Lions and subspecies
In India, the Asiatic lion only lives in one ultimate refuge: the Gir Forest National Park in the state of Gujarat. After coming quite close to extinction in the 20th century, effective protection measures have allowed the lion population to increase again in recent decades in this reserve, reaching around 650 specimens in 2017 (compared to 523 in 2015 and 411 in 2010). As the reserve is now too small to support such a rapidly growing lion population, reintroduction projects in other parts of India and Iran are regularly discussed.
The male lion hunts only occasionally, he is responsible for fighting the intrusions into the territory and threats against the troops. The lion roars. There are only 16,500 to 30,000 individuals left in the wild in the African savannah, divided into two subspecies, and about 300 in the Gir Forest National Park (northwestern India). He is nicknamed "the king of beasts" because his mane gives him a look similar to the Sun, which appears as "the king of the stars". Between 1993 and 2017, its population fell by 43%.
Males and females do not leave spontaneously
If young males (and sometimes young females) have not spontaneously left the tribe by the age of three and a half at the latest, they are chased away. They leave alone or, most often, by two or three individuals of the same age, and become nomads. This emigration contributes to maintaining the balance between the numbers of the group and the quantity of prey available. The young wandering lions prowl around the other troops, watching for signs of weakness or old age of the males they will take their place.
The rotation of males within a troop would take place every 2 or 3 years. The size of pride is highly variable, ranging from 2 to 40 individuals Observing a pride of lions over 7 years highlights the regulation system of the group to maintain a relatively stable number of females and young constituents in the band. At the end of the 1st year, the original group of males is driven out by a new group, which in turn is driven out about 3 years later.
We note, in this second rotation (4th year), the departure of 5 young adults (3 females and 2 males) and the death of 8 young born in the year (probably killed by the new males having taken possession of the troop ). Then, the following year, a very high birth rate restores the normal average of the total population of females and young
African lions: size overview
The African lion subspecies are mainly differentiated by the size of the body and the mane. Thus, the Senegal lion (or the West African lion) is considered the smallest of the African lions (inhabiting only sub-Saharan Africa). His mane is also shorter. It is distinguished by the shape of the skull which differs from that of other lion subspecies.
The Maasai lion is less massive than other African lions. His back is less curved, and his legs are longer. It has a less bushy mane than other lion subspecies. The knee joints of the male are covered with small tufts of hair. The male weighs an average of 175 kg. It is 2.5 to 3 m long (including tail) and about 1 m high The Asiatic lion (Panthera leo persica) is very similar to the African lion. According to biomolecular research, it separated 50,000 to 100,000 years ago from its African cousin. It has a smaller mane and a fold in the middle of the belly.
To this must be added much more hair at the elbow. The Asian lion is generally smaller than the African, it is 10 to 20% smaller than the African lion. An adult male has a body mass between 160 and 190 kilograms, and a female is between 110 and 120 kilograms. It once spanned the entire Indian subcontinent. The size of the group is on average smaller than that of its African counterpart.
Lion hatching in South Africa
Lion populations are very concentrated because they are contained in parks or reserves, other areas become unsuitable for their survival by becoming agricultural land. The loss of genetic diversity leads to the appearance of diseases, as has been observed in the Hluhluwe-Umfolozi reserve in South Africa, where the 120 lions present in the 2000s are descended from 3 lions in the 1960s. biologists estimate that 500 to 1,000 adult individuals have the genetic diversity necessary for one of their populations to be considered viable, that is to say having the minimum genetic diversity necessary for survival.
Few of these populations correspond to this criterion. The percentage of successful attempts also varies according to the species hunted: approximately 14% in the case of antelopes (damalisques, waterbucks, kudus, elands, hartebeest, oryx), 38% for zebras and wildebeests, and 47% for warthogs. Night hunting results in 33% success, compared to 21% for daytime hunting, and attacks in bushes (41%) are 3.5 times more likely to succeed than attacks in the open (12%) - according to studies. In times of drought, lions even eat animals that have died of disease or the remains of other predators.
The American lion (Panthera leo atrox)
The American lion (Panthera leo atrox) was present from Alaska to Peru throughout the Upper Pleistocene. These lions looked a lot like modern lions but were much larger. According to certain representations in the caves, the American lion would have had some stripes, but much less important than those of the tiger. It is assumed that they then hunted slower but more robust animals, such as bison, but their strength and weight allowed them to bring down the prey to the ground.
They also attacked horses, deer, and even young mammoths. Many lions have been found in the remains of human camps dated to the Paleolithic, which suggests that lions were hunted by men Hunters from the Upper Paleolithic (Aurignacian) already represented the lion more than 30,000 years ago.
The cave lion can be easily identified due to the presence of a tuft of hair at the end of the tail in Paleolithic depictions. The lion is represented with the face turned towards the observer and not in profile in African prehistoric art because of legends that attribute its magical powers linked to its gaze.
The lion man, a mammoth ivory sculpture almost 30 centimeters high, representing the body of a man surmounted by the head of a cave lion, is among the most impressive works of art of this period, but also among the oldest in all of human history.