Lion
Africa
The lion is a big cat known as the king of the African savanna. It's the only cat that lives in a group, called a "pride," where family members hunt together and raise their cubs. The females do most of the hunting as a team.
Quick facts
- Habitat
- It lives in savanna grasslands and scrubland.
- Diet
- It hunts large plant-eaters like zebras, wildebeest, and antelope.
- Size and weight
- Males are 1.7–2.5m long and weigh 150–250kg.
- Lifespan
- 10–14 years in the wild
- Conservation status
- Vulnerable
- Fun facts
- A lion's mighty roar can be heard from 8km away!
It spends as many as 20 hours a day sleeping or resting.
Learn more
The lazy hunter that rules the savanna, the Lion!
The only big cat that lives in social groups
What kind of animal is the lion?
It mainly lives in the savanna grasslands of Africa and India.
- Size — a massive mammal, with males growing up to 2.5m and 250kg.
- Running — it can run up to 80km/h, but with weak endurance, it can only sprint short distances.
- Status — with wild populations sharply declining, it's protected worldwide as a "Vulnerable" (VU) species.
A crown reserved for males
A thick mane is the male lion's most distinctive feature.
- Influenced by testosterone, the mane starts growing impressively around age 4.
- Lions living in cooler climates tend to grow much thicker, darker manes to retain body heat.
- Newborn lion cubs are born spotted with no mane at all.
We're a close-knit extended family
Lions are the only big cat that lives in a social group called a "pride."
- A pride usually consists of several females, their cubs, and 1–4 males forming one family community.
- Females typically stay in the pride they were born into for life, protecting their family.
- They raise cubs communally and groom each other, expressing deep affection.
Sleepyheads, dozing all day
Lions sleep a great deal to conserve energy.
- Out of 24 hours a day, they spend as much as 20 hours resting or sleeping in the shade.
- They're not lazy — they're storing up the tremendous energy needed for short, intense hunts.
- A lion's truly active hours begin at dusk, when it cools down, and continue into the night.
Hunting is perfect teamwork!
Mainly the females join forces to hunt intelligently.
- While one drives the prey forward, the others cooperate by blocking its escape routes.
- Despite their large size, they hunt big herbivores like wildebeest, zebra, and buffalo with excellent teamwork.
- Their soft paw pads let them completely muffle their footsteps and approach quietly despite their massive size.
A natural speaker that echoes across the plains
A lion's voice is one of the loudest, most impressive in the animal kingdom.
- A lion's thunderous roar is so loud it can be clearly heard from as far as 8km away!
- It's mainly used to announce its location and communicate with pride members far away.
- Roaring is most active at dusk or early dawn, when sound carries the farthest.
Not all lions are the same!
Depending on where they live and their genes, they show off distinct charms.
- African lion — lives across the vast savanna and has a thick mane (split into northern and southern subspecies).
- Asiatic lion — found only in the Gir Forest of India, with a slightly shorter mane and a unique fold of skin along the belly.
- White lion — not an albino, but carries a "leucism" gene giving it white fur, though its hunting ability is identical to a typical lion.