African Lion Facts Biography
source(google.com.pk)A lioness will produce a litter of cubs about every two years. Shortly before giving birth, she chooses a suitable site for her lair, which must be sheltered, close to water, out of sight, and safe from potential predators. The cubs are born blind, with a spotted coat. For two months they are completely dependent on their mother’s milk.
At six weeks they begin to accompany their mother to the kill, where they acquire a taste of meat and learn how to hunt. A lion cub cannot tear meat until it has permanent teeth - usually produced once it has reached about one year old, so it continues to rely on its mother for food. Slowly the cubs will master the art of hunting and by 15 months the cubs will be able to catch and kill small prey.
When the cubs reach two years of age, their mother is usually pregnant again and they are forced to leave her. However, some female cubs may be allowed to stay in the pride, but the dominant male will drive out all the male cubs. Less than half the young lion survive their first few weeks alone .
What do Lions eat?
Lionesses usually hunt for the pride which is probably why they are more aggressive by nature. However, the male lion will always take precedence at the kill, dragging the prey in to the shade, then gorging himself before the females and cubs begin to eat.
The male lion usually stays and watches its young while waiting for the lionesses to return from the hunt. Typically, several lionesses work together and encircle the herd from different points. Once they have closed with a herd, they usually target the closest prey. The attack is short and powerful; they attempt to catch the victim with a fast rush and final leap. The prey usually is killed by strangulation, which can cause cerebral ischemia or asphyxia (which results in hypoxemic, or "general", hypoxia). The prey also may be killed by the lion enclosing the animal's mouth and nostrils in its jaws which would also result in asphyxia. Smaller prey, though, may simply be killed by a swipe of a lion's paw.
However, lions are not particularly known for their stamina—for instance, a lioness' heart makes up only 0.57 percent of her body weight (a male's is about 0.45 percent of his body weight), whereas a hyena's heart is close to 1 percent of its body weight. Therefore, they only run fast in short bursts, and need to be close to their prey before starting the attack. They take advantage of factors that reduce visibility; many kills take place near some form of cover or at night. They sneak up to the victim until they reach a distance of around 30 metres (98 ft) or less.
The lions preferred prey are wildebeest and zebra which are slower and easier to catch than small antelopes and gazelles.
When water is scarce, lions will often lie in wait close to a water hole, knowing that its prey will eventually go there to drink.
When prey is scarce, lions will then eat almost anything, including carrion. They may even attack larger prey such as giraffe, buffalo, and hippopotamus. They are have also been known to take on elephants and rhinoceros, but this is rare due to the danger of injury.
Of course, lions will also attack domestic livestock. In India, cattle contribute significantly to their diet. Lions are also quite capable of killing other predators such as leopards, cheetahs, hyenas, and wild dogs, though unlike most big cats, they will seldom eat the competitors after killing them.
A lion may gorge itself and eat up to 66 lb in one sitting, and if it is unable to consume all the kill it will rest for a few hours before consuming more. An adult lioness requires an average of about 11 lb of meat per day, while a male needs about 15.5 lb.
Lion facts
1.There may be one species of lion but did you know that it was believed that there were up to 12 subspecies of lion? Unfortunately, some of these subspecies are now extinct and others have been discounted for being too similar. So today we are left with 8 - for now.
2. Lions have been known to breed with tigers (most often the Siberian and Bengal subspecies) to create hybrids called ligers and tiglons (or tigons). They also have been crossed with leopards to produce leopons and jaguars to produce jaglions. The marozi is reputedly a spotted lion or a naturally occurring leopon, while the Congolese Spotted Lion is a complex lion-jaguar-leopard hybrid called a lijagulep. Such hybrids were once commonly bred in zoos, but this is now discouraged due to the emphasis on conserving species and subspecies. Hybrids are still bred in private menageries and in zoos in China.
3. The lion is the tallest (at the shoulder) of all living cats, averaging about 14 cm (5.5 in) taller than the tiger. Behind only the tiger, the lion is the second largest living big cat in length and weight.
4. The longest known lion, at nearly 3.6 m (12 ft) in total length, was a black-maned male shot near Mucsso, southern Angola in October 1973; the heaviest lion known in the wild was a man-eater shot in 1936 just outside Hectorspruit in eastern Transvaal, South Africa and weighed 313 kg (690 lb).
5. The mane of the adult male lion, unique among cats, is one of the most distinctive characteristics of the species. It makes the lion appear larger, providing an excellent intimidation display; this aids the lion during confrontations with other lions and with the species' chief competitor in Africa, the spotted hyena.
6. The white lion is not a distinct subspecies, but a special morph with a genetic condition, leucism that causes paler colouration akin to that of the white tiger; the condition is similar to melanism, which causes black panthers. They are not albinos, having normal pigmentation in the eyes and skin.
7. Lions are the most socially inclined of all wild big cats, most of which remain quite solitary in nature.
8. Lions spend much of their time resting and are inactive for about 20 hours per day.
9. Lionesses do the majority of the hunting for their pride, being smaller, swifter and more agile than the males, and unencumbered by the heavy and conspicuous mane, which causes overheating during exertion.
10. The Nile crocodile is the only sympatric predator (besides humans) that can singly threaten the lion. Depending on the size of the crocodile and the lion, either can lose kills or carrion to the other. Lions have been known to kill crocodiles venturing onto land, while the reverse is true for lions entering waterways, as evidenced by the occasional lion claw found in crocodile stomachs.
11. Although adult lions have no natural predators, evidence suggests that the majority die violently from humans or other lions. Lions often inflict serious injuries on each other, either members of different prides encountering each other in territorial disputes, or members of the same pride fighting at a kill.
12. Lions have an array of facial expressions and body postures that serve as visual gestures. Their repertoire of vocalizations is also large. Lion sounds include snarling, purring, hissing, coughing, meowing, woofing and roaring. Lions tend to roar in a very characteristic manner, starting with a few deep, long roars that trail off into a series of shorter ones. They most often roar at night; the sound, which can be heard from a distance of 8 kilometres (5.0 mi), is used to advertise the animal's presence. Lions have the loudest roar of any big cat.
African Lion Facts Funny Lion Pictures King Pictures King Quotes King Memes Pics King Pics King Gif Cartoon Pics Wallppaers Photos Images
African Lion Facts Funny Lion Pictures King Pictures King Quotes King Memes Pics King Pics King Gif Cartoon Pics Wallppaers Photos Images
African Lion Facts Funny Lion Pictures King Pictures King Quotes King Memes Pics King Pics King Gif Cartoon Pics Wallppaers Photos Images
African Lion Facts Funny Lion Pictures King Pictures King Quotes King Memes Pics King Pics King Gif Cartoon Pics Wallppaers Photos Images
African Lion Facts Funny Lion Pictures King Pictures King Quotes King Memes Pics King Pics King Gif Cartoon Pics Wallppaers Photos Images
African Lion Facts Funny Lion Pictures King Pictures King Quotes King Memes Pics King Pics King Gif Cartoon Pics Wallppaers Photos Images
African Lion Facts Funny Lion Pictures King Pictures King Quotes King Memes Pics King Pics King Gif Cartoon Pics Wallppaers Photos Images
African Lion Facts Funny Lion Pictures King Pictures King Quotes King Memes Pics King Pics King Gif Cartoon Pics Wallppaers Photos Images
African Lion Facts Funny Lion Pictures King Pictures King Quotes King Memes Pics King Pics King Gif Cartoon Pics Wallppaers Photos Images
African Lion Facts Funny Lion Pictures King Pictures King Quotes King Memes Pics King Pics King Gif Cartoon Pics Wallppaers Photos Images
African Lion Facts Funny Lion Pictures King Pictures King Quotes King Memes Pics King Pics King Gif Cartoon Pics Wallppaers Photos Images
African Lion Facts Funny Lion Pictures King Pictures King Quotes King Memes Pics King Pics King Gif Cartoon Pics Wallppaers Photos Images
African Lion Facts Funny Lion Pictures King Pictures King Quotes King Memes Pics King Pics King Gif Cartoon Pics Wallppaers Photos Images
African Lion Facts Funny Lion Pictures King Pictures King Quotes King Memes Pics King Pics King Gif Cartoon Pics Wallppaers Photos Images
African Lion Facts Funny Lion Pictures King Pictures King Quotes King Memes Pics King Pics King Gif Cartoon Pics Wallppaers Photos Images
African Lion Facts Funny Lion Pictures King Pictures King Quotes King Memes Pics King Pics King Gif Cartoon Pics Wallppaers Photos Images
African Lion Facts Funny Lion Pictures King Pictures King Quotes King Memes Pics King Pics King Gif Cartoon Pics Wallppaers Photos Images
African Lion Facts Funny Lion Pictures King Pictures King Quotes King Memes Pics King Pics King Gif Cartoon Pics Wallppaers Photos Images
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