African Lion
Common Name: African Lion
Scientific Name: Panthera leo
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Description:The lion is 8 to 10 feet in length and weighs about 400 pounds.
Adult lions have tawny coats, though the color may vary from pale to dark depending on the location on its body. Cubs have dark colored spots on their fur. As the cub gets older, the dark spots fade. An adult male has a mane around its head. The mane helps the lion appear bigger and protects it against the claws and teeth of an opponent. Its claws are retractable. The lifespan of the lion in the wild is about 15 years and 25 years in captivity.
Habitat/Range: The lion lives on the African savannah, which consists of open grassland with thick brush and scattered trees. The African savannah provides open woodlands, thick brush and scrub grass where sufficient cover provides for dens and hunting. The home area of the pride, a group of lions, may cover as many as 100 square miles. A male lion marks its territory with urine to let other male lions know this area is inhabited.
Status in the Wild: Lions are listed as vulnerable by IUCN, the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Biologists believe few lions will survive outside of zoos in the future.
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African Lion Fun-facts
- Lions are the only member of the cat family that have manes and tufted tails
- A lion's roar can be heard up to 5 miles away!
- Lions are the only cats that live in groups (called a pride)
- Tigers are lions' closest relatives
- Female lions do most of the hunting for the pride
- When lions walk their heels don't touch the ground
- Lions are inactive up to 20 hours a day, waiting for the coolest, darkest times of the day to hunt
Sources: Fort Worth Zoo, National Geographic
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Diet: In the wild, a lion's preferred prey includes buffalo, zebra, wildebeest, roan, sable, springbok, impala, warthog, waterbuck and hartebeest. It is also an opportunistic feeder and is known to eat rodents, hares, small birds and reptiles. All members of the group usually eat the captured prey.
Breeding: The gestation period for an African lion ranges from 100-119 days. When a lion cub is born, it weighs about 2 pounds. A litter varies from one to five cubs with an average of two to three cubs. For the first few weeks of a lion cub's life, it nurses and stays hidden in the grass while the mother hunts for food. Its dark spots and tan fur helps it blend with the grass until it is able to travel with its mother. A cub is weaned gradually and starts eating meat at 3 months of age while continuing to nurse for up to six months. Sexual maturity is reached at around 3-4 years, but growth continues until age 6.
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