FIELD GUIDE Animal Directory
LION
Africa’s largest terrestrial predator, the charismatic “king of the jungle” is the ultimate safari icon. Today, South Africa’s lions are confined to a few protected areas and the continental population has plunged by an estimated 75 per cent since 1990.
FIELD GUIDE Animal Directory
Family and Breeding
The most sociable of the world’s 37 cat species, the lion generally lives in prides of five to ten animals, including an adult male, a few adult females and their offspring. Larger prides also occur, often involving male coalitions; one such grouping, active in Sabi Sands in 2010, had five adult males, four of them siblings. Prides defend their territories, which cover anything from 20 to 200 sq km (8–77 sq miles). Takeover battles are often fought to the death and result in the usurper killing all cubs, thereby encouraging the females back into oestrus sooner. Lions undergo an extraordinary mating ritual. A male and female pair off, mating briefly but violently at gradually increasing intervals of 12–25 minutes for up to 3 days, after which they return to their pride.
Feeding
Hunting is normally a team effort undertaken by females, who rely on stealth more than speed. A common strategy is for one or two lionesses to herd their prey in the direction of other pride members hidden in tall grass. Males seldom take part in a hunt but are quick to exercise their feeding rights once a kill is made. Favoured prey includes antelope, and large prides can even bring down a buffalo. Although not usually thought of as scavengers, lions are not above stealing a carcass from hyenas.
Communication and Voice
Adult lions are most active around dusk and dawn, but cubs interact throughout the day. Subordinate individuals frequently stop to greet or groom dominant pride members, especially when they reunite after a period apart. Although lions are famous for their roar, the most common call, made by females as well as males, is a series of far-carrying moaning grunts that increase in volume, then fade away. As dominant males often move separately from the main pride (regrouping after a kill), this characteristic sound of the African night has the dual purpose of advertising the caller’s presence to the pride and warning rivals off its territory.
DID YOU KNOW?
Unusually among felids, lions seldom take to the trees.
FIELD GUIDE Animal Directory
KEY FACTS
Species
Panthera leo. Local names: Mbube (Zulu), Shumba (Shangaan), Leeu (Afrikaans).
Size
Shoulder height: 100–130 cm (40–50 inches); Weight: up to 280 kg (617 lb).
Population in South Africa
2,100.
Conservation Status
VU.
Reproduction
Females reach sexual maturity at 3 years and give birth to litters of two to six cubs every 18 months.
Habitat
Most often in savannah, but range into all except desert and rainforest.
Seen
Kruger, Sabi Sands, Kgalagadi, Madikwe, Pilanesberg.