Beastfile · Mammals

Lion

Panthera leo

The only cat that lives in a group, and the females run it.

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Overview

Of roughly forty cat species, the lion is the only one that genuinely lives socially. A pride is built around related females who stay for life, hunt together and raise cubs communally, often nursing each other’s young. Males are transient by comparison: they arrive in coalitions, hold tenure for a few years, and are pushed out by the next group. Cooperative hunting is what group living buys, letting lions take prey far larger than an individual could manage. The mane appears to advertise condition to other lions rather than protect the neck, and it darkens with age and testosterone.

Origin

Savannah, grassland and open woodland in sub-Saharan Africa, with a single small remnant population of Asiatic lions in the Gir Forest of India.

Habitat

Savannah

Notable Traits

•The only truly social cat
•Prides are built around related females who stay for life
•Males hold tenure in coalitions for only a few years
•Females nurse each other’s cubs
•A roar audible from around eight kilometers away

Conservation

Vulnerable, with the population down substantially over recent decades. The pressures are habitat loss, declining prey, and conflict with livestock farmers.