The lion is one of the five big cats in the genus "Panthera" and a member of the family Felidae. The commonly used term African lion collectively denotes the several subspecies found in Africa. With some males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger.
Similar species: Carnivorans
By Maarten
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Uploaded Jan 15, 2015. Captured Mar 6, 2011 11:36.
comments (5)
I see you already figured out species identification and the proper reuse of tags. That's awesome. As a warm welcome to the community, this one goes to the homepage. Posted 8 years ago
From JungleDragon's Facebook page:
"Today is World Lion Day! It's a day designated to celebrate lions and to raise awareness for the conservation of these regal predators. First, let's admire African lions (Panthera leo) for some of their incredible creature features! Their brains are like 3-D maps and function like a video game. They are able to memorize every inch of their enormous territories so they can successfully outwit prey! Their stealthy, ninja-like prowess enables them to silently stalk prey, who often won't even see the lion's approach until it is too late. Amazing! But, these majestic cats are facing some serious issues. Due to habitat loss, human-wildlife conflict, and trophy hunting, lion populations are in decline. There are only approximately 1/10 the number of lions alive in Africa today as there were in 1975. That is dreadful news - for lions and humans. This is a major problem because every species is important to the health of an ecosystem. Removing even one species can weaken a habitat. But, since lions are apex predators and keystone species with no natural enemies, other species in the ecosystem depend upon them. If a keystone species is removed, the entire ecosystem could collapse. How can one species matter so much? Well, if lions disappear, populations of buffalo and zebra will increase significantly. As the populations of large herbivores increase, the amount of available vegetation in these regions decreases. These herbivorous grazers would devour the grasses, turning the savannah into a desert. This will then have a severe impact on other plant-eating animals and insects. So, let's acknowledge their importance and celebrate these beautiful and fearsome creatures. Imagine what it would be like if the African lion only existed in pictures, movies, stories, and statues. Let's not be the generation that allows this sad fate to befall this iconic species. Awareness is our purpose today with the hope of education, which will lead to conservation as the outcome! Please consider sharing this post in support of World Lion Day. {Spotted in Tanzania by JungleDragon user, Maarten} #JungleDragon" Posted 4 years ago