- COMMON NAME: African Lions
- SCIENTIFIC NAME: Panthera Leo
- TYPE: Mammals
- DIET: Carnivore
- GROUP NAME: Pride
- SIZE: Head and body, 4.5 to 6.5 feet; tail, 26.25 to 39.5 inches
- WEIGHT: 265 to 420 Pounds
- Many of the females in the pride give birth at about the same time.
- The name for a baby lion is a cub, whelp or lionet.
- Lions usually live-in groups of 10 or 15 animals called prides.
- Lion prides can be as small as 3 or as big as 40 animals.
- In prides the females do most of the hunting and cub rearing.
- A male’s loud roar, usually heard after sunset, can carry for as far as five miles (eight kilometers).
- The roar warns off intruders and helps round up stray members of the pride.
- After the kill the males usually eat first, lionesses next—and the cubs get what’s left.
- Because of their size, strength, and predatory skills, lions are considered one of the “big cats.” Tigers, cheetahs, leopards, jaguars, and cougars are also part of this grouping.
- A female lion needs 5kg of meat a day. A male needs 7kg or more a day.
- Lions go on the hunt for food mostly from dusk till dawn.
- They often hunt in groups of two or three, using teamwork to stalk, surround, and kill their prey.
- Female lions do 85-90% of the prides hunting, whilst the male lions patrol the territory and protect the pride.
- In the wild, lions live for an average of 12 years and up to 16 years. They live up to 25 years in captivity.
- Often known as the ‘king of the jungle’, most lions actually live in the savannah or grasslands.
- Lions run at a speed of up to 81kmph.
- Lions hunt large animals such as zebra and wildebeest.
