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Description

Species Name: African Lion

Species Latin Name: Panthera leo

Native To: Africa and India

Conservation Status: Vulnerable

Photo Taken At: N/A

Size (length): 140-250cm (55.1 – 98.4 inches)

Weight: 120-249kg (264.6 – 549 pounds)

Top Speed: 56kmh (34.8mph)

Lifespan: 12-25 years

Population Size: 20,000

Population Trend: Decreasing

Diet: Scavenger, Hypercarnivore

Group Names: Pride, Sault, Troop, Sawt

Lifestyle: Terrestial, Altricial, Pack hunters, Ambush predators, Apex predators, Nomadic, territorial, Viviparous

Mating Behavior: Polygyny

Female Name: Lioness

Male Name: Lion

Baby Name: Cub

Reproductive Season: Year round, peak during rainy season

Pregnancy Duration: 110-119 days

Baby Amount Per Birth: 3-6 cubs

Time in Nursery: 4-6 weeks

Weaning Age: 6-7 months

Independent Age: 2 years

Male Sexual Maturity: 5 years

Female Sexual Maturity: 2.5 – 3 years

Sub Species:

Asiatic Lion (Panthera leo Persica); Located in Gir Forest National Park in the state of Gujarat, India. Currently Endangered.

Barbary Lion (Panthera leo Leo); Believed to be native to the Atlas Mountain of North America, currently believed to be extinct.

West African Lion (Panthera leo Senegalensis); Located in West Africa.

Northeast Congo Lion (Panthera leo Azandica); Located in the Kidepo Valley in Uganda, also located in parts of Central Africa and in the Murchison Falls National Parks.

East African or Masai Lion (Panthera leo Nubica); Located in parts of Uganda and Kenya as well as the Tanga Region.

Southwest African or Katanga Lion (Panthera leo Bleyenberghi); Located in Zimbabwe, Botswana, Zambia, Ziare, Angola, and other areas in Southwestern Africa.

Southest African or Transvaal Lion (Panthera leo Krugeri); Located in southeast Africa

Cape Lion (Panthera leo Melanochaita); Extinct.

Beringian Cave Lion (Panthera leoI Vereshchagin); Extinct.

Sri Lankan lion (Panthera leo Sinhaleyus); Extinct.

European Lion (Panthera leo Europaea); Extinct.

Description:

The African lion is a large wild cat with short, tawny-coloured fur with a long tail that ends with a black tuft. Young lions will have a grayish coat, covered in brown markings that will disappear by the age of 3 months. The males will differ from the females with their iconic manes around their neck, chest, and head which can range in colouration from black to blond. The mane will develop within 3 years of the male lions age and will generally make them appear larger than they really are, this places an important role in intimidation for other rival males or for potential threats such as hyenas.

Diet:

African lions are general carnivores that will primarily feed on zebras, antelopes, gazelles, deer, buffaloes, young giraffes, warthogs, wildebeest, and young elephants. They will on occasion feed on wild hares as well as birds. These animals are also opportunistic scavengers and will scavenge on dead animals when the opportunity arises, they can feed on dead animals that have died either due to disease or who have been killed by other predators such as hyenas.

Behaviour:

The African lion's expressive movements are highly developed. The most common peaceful, tactile gestures are head rubbing, and social grooming. The head rubbing which involves nuzzling ones forehead against another is a form of greeting and is generally seen when one lion has been separated from another for some time or as after a fight or confrontation. Males will tend to do this to other males where as cubs and females will tend to display this behavior with other cubs and females. Social licking usually accompanies the head rubbing behaviour with the head and neck being the most common parts being licked.

Lions have a wide range of facial expressions and body postures that serve as visual gestures. Lions use smell as a means of communication, males will mark an area and scrape plots of ground and other objects within their territory. A lion also has a large variety of vocalizations which can vary in intensity and pitch. The most common forms of vocalizations include growling, snarling, meowing, and roaring. Other forms of vocalizations include purring, puffing, bleating, and humming. Lions will tend to roar at night as a means to advertise their presence in their territory, their roars can be heard from a distance of 8km (5 miles) away.

These animals can be active at any time of the day however, their activity tends to peak at around dusk where they do a majority of their hunting and socializing. Most of their time awake will be spent resting, this is a way for them to conserve their much needed energy for hunting as well as to means to cope with the midday heat. These highly social animals will usually gather in a group called a pride that will usually consist of up to 3 males and their multiple lionesses and cubs. The males will generally protect the pride from other potential rival males, should one male lion become more dominant than the rest he will typically kill all the cubs sired by the previous lead male lion. The male lion will usually not actively hunt as their mane and heavier build makes them slower and too noticeable for prey. The hunting will usually be done by lionesses who are faster and more agile, they work cooperatively to hunt down prey much larger and faster than them during their hunting trips.

Lions have a polygynous mating system which involves a male lion mating with a number of lionesses. Breeding will occur year round but will peak during the rainy season. The mother will be pregnant for 110 – 119 days before giving birth to 3-6 cubs in a hidden, solitary nursery. After 4-6 weeks of being in the nursery the cubs will come out to join the rest of the pride. Usually all the females in the pride will take equal responsibility for caring and feeding the young cubs, when the mother leaves the pride on a hunting trip a single lactating mother will usually remain to feed the cubs. The cubs will wean at the age of 6-7 months of age and the cubs will generally stay close to their mother during the first 2 years of their life. Males will sexually mature at 5 years of their life where as the females will sexually mature much sooner at around 2.5 to 3 years of their life.

Threats:

These animals have long been hunted down either out of fear for these animals eating the livestock on farms or out of fear of these animals eating humans. Lions have also been extensively hunted down for trophies by poachers. Hunting lions for game/trophies has been something that has occurred since ancient times as early as 1380BC and continues to this day.

Other threats to these animals numbers include the ever expanding human settlements which alter the habitat around them turning the land into agricultural projects. Many lions will likely end up displaced or hunted. Those that remain close to human settlements are more prone to diseases that are spread by domesticated dogs.

Conservation:

Due to the threats these animals face and the level of cultural and ecological importance these animals hold to their native lands several well managed protected areas have been set up for these animals.

Although zoo's have had a negative connotation regards the treatment and handling of exotic animals in the past, many well reputable zoo's have played an important roll with breeding programs to try to stabilize these animals numbers alongside the protected areas back in Africa and in Asia.

There is hope that with the various breeding programs in the various zoos around the world and the protected areas in the wild that these animals numbers will improve. This animal still faces issues with hunters, poachers, disease, and from continued loss of habitat. With their numbers still decreasing out in the wild it is unknown if the current conservation efforts will be enough to save this animal from eventual extinction.

Further Reading (general information):

Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lion

Animalsake: animalsake.com/different-speci…

Animalia: animalia.bio/african-lion

Animal Wised: www.animalwised.com/how-many-t…

Description

Species Name: African Lion

Species Latin Name: Panthera leo

Native To: Africa and India

Conservation Status: Vulnerable

Photo Taken At: N/A

Size (length): 140-250cm (55.1 – 98.4 inches)

Weight: 120-249kg (264.6 – 549 pounds)

Top Speed: 56kmh (34.8mph)

Lifespan: 12-25 years

Population Size: 20,000

Population Trend: Decreasing

Diet: Scavenger, Hypercarnivore

Group Names: Pride, Sault, Troop, Sawt

Lifestyle: Terrestial, Altricial, Pack hunters, Ambush predators, Apex predators, Nomadic, territorial, Viviparous

Mating Behavior: Polygyny

Female Name: Lioness

Male Name: Lion

Baby Name: Cub

Reproductive Season: Year round, peak during rainy season

Pregnancy Duration: 110-119 days

Baby Amount Per Birth: 3-6 cubs

Time in Nursery: 4-6 weeks

Weaning Age: 6-7 months

Independent Age: 2 years

Male Sexual Maturity: 5 years

Female Sexual Maturity: 2.5 – 3 years

Sub Species:

Asiatic Lion (Panthera leo Persica); Located in Gir Forest National Park in the state of Gujarat, India. Currently Endangered.

Barbary Lion (Panthera leo Leo); Believed to be native to the Atlas Mountain of North America, currently believed to be extinct.

West African Lion (Panthera leo Senegalensis); Located in West Africa.

Northeast Congo Lion (Panthera leo Azandica); Located in the Kidepo Valley in Uganda, also located in parts of Central Africa and in the Murchison Falls National Parks.

East African or Masai Lion (Panthera leo Nubica); Located in parts of Uganda and Kenya as well as the Tanga Region.

Southwest African or Katanga Lion (Panthera leo Bleyenberghi); Located in Zimbabwe, Botswana, Zambia, Ziare, Angola, and other areas in Southwestern Africa.

Southest African or Transvaal Lion (Panthera leo Krugeri); Located in southeast Africa

Cape Lion (Panthera leo Melanochaita); Extinct.

Beringian Cave Lion (Panthera leoI Vereshchagin); Extinct.

Sri Lankan lion (Panthera leo Sinhaleyus); Extinct.

European Lion (Panthera leo Europaea); Extinct.

Description:

The African lion is a large wild cat with short, tawny-coloured fur with a long tail that ends with a black tuft. Young lions will have a grayish coat, covered in brown markings that will disappear by the age of 3 months. The males will differ from the females with their iconic manes around their neck, chest, and head which can range in colouration from black to blond. The mane will develop within 3 years of the male lions age and will generally make them appear larger than they really are, this places an important role in intimidation for other rival males or for potential threats such as hyenas.

Diet:

African lions are general carnivores that will primarily feed on zebras, antelopes, gazelles, deer, buffaloes, young giraffes, warthogs, wildebeest, and young elephants. They will on occasion feed on wild hares as well as birds. These animals are also opportunistic scavengers and will scavenge on dead animals when the opportunity arises, they can feed on dead animals that have died either due to disease or who have been killed by other predators such as hyenas.

Behaviour:

The African lion's expressive movements are highly developed. The most common peaceful, tactile gestures are head rubbing, and social grooming. The head rubbing which involves nuzzling ones forehead against another is a form of greeting and is generally seen when one lion has been separated from another for some time or as after a fight or confrontation. Males will tend to do this to other males where as cubs and females will tend to display this behavior with other cubs and females. Social licking usually accompanies the head rubbing behaviour with the head and neck being the most common parts being licked.

Lions have a wide range of facial expressions and body postures that serve as visual gestures. Lions use smell as a means of communication, males will mark an area and scrape plots of ground and other objects within their territory. A lion also has a large variety of vocalizations which can vary in intensity and pitch. The most common forms of vocalizations include growling, snarling, meowing, and roaring. Other forms of vocalizations include purring, puffing, bleating, and humming. Lions will tend to roar at night as a means to advertise their presence in their territory, their roars can be heard from a distance of 8km (5 miles) away.

These animals can be active at any time of the day however, their activity tends to peak at around dusk where they do a majority of their hunting and socializing. Most of their time awake will be spent resting, this is a way for them to conserve their much needed energy for hunting as well as to means to cope with the midday heat. These highly social animals will usually gather in a group called a pride that will usually consist of up to 3 males and their multiple lionesses and cubs. The males will generally protect the pride from other potential rival males, should one male lion become more dominant than the rest he will typically kill all the cubs sired by the previous lead male lion. The male lion will usually not actively hunt as their mane and heavier build makes them slower and too noticeable for prey. The hunting will usually be done by lionesses who are faster and more agile, they work cooperatively to hunt down prey much larger and faster than them during their hunting trips.

Lions have a polygynous mating system which involves a male lion mating with a number of lionesses. Breeding will occur year round but will peak during the rainy season. The mother will be pregnant for 110 – 119 days before giving birth to 3-6 cubs in a hidden, solitary nursery. After 4-6 weeks of being in the nursery the cubs will come out to join the rest of the pride. Usually all the females in the pride will take equal responsibility for caring and feeding the young cubs, when the mother leaves the pride on a hunting trip a single lactating mother will usually remain to feed the cubs. The cubs will wean at the age of 6-7 months of age and the cubs will generally stay close to their mother during the first 2 years of their life. Males will sexually mature at 5 years of their life where as the females will sexually mature much sooner at around 2.5 to 3 years of their life.

Threats:

These animals have long been hunted down either out of fear for these animals eating the livestock on farms or out of fear of these animals eating humans. Lions have also been extensively hunted down for trophies by poachers. Hunting lions for game/trophies has been something that has occurred since ancient times as early as 1380BC and continues to this day.

Other threats to these animals numbers include the ever expanding human settlements which alter the habitat around them turning the land into agricultural projects. Many lions will likely end up displaced or hunted. Those that remain close to human settlements are more prone to diseases that are spread by domesticated dogs.

Conservation:

Due to the threats these animals face and the level of cultural and ecological importance these animals hold to their native lands several well managed protected areas have been set up for these animals.

Although zoo's have had a negative connotation regards the treatment and handling of exotic animals in the past, many well reputable zoo's have played an important roll with breeding programs to try to stabilize these animals numbers alongside the protected areas back in Africa and in Asia.

There is hope that with the various breeding programs in the various zoos around the world and the protected areas in the wild that these animals numbers will improve. This animal still faces issues with hunters, poachers, disease, and from continued loss of habitat. With their numbers still decreasing out in the wild it is unknown if the current conservation efforts will be enough to save this animal from eventual extinction.

Further Reading (general information):

Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lion

Animalsake: animalsake.com/different-speci…

Animalia: animalia.bio/african-lion

Animal Wised: www.animalwised.com/how-many-t…