Description, habitat, reproduction, nutrition, behavior, threats, subspecies, videos and photos of lions. Lion is the king of beasts. How many types of lions exist in the world?

Ecology

Basics:

Known for being some of the only truly social cats, lions prefer to be nomadic and live in groups called prides, and the leadership of these groups mainly belongs to females.

Lions have golden fur, and males have a shaggy mane that ranges in color from light to reddish or even black. Coat color depends on the lion's age, genetics and hormone levels.

Adult male lions can reach a length of up to 3 meters and usually weigh between 150 and 250 kilograms, while females are slightly smaller in size - a maximum of 2.7 meters in length and weigh around 120-180 kilograms. A lion's tail can reach a length of 0.6-1 meter. Asiatic lions are slightly smaller than their African relatives.

The lion's body is ideally suited for hunting: they are strong and fit, have powerful front paws and jaws that help them kill prey.

Lions mainly feed on large animals, such as zebras and wildebeest. They do not hesitate to take prey from other predators - hyenas and leopards. The most important hunters of a pride are females.

Lionesses mate every 2 years and can give birth to 1 to 6 cubs at once 3.5 months after conception. Approximately 60 to 70 percent of lion cubs die in the first year of life. The females of the pride help each other care for their offspring.

IN wildlife Male lions live on average 12 years, and females - 15 years. In the zoo, lions can live longer - more than 20 years.

A pride can contain up to 40 lions, including adult females, adolescent lions (2-4 years old) and 1-2 adult males. Females remain in their mother's pride for life unless food shortage causes the pride to split. Males are driven out of the pride when they become old in order to compete with younger rivals.

Males first travel together with the entire group, which consists of his relatives, and then look for another pride to join. Usually males live in one pride for 2-3 years.

Males and females mark their territories with urine and also drive away rivals with their menacing roars.

Where do they live?

Lions once lived throughout Europe, Africa and North America, but today they can be found mainly in Africa - from the southern edge of the Sahara Desert to northern South Africa. The habitat is savannas.

A small population of lions - about 300 individuals - lives in the Gir forest in western India.

Security status: African lion – vulnerable, Asiatic lion – critically endangered

Lion populations are suffering due to human hunting and taking away the animals' territory, and lions are also threatened by diseases that can be transmitted from domestic dogs in neighboring villages.

Over the past 2 decades, the lion population in Africa has halved by various reasons, including punitive measures against farmers: lions attack livestock.

Human intervention in the Asiatic lion's habitat has threatened their population in the Gir forest.

The closest relatives of lions are tigers, with which lions can interbreed in captivity. As a result, hybrids of these cats are born - liger and tiger lion.

Lions are the second largest cat in size (after tigers).

The menacing roar of a lion can be heard 8 kilometers away in the savannah.

The lion's mane helps the lion defend itself during fights.

Lions can reach speeds of up to 80 kilometers per hour when chasing prey, although they can only travel short distances. The lion's leap reaches 11 meters.

Asiatic lions have sparser manes than African relatives, and on their stomach they have a characteristic skin fold. Ears African lions hidden in the mane, and in Asians they stick out from the mane.

During mating season, lions can mate 20-40 times a day.

Curious where lions live? Representatives of the cat family excite the minds of residents of different continents. It's so interesting to watch their habits... But, zoos aside, are there many predatory animals left in the wild? It's time to learn more about lions while these mammals live on our planet.

Geographical habitats of lions

Some legends and chronicles indicate that lions in the past were encountered from North Africa, India and Pakistan to Greece and Turkey. Predators could not be found in the places where seals live, but a significant part of Europe and even North America was inhabited by these representatives of felines. In Northern and Northwestern India, the lion population persisted for a long time, so the inhabitants of the country have always treated this animal with respect.

Constant wars between lion prides, together with human hunting for valuable skins and luxurious manes, have taken their toll dirty business. Gradually, lions were completely exterminated in Greece, then they began to disappear in Turkey, and then it was Iran’s turn. In Africa alone, the population has declined by about 30-50% over the past two decades.

Reasons for the decline in the number of predators on the planet:

Habitat loss. Human intervention in the extinction of animals may be indirect. Subjugation of nature sometimes has many undesirable consequences. Thus, changing the river bed makes farming easier, but destroys the usual flora and fauna downstream. former current water. Habitat changes make it impossible for the lion population to expand.

Conflicts with a person. For a long time the animal's skin and fluffy mane were under the gun of the hunters. But even listing the animal in the Red Book could not completely save the situation. Free hunters were replaced by poachers who sensed the value and demand of the trophy on the “black market.”

In their natural habitat, lions are currently found mainly in southern and eastern Africa (up to 80% of their total population). In the Erli-Xingu ecosystem (in West Africa) for data from 2002-2004, there were from 850 to 1650 adult individuals. Their habitat occupies almost the entire territory of the continent. south of the desert Sahara.

In India, the only place where predators live freely to this day is the Gir forest. It is located in the west of the country, covering an area of ​​1412 sq. km. In April 2006, 359 adult individuals were counted there. A project to protect the Asiatic lion has been created in India. It is planned to support a second population of these rare animals in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh (in the Kuno Nature Reserve).

Where do lions live?

Cat lovers are very rarely interested in where the skunk lives. If lions do not feed on them, then is it worth focusing on small animals? Usually lion prides They hunt mammals whose body weight ranges from 190 to 550 kg. Such food preferences explain the fact that lions inhabit open areas of the savannah.

Predators are in no hurry to enter the forest, because hunting there is difficult. But in the open area, lions like to hide in the shade of several trees. Usually this special types acacias, although tall shrubs can also be chosen.

How long do lions live?

Free. Males very rarely live more than 10 years in open nature. Constant skirmishes with other lions significantly shorten their lifespan. And when a lion’s skin is of interest to poachers, then 10 years seems like a long time.

In nature reserves or safari parks. Relatively habitat habitat allows you to extend the life of lions to 10-14 years. Nature reserves are different from ordinary nature only because they try to protect them from poachers and periodically feed the animals if necessary.

In zoos. Closed area and significantly limited opportunities predator lead to the fact that the animal quite often reaches the twenty-year mark. In captivity, many lions readily breed, so there are no special problems with their maintenance. If you constantly provide proper nutrition and follow security measures, then large mammal will face his old age calmly.

The lion is one of the large predatory animals belonging to the cat family. There are several varieties of this animal; in addition, many hybrids are known that appeared from the mixing of different species. Each of them has certain characteristics, but also has similarities. Local population lands that are located near the habitat of the beast, calls it a “wild cat” and considers it dangerous, and tries to destroy it. Because of this, the population of these animals has greatly decreased. Meanwhile, the lion is an interesting and unique animal, so it’s worth knowing how it differs from other representatives of the fauna.

Leo - characteristics and description

When characterizing an animal such as a lion, you need to provide a description of it. Different types slightly different from each other, but they have a lot in common.

The animal belongs to the cat family, therefore in appearance it is similar to domestic cats, only it is significantly larger than them. He is one of the most major representatives of this family, second only to the tiger.

The body of the animal is flexible and mobile; they have well-developed muscles of the front legs and neck. There are claws on the paws, the length of which reaches 7 cm. Its head is large, with an elongated muzzle and strong jaws. His fangs are long (about 8 cm), the number of teeth is 30. These features give the lion the ability to hunt large herbivores. The tongue is covered with tubercles, thanks to which the lion can clean its fur from dirt and eliminate insects.

On the muzzle there are whiskers, at the base of which there are small dark spots. These spots form a pattern unique to each animal. Cubs are born spotted, but as they grow older, the spots on their body disappear, and the color of the coat becomes uniform - brown or sand. At the tip of the animal's tail there is a black tassel.

The main feature of this animal species is sexual dimorphism. A male lion and a lioness have significant differences. For example, it is impossible to say how much a lion weighs on average without knowing the sex of a particular individual. Males are significantly larger than females in size and weight. In addition, their head is decorated with a mane, which begins to grow in lion cubs from the age of 6 months. The length of the pile and the thickness of the mane depend on age and genetics.

How much does a lion weigh?

How much an adult lion weighs on average depends on the characteristics of its life. But gender especially affects this indicator. The differences in the main parameters are shown in the table.

Despite its massiveness, this predator has the smallest heart size. Therefore, a lion cannot be called hardy. It can reach speeds of up to 80 km/h, but only covers short distances.

Features of life and habitat

When giving a description of any animal, you need to consider not only it appearance. It is also worth finding out how long a lion lives and where it lives.

There are few places where such an animal as a lion lives. IN last years its distribution area has decreased significantly. Previously, this animal was found not only in Africa and India, as it is now, but also in Iran, Russia, southern Europe and the Middle East. But a significant part of the population was exterminated, and conditions in many areas became unsuitable for their life. Therefore, of all the places where these animals could previously be seen, the lion now lives only in the southern part African continent(beyond the Sahara Desert) and in the Indian state of Gujarat. The most suitable for them are savannas, forests or bushes.

Individuals unite in small flocks - prides. A pride consists of 5 or 6 females, between which there are family connection, their cubs and the male. In some prides there may be two males if they are brothers. Young males, having reached maturity, leave the pride (they are expelled). They have the opportunity to join another pride or create their own. Some of them lead a solitary life.

How much a lioness or male lion weighs depends on their feeding habits. Since the lion is a predator, it leads a hunting lifestyle, feeding on fairly large animals. They may be:

In rare cases, the animal may attack a hippopotamus or small elephant. Sick cheetahs, hyenas and leopards can also become its prey.

Lionesses excel in hunting. They are distinguished by dexterity and agility. Hunting is more difficult for males due to their large size and heavy mane. However, the male needs more food. An adult lion eats about 7 kg of meat per day, while a female needs 5 kg. These animals prefer to hunt at night, creeping up to the prey as far as possible.

Reproduction in lions is not tied to the time of year, but begins with reaching maturity. Males are considered sexually mature at the age of 6 years and females at the age of 4 years.

Males tend to fight for females. Sometimes these fights are so brutal that the competitor dies.

The duration of pregnancy in these animals is 110 days. Shortly before giving birth, the lioness leaves the pride and hides. She can give birth to 1-4 cubs, whose weight is slightly less than 2 kg. Lion cubs are born blind, and they open their eyes only 7 days after birth. For safety reasons, the mother changes her place of stay several times, carrying her children with her. She hunts and feeds her babies with milk. Training cubs to hunt begins at the age of 1.5 months, at which time the entire family joins the pride. With the beginning of the hunt, lion cubs gradually eat meat, although the period of milk feeding lasts about six months.

Lifespan of a lion

One of the important aspects of describing these animals is the question of how long a lion lives. To answer it, you need to take into account many circumstances. How long a lion lives depends on features such as:

• Habitat. How better conditions life, the longer its duration.
• Closeness to people. In close proximity to humans, the risk of extermination of these animals and shortening their lifespan increases.
• Features of life. Lonely individuals live shorter lives than those belonging to a pride.
• Floor. Females have a longer lifespan on average than males because they are less likely to die during fights with other lions.

All these nuances affect how long a lion lives. Therefore, their lifespan varies greatly. On average it is 8-10 years. Some individuals live up to 14 years.

How long a lion lives is greatly influenced by the behavior of people. It has much more impact than other factors. If people do not seek to destroy these animals, then their life expectancy increases. Better results can be achieved if you organize living conditions suitable for animals, for example, nature reserves or zoos. In this case, lions can live 20 or even 25 years, since they are monitored by veterinarians.

Types of lions

How long a lion lives depends also on the variety of this animal. There are several subspecies of lion, each of which differs in certain characteristics, habitat, living conditions and its duration. Some subspecies of this animal have already become extinct, others are at the stage of extinction. There are also several hybrid varieties resulting from crossing with tigers, leopards or jaguars.

Scientists identify 8 main subspecies, one of which is the Asiatic lion. Another name for the subspecies is the Persian lion (or Indian). The Asiatic lion lives in the southern part of Eurasia. Its main habitat is the Girsky Nature Reserve in the Indian state of Gujarat. The Asiatic lion is considered an endangered species. This subspecies is characterized by stockiness. In height, males are slightly more than a meter. Due to its sleek and sparse mane, the Asiatic lion does not seem as large as its representatives African subspecies. The body weight of males is from 160 to 190 kg, lionesses usually weigh 90-120 kg. The length of the body is 2 - 2.5 m. The largest Asian lion has a length of 2.92 m.

The remaining species are found in Africa, which is why they can all be classified as the African lion subspecies. They are characterized by certain general features, for example, sexual dimorphism, coat color, characteristics of life and reproduction, etc. Differences may be in body size and weight.

• Barbary. This subspecies is the largest. It used to spread throughout the African continent, but is now completely exterminated. Males had a mass of up to 270 kg, females - up to 170. Currently, the descendants of these animals can be seen in zoos and nature reserves, but they cannot be called purebred.

• Senegalese. This is also an African lion, living in the west of the continent. The size of these animals is small, the color of the coat is light. Males have almost no mane, or it is very short. You can meet representatives of this subspecies in Nigeria, Guinea and Senegal. Senegalese lions are considered endangered.

• Northern Congolese. He has everything external features, which distinguishes the African lion. Its habitat is savannas in the northeast of Congo. The population size of these animals is gradually decreasing.

• Maasai. Otherwise it is called East African. It differs from other varieties more long paws. Their mane is directed back. The male's body length is 2.5-3 m, the female's is 2.3-2.6 m. These animals inhabit Uganda, Zambia and Mozambique. A large number of Maasai lions are kept in the Maasai Mara Game Reserve in Kenya.

• Katangese. This species is on the verge of extinction. The bulk of it lives in southwest Africa (Zimbabwe, Angola). In length, adult males reach 3.1 m, females - 2.65 m.

• Transvaal. These are lions with black manes. Among the representatives of this subspecies there are individuals whose skin and fur do not have melanocytes. Because of this, they have white fur and pink skin. A lion can be from 2.6 to 3.2 m in length, a lioness - 2.35-2.65 m. Transvaal lions live in southern Africa (Kalahari Desert). They also contain national park Kruger.

• Cape. This species of animal was destroyed in the 19th century. They lived at the Cape of Good Hope (southern Africa). The peculiarity of the species was the black tips of the ears and the presence of a mane on the stomach and shoulders.

This classification is not the only one. There are others to which scientists can add other subspecies.

A notable species of these animals is the mountain lion. It is not very similar to its other relatives; it differs in size and habitat. The mountain lion is distributed throughout America. Its body is from 1 to 1.8 m in length, and its weight can reach 105 kg. This is significantly less than other subspecies. The mountain lion also lacks a mane. Color can vary from gray-brown to brown-yellow. Cougar cubs are born with dark spots and stripes on their bodies, but after 9 months of life these markings begin to fade. The mountain lion prefers to live alone. The exception is mating season and the timing of raising the young.

Another subspecies that may be interesting is cave lion. It is included in some classifications, despite the fact that the cave lion is an extinct species, and it became extinct several thousand years ago. During their lifetime, these animals inhabited Siberia and Europe. The cave lion is one of the ancestors modern lions. The cave lion was larger than its descendants. If you believe the images of these animals, they did not have a mane, or it was very small. It is not known for sure, but there is an assumption that this subspecies of animals also united in prides.

Despite its name, the cave lion never lived in caves. They were chosen by old and sick individuals shortly before death, which is why greatest number the remains of these animals were found there. That's why the cave lion was named so. The cave lion hunted deer and bears. This is how scientists explain the extinction of these animals. With the onset of warming, the number of bears and deer decreased, and the cave lion was not adapted to a different diet.

Black and white lions

A lion is an animal in which you can notice a lot interesting features. One feature concerns the coloring. Some classifications mention varieties such as White Lion and a black lion. But this is wrong. If a lion with a dark or black mane is a real existing subspecies, then animals with white or black coloring are considered an anomaly.

At the same time, it cannot be said that a lion with an exotic coloring is a fiction. There is a genetic mutation called leucism. Because of it, the fur of animals acquires White color. This occurs due to a lack of melanocytes. The result is the appearance of an animal such as a white lion. One might assume that this is an albino lion, but the color of its eyes, which can be either blue or gold, says otherwise.

The white lion is almost no different in its characteristics from other representatives of the species. It is slightly larger than the others. Their weight can reach 310 kg, and the body length of the male exceeds 3 m. The females of such animals are slightly smaller - 2.7 m. A lion with white fur changes color slightly throughout its life, and by old age its body acquires an ivory shade.

The black lion, according to many scientists, does not exist in nature. They consider the photos and videos of such animals found on the Internet to be the result of filming in dark time days or special treatment. Some suggest that, as opposed to albinism, there is a phenomenon of melanism, in which there is too much pigment in the fur of animals. This is possible in jaguars and leopards. As a result of crossing, a lion with a dark shade of fur may be born, but this is only an accident, so there is no need to separate such animals into a separate subspecies.

Powerful, strong, stately and fearless - we are talking about the lion - the king of beasts. Having a warlike appearance, strength, the ability to run quickly and always coordinated, thoughtful actions, these animals will never be afraid of anyone. Animals living next to lions are themselves afraid of their menacing gaze, strong body and powerful jaw. No wonder the lion was nicknamed the king of beasts.

The lion has always been the king of animals, even in ancient times this animal was idolized. For the ancient Egyptians, the lion acted as a sentry creature guarding the entrance to the other world. For the ancient Egyptians, the god of fertility Aker was depicted with lion's mane. IN modern world, on many state emblems the king of beasts is depicted. The coats of arms of Armenia, Belgium, Great Britain, Gambia, Senegal, Finland, Georgia, India, Canada, Congo, Luxembourg, Malawi, Morocco, Swaziland and many others depict the warlike king of beasts. African lion, according to International Convention, entered into the Red Book as an endangered species.

This is interesting!
African lions were first tamed by ancient people back in the eighth century BC.

Description of the African lion

Since childhood, we all know what a lion looks like, just from the mane alone. Small child can recognize the king of beasts. Therefore we decided to give short description this powerful beast. The lion is a powerful animal, but is only slightly more than two meters long. For example, it is much longer than a lion, reaching 3.8 meters in length. The usual weight of a male is one hundred eighty kilograms, rarely two hundred.

This is interesting!
Lions living or in natural history zones specially designated for them always weigh more than their counterparts living in the wild. They move little, eat too much, and their mane is always thicker and larger than wild lions. In natural history areas, lions are looked after, while wild cats in nature they look unkempt, with disheveled manes.

The head and body of lions are dense and powerful. Skin color varies depending on the subspecies. However, the main color for the kings of animals is cream, ocher, or yellow-sand. Asiatic lions are all white and gray in color.

Old lions have coarse hair that covers the head, shoulders and extends down to the lower abdomen. Adults have a black, thick mane or a dark, brown mane. And here is one of the subspecies African lion, Maasai, does not have such a lush mane. The hair does not fall on the shoulders, and there is none on the forehead.

All lions have rounded ears with a yellow spot in the middle. The spotted pattern remains on the skin of young lions until the lionesses give birth to cubs and the males reach sexual maturity. All representatives of lions have a tassel at the tip of their tail. This is where their vertebral section ends.

Habitat

Once upon a time, lions lived in completely different territories than in the modern world. A subspecies of the African lion, the Asiatic, lived mainly in southern Europe, India or inhabited the Middle Eastern lands. The ancient lion lived throughout Africa, but never settled in the Sahara. The American subspecies of lion is therefore called American, as it lived in North American lands. Asiatic lions gradually began to become extinct or exterminated by humans, which is why they were. And African lions remained in small flocks only in the African tropics.

Nowadays, the African lion and its subspecies are found only on two continents - Asian and African. The Asian king of beasts live quietly in Indian Gujarat, where there is a dry, sandy climate, savannah and scrub forests. According to the latest data, all five hundred and twenty-three Asiatic lions have been recorded to date.

There will be more real African lions in Western countries African continent. In the country where the most better climate for lions, Burkina Faso, over a thousand lions. In addition, many of them live in the Congo, there are over eight hundred individuals there.

Wildlife no longer numbers as many lions as there were in the seventies of the last century. To date, they only thirty thousand left, and this is according to unofficial data. African lions have chosen the savannahs of their favorite continent, but even there they cannot be protected from hunters scurrying everywhere in search of easy money.

Hunting and feeding of the African lion

Leos do not like silence and living in silence. They prefer the open spaces of savannas, plenty of water, and settle mainly where their favorite food, artiodactyl mammals, lives. It is not for nothing that they deservedly bear the title of “king of the savannas,” where this animal feels good and free, since he himself understands that he is the ruler. Yes. Male lions do just that, they only dominate, rest most life in the shade of bushes, while the females get food for themselves, him and the lion cubs.

Lions, just like our men, wait for the queen lioness to catch dinner for him and prepare it herself, presenting it “on a silver platter.” The king of animals must be the first to taste the prey brought to him by the female, and the lioness herself patiently waits for her male to eat and leave leftovers from the “royal table” for her and the lion cubs. Males rarely hunt, unless they do not have a female and they are very, very hungry. Despite this, lions will never give offense to their lionesses and cubs if other people's lions encroach on them.

The lion's main food is artiodactyl animals - llamas, wildebeests, zebras. If lions are very hungry, then they will not disdain even rhinoceroses and hippos if they can defeat them in the water. Also does not skimp on game and small rodents, mice and non-venomous snakes. To survive, a lion needs to eat a day over seven kilograms any meat. If, for example, 4 lions unite, then one successful hunt for all of them will bring, desired result. The problem is that among healthy lions there will be sick ones who are unable to hunt. Then they can even attack a person, since, as you know, for them “hunger is no big deal!”

Lion breeding

Unlike many mammals, lions are pack predators and mate at any time of the year, which is why you can often see a picture of an old lioness basking in the sun with lion cubs of different sizes. age category. Despite the fact that females have nothing to worry about, they can calmly bear lion cubs and even walk side by side with other females; males, on the contrary, can seriously fight for a female, even to the point of their death. It is survival of the fittest, and only the strongest lion has the right to possess the female.

The female carries the cubs for 100-110 days, and mainly three or five cubs are born. Lion cubs live in large crevices or caves, which are located in places that are difficult for humans to reach. Lion cubs are born as thirty-centimeter babies. They have a beautiful, spotted color that persists until puberty, which usually occurs in the sixth year of the animal’s life.

In the wild, lions do not live long, on average 16 years, while in zoos lions can live for thirty years.

African lion species

Today, there are eight varieties of the African lion, which differ in color, mane color, length, weight and many other features. There are subspecies of lions that are very similar to each other, except that there are some details that are known only to scientists who have been studying the life and development of lions from the cat family for many years.

Classification of lions

• Cape Lion. This lion has not been in the wild for a long time. He was killed in 1860. The lion differed from its brothers in that it had a blacker and overly thick mane, and there were black tassels on its ears. Cape lions lived in the southern African region, many of them chose the Cape of Good Hope.
• Atlas lion. He was considered the largest and most powerful lion with a massive build and overly dark skin. Lived in Africa, lived in the Atlas Mountains. The Roman emperors loved to keep these lions as guards. It is a pity that the very last Atlas lion was shot dead by hunters in Morocco at the beginning of the 20th century. It is believed that descendants of this subspecies of lion live today, but scientists still argue about their authenticity.
• Indian lion (Asian). They have a more squat body, their fur is not as splayed, and their mane is more sleek. Such lions weigh two hundred kilograms, females even less - only ninety. In the entire history of the existence of the Asiatic lion, one Indian lion was entered into the Guinness Book of Records, whose body length was 2 meters 92 centimeters. Asiatic lions live in Indian Gujarat, where a special reserve is reserved for them.
• Katangese lion from Angola. They called him that because he lives in the province of Katanga. It has a lighter color than other subspecies. An adult Katangese lion reaches three meters in length, and a lioness - two and a half. This subspecies of the African lion has long been considered endangered, since there are very few of them left to live in the world.
• West African lion from Senegal. It has also been on the verge of complete extinction for a long time. Males have a light mane, rather short. Some males may not have a mane. The physique of predators is not large, and the shape of the muzzle is also slightly different, less powerful than that of an ordinary lion. Lives south of Senegal, in Guinea, mainly in central Africa.
• Masai lion. These animals differ from others in that they have longer limbs, and the mane is not tousled, like that of the Asiatic lion, but “neatly” combed back. Masai lions are very large; males can reach a length of over two meters and ninety centimeters. The height of the withers of both sexes is 100 cm. Weight reaches 150 kilograms and above. The habitat of the Masai lion is African southern countries, also live in Kenya, in reserves.
• Congolese lion. Very reminiscent of its African counterparts. Only he lives mainly in the Congo. Just like the Asiatic lion, it is an endangered species.
• Transvaal lion. Previously, it was classified as a Kalahari lion, since by all appearances it was reputed to be a very large animal and had the longest and darkest mane. It is interesting that in some subspecies of the Transvaal or South African lion, significant changes were observed for a long time due to the fact that in the body of lions of this subspecies there were no melanocytes, which secrete a special pigment - melanin. They have white fur and pink skin color. In length, adult individuals reach 3.0 meters, and lionesses - 2.5. They live in the Kalahari Desert. Several lions of this species have been housed in the Kruger nature reserve.
• White lions- Scientists believe that these lions are not a subspecies, but a genetic deviation. Animals that suffer from leukemia have light, white wool. There are very few such animals, and they live in captivity, in the eastern reserve of South Africa.

We would also like to mention the “Barbary lions” (Atlas lion), kept in captivity, whose ancestors lived in the wild and were not as large and powerful as the modern “Berberians”. However, in all other respects, these animals are very similar to modern ones, they have the same shapes and parameters as their relatives.

This is interesting!
There are no black lions at all. Such lions would not survive in the wild. Maybe somewhere they saw a black lion (people who traveled along the Okavango River write about this). It seems that they saw black lions there with their own eyes. Scientists believe that such lions are the result of crossing lions of different colors or between relatives. In general, there is still no evidence of the existence of the black lion.

A lion ( Latin name- Panthera Leo) is a mammal of the cat family and is one of the four " big cats" genus Panthera(the black panther in the photo is his relative). The lion is the second largest cat, after the tiger. Lions are unique in that they are the only cats that live in groups (prides).

Although lions were once found throughout much of Africa, Asia and Europe, they are now found in the wild only in Africa and the Gir Forest of India (in the Sasan Gir National Park). The main habitats of lions are woodlands, savannas and grassy plains.

Characteristics and detailed description of the lion

Male lions are the only cats to have a mane.. The mane gives the lion a regal appearance, earning him the title "king of beasts." The male lion's mane is one of the most distinctive characteristics kind. It makes the lion's head visually larger, perfectly demonstrating its intimidating appearance. This helps the lion in encounters with other lions and with the lion's main competitor in Africa, the spotted hyena.

Male lions weigh between 150 and 225 kg (330-500 lb), while females range between 120 and 150 kg (260-330 lb). Lions' tail length is 70–100 centimeters (2 ft 3 in – 3 ft 3 in). The rear end of the tail ends in a hairy tuft. This tuft hides the tip of the spine, about 5 mm long, which consists of the bones of the last section of the tail fused together. The lion is the only cat to have a tail tuft; the function of this tuft is unknown. It is absent at birth, begins to develop only at 5 months of age, and at 7 months it becomes clearly visible. In the wild, lions live for about 10 - 14 years, but in captivity they can live for more than 20 years.

What do lions eat and who do they hunt?

Lions are carnivores, which means they eat meat. IN natural conditions lions usually hunt wildebeest, zebras and various ungulates (giraffes, buffalos and gazelles). Sometimes lions even hunt young elephants, rhinoceroses and hippopotamuses. Lions can also take prey from hyenas and other predators. Lions are known to be picky eaters and will also eat rodents, small birds, hares and reptiles.

Lions can cover the length of a football field in just six seconds when stalking their prey. The lion's eyes have reflective cells that magnify the image several times and allow you to carefully monitor your prey even in the dark.

At the zoo, the lions' diet consists of specially prepared cat food consisting of chicken (interesting story about the chicken), rabbits (like the one in this photo), lamb and horse meat.

How do lions live in a pride and what do they do?

Lions mostly become active at dusk and at night. Leos spend most of their time resting, often up to 20 hours a day. This happens for many different reasons, including to conserve energy, survive heat, and periods of low prey.

During periods of rest, lions have ample opportunities for communication. They gather and sleep in groups, rub their heads together, and play together. All this is favorable for strengthening their social ties.

Living in a group allows lions to hunt together. Lionesses from the same pride can surround potential prey to attack it from different sides. At all, lions use stalking tactics to hunt, since they are not so hardy for long-term pursuit.

When hunting, lions usually give up the chase after 45-100 meters (50-110 yards). Lions strangle their victims, and more big catch press the neck to the ground to block breathing. This predator may also place its paw on the nose, mouth or throat of prey. The lion easily captures small prey with one swing of one of its massive paws.

Despite their enormous strength and efficiency, lions are not always able to succeed in attacks on prey. If the would-be victim runs away, they wait for a new one. In the animal world there are more effective hunters who catch prey more gracefully - these are dragonflies.

Reproduction of lions and their cubs

Lionesses are capable of bearing offspring several times a year. However, an adult female lion does not produce another litter until her cubs are approximately 2 years old. But if the entire litter dies, she will mate again shortly after the death of the last cub.

The gestation period of lionesses ranges from 110 to 119 days. The litter averages from 3 to 6 cubs. Cubs are usually born in a secluded place, and when they reach 4-6 weeks, they are identified in kindergarten, introduced in prides.

When a new male comes into the pride, he may kill newborn lion cubs, so the females mate with him to produce his own cubs. Young cubs begin to participate in pride hunting at 11 months, although they are not able to survive on their own until about 30 months of age.

Infant mortality among lions is very high, with the percentage of cubs surviving after the first year of life less than 50%. IN lion pack hierarchy is strictly observed. Male lions feed first, then lionesses, and finally lion cubs. In a pride, it often happens that prey is killed once every 3-5 days, so many cubs die of hunger. Nevertheless, the cub is more likely to survive birth into a pride than if a lioness with a cub is on her own.

Conservation status

As usual, when on our website about animals we talk about a specific animal, we end the article with the section " Conservation status". The number of lions is rapidly decreasing, By different estimates the number of individuals living in the wild is between 16,000 and 30,000, down from about 100,000 in the early 1990s. Another danger for the species is that lion populations are often geographically isolated from each other, which leads to a phenomenon called inbreeding (inbreeding).