Lions - Panthera Leo

Large and powerful! this is the second biggest cat in the world. The Lion is one of the best know wild animals. They find their home in about 28 African countries (African lion), and in India (Asiatic, Indian or Persion lion).

The male lions most outstanding feature is his mane, which varies between individuals. A fully-grown male is about 2 metres long excluding the 1 metre tail. The male lion stands tall, with a shoulder height of about about 1.2 metres and weighs up to 250 kg. The female is a little bit smaller, with a body length of 1.5 metres, excluding the 1 metre tail. A shoulder height of about 1 metre, and an average weight of up to 200 kg. The lion’s coat is short and often varies from buff yellow, orange-brown, silvery gray to dark brown color, with a tuft on the tail tip that is usually black in color.

Lions live in prides, a unique trait in the cat family. The pride consists of females, few young males, cubs and of course the pride males. The pride is multi generational, with the females being related. Each pride has a well-defined territory which varies in size. The prides territory consists of a main core area which is strictly defended against any intruders, and a fringe area where some overlap is often tolerated. Roaring and scent marking is a way the lions choose to proclaim their territories. 

Lions are good hunters, hunting a wide range of prey from gazelles to elephants and giraffes. Females often do the hunting, with the males joining in when hunting bigger prey like buffaloes. 

Lions (both males and females) are polygamous and breed throughout the year. Lionesses are usually restricted to the resident pride males. Lionesses become receptive to mating for about three to five days with the reproductive cycle being variable. During mating the pair generally mates every 15–30 minutes, copulating up-to 50 times in a day. Such extended copulation not only stimulates ovulation in the female but also secures paternity for the male by excluding other males. The gestation period is about 110 days, and the litter size varies from one to six cubs. 

Humans pose the greatest threat to lions. Human wildlife conflict, loss of habitat, poaching, and trophy hunting have caused huge population decline. Lions are classifies as vulnerable in the International union for the conservation of nature (ICUN) with less than 20,000 individuals left in the wild.  

Male lion. Maasai Mara, Kenya 

Lioness and cubs. Maasai Mara, Kenya