. However, both males and females proclaim their territories by roaring  (which can be heard up to five miles away) and scent marking. Their characteristic roar is usually emitted in the evening before a night of hunting and again before rising at dawn.

Males also proclaim their presence by urinating on bushes, trees? or simply on the ground, leaving behind a pungent odor. Defecation and rubbing against bushes leave different olfactory traces.

10) The Reproduction of this Big Cat and the Development of the Lion Cub

A- The Reproduction of the Lion

Both sexes are polygynous and breed throughout the year, but females are usually limited to one or two adult males from their group. Although they mate throughout the year, breeding usually peaks during the rainy season . In captivity, lions often breed every year, but in the wild they usually breed no more than once every two years.

Females are receptive to mating for three to four days in a highly variable reproductive cycle. During this period, a pair typically mates every 20 to 30 minutes, with up to 50 copulations occurring in 24 hours . Such prolonged copulation not only stimulates ovulation in the female, but also ensures the male's paternity by excluding other males. 

As with other cats, the male lion's penis has backward-pointing spines that stimulate the lioness to ovulate during mating. The gestation period is about 108 days , and litter sizes range from one to six cubs, with two to four being common. In some cases, the female gives birth to her cubs in a secluded den and hunts alone until the cubs are six to eight weeks old.

B- The Baby Lions: The Lion Cubs

Newborns weigh between 800 and 1500 grams ? at birth. They are initially blind and deaf : their eyes and ears open during the first two weeks. Lion cubs are born with a thick coat decorated with dark spots that generally disappear with maturity.

Lion cubs are able to follow their mothers at about three months of age and are weaned at six or seven months. They begin hunting at 5-6 months, but are unlikely to survive on their own until they are two years old . Then, they stay with their mothers until they are between 18 months and 3 years old. Although lionesses nurse cubs other than their own, they are surprisingly inattentive and often leave their cubs alone for up to 24 hours.

This results in a high mortality rate ☠️ (e.g., 86% in the Serengeti), but survival rates improve after two years of age. In the wild, sexual maturity is reached at three, four, or five years of age. Some females remain in the pride when they reach sexual maturity, but others are forced to leave and join other prides or wander as nomads.

In prides, one lioness takes care of all the cubs while the others go hunting. Females fiercely defend the cubs within their pride. Males tolerate their cubs, but do not always defend them.

C- The Development of Semi-Adult Lions (from 2 to 5 years old)

Females reach sexual maturity at 4 years of age and males at 5 years of age. Males are expelled from the pride at about three years of age and become nomadic – until they are old enough to attempt to take over another pride (after age five). Many adult males remain nomadic for life . Mating opportunities for nomadic males are rare, and competition between male lions to defend a pride's territory and mate with females in the pride is fierce.

Cooperative partnerships of two to four males are more successful than single individuals in maintaining their territories with some pride, and larger coalitions produce more surviving offspring per male. Small coalitions typically include related males, while larger groups often include unrelated individuals.

If a new cohort of males is able to take over a pride, they will seek to kill the young cubs sired by their predecessors. This has the effect of shortening the time before the cubs' mothers are ready to mate again . Females attempt to prevent this infanticide by hiding or directly defending their cubs; lionesses are generally more successful at protecting their older cubs, as they would leave the pride sooner.

11) Leo Hybrids

The genus Panthera includes leopards, jaguars, and tigers, as well as lions. In captivity, lions have been encouraged to mate with other big cats . They may interbreed with other species to create hybrid big cats:

• Liger: A cross between a male lion and a tigress. Is the liger larger than the lion or tiger?. Male ligers are sterile, but many female ligers are fertile.

• Tigon or Tiglon: A cross between a lioness and a male tiger. Tigers are generally smaller than either parent.

• Leopon: A cross between a lioness and a leopard? male. The head resembles that of a lion, while the body is that of a leopard.

Because of the emphasis on conserving the genes of lions, tigers, and leopards, hybridization is discouraged . Hybrids are mostly found in private menageries. The feline known as the mountain lion (puma), however, is a member of the New World genus Puma and not the genus Panthera.

12) The Lifespan of the Panthera Leo

In captivity, in zoos, lions can live up to 25 years? and more! In the wild, a lioness can live up to 16 years , but males rarely live beyond 12 years. On average, lions live 8 to 10 years, mainly because of attacks from humans, other lions or due to kicks and horns taken during the hunt by prey that defend themselves.

13) Evolution and Species of Lion

Modern cats first appeared about 10.8 million years ago . Lions, along with jaguars, leopards, tigers, snow leopards? and cloud leopards, split off from all other cat lineages early in the evolution of the cat family and today form what is known as the Panthera lineage. Lions shared a common ancestor with jaguars that lived about 810,000 years ago.

By the Pleistocene Epoch (2,600,000–11,700 years ago), lions were distributed throughout North America and Africa , most of the Balkans, Anatolia, and the Middle East as far south as India. Genetic studies suggest that the lion evolved in eastern and southern Africa, diversifying into a number of subspecies beginning about 124,000 years ago:

• The Barbary lion (Panthera leo leo) of North Africa

• The European cave lion (P. leo spelaea)

• The American lion (P. leo atrox) of North and Central America

• And the Asiatic lion (P. leo persica) of the Middle East and India - from about 124