The Lion, King of Beasts

The Lion is one of the largest members of the cat family. The lion's size and strength have captured human imagination since ancient times, giving these animals the nickname king of beasts. Lions are also known for their mighty roar, a fearsome sound that can be heard by humans more than 8 km (5 mi) away.

Lions once ranged over vast areas on many continents. Fossil evidence shows that until about 10,000 years ago, lions lived throughout Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and into Asia as far as southern India and the island of Sri Lanka. They also lived in North America and northern South America. Since then, however, the lion's range has been shrinking steadily. Human hunters have killed countless numbers of lions as well as the hoofed mammals that lions eat. In many places, people have taken over the lion's habitats, which often are good places to farm and raise cattle. These habitats include grassy plains, savannas, and dry woodlands but never thick forests or jungle. Today, lions are found in the wild in only two places on earth. About 100,000 lions survive in Africa south of the Sahara Desert. Another 300 lions, called Asian lions, live in a reserve called the Gîr National Park and Lion Sanctuary in northwest India. In both places, lions continue to be threatened by human activities. Thousands of lions also live in zoos and circuses around the world.

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
Lions rival tigers for the title of biggest cat. In fact, lions and tigers are so similar in their physical features that without their distinctively colored fur, even scientists have trouble telling them apart. Male lions weigh between 150 and 250 kg (330 and 550 lb) and stand about 123 cm (about 48 in) tall at the shoulder. They measure up to 250 cm (98 in) in length, not including the tail, which measures an additional 90 to 105 cm (35 to 41 in). Female lions are smaller, weighing between 120 and 182 kg (265 and 400 lb). They stand about 107 cm (about 42 in) tall and measure less than 175 cm (less than 69 in) in length, with a slightly shorter tail.

Lions have massive shoulders and strong forelimbs, long, sharp claws, and short, powerful jaws. As carnivores, feeding entirely on the flesh of other mammals, lions have 30 teeth, including large piercing canines to grab and kill prey, scissorlike molars to slice into flesh, and small incisors to scrape meat from bones.

Adult lions have fur that varies in color from light tan to reddish brown. The tufted tail is tipped in darker fur. Only male lions grow a mane around the shoulders, which grows darker and fuller as the animal ages. Cubs are born with thickly spotted fur, which helps them hide from predators in brush and clumps of vegetation. The spots gradually fade as the cubs grow up, sometimes remaining on the legs and belly until the lion reaches adulthood.