The lion population in Africa has been reduced by half since the early 1950s.today fewer than 21000 remain in all of Africa.
- Lions live in grasslands, scrubs and open woodlands of sub-Sahara Africa. The lion is the second largest cat in the world.
- African lions are the most social of all big cats and live together in group’s or prides.althought extremely larger prides, consisting of up to individuals which have been observed .the average pride consists of five or size females and their cubs of both sexes and one or two male cubs.
- They live for about 10 to 14 years in the wild while in captivity they live for as long as 20 to 25years of age and are 6 times more sensitive to light than humans. This gives them a distinct advantage over some prey species when hunting at night.
- Male lions are measured 184 to 208cm (72 -82 inches) long and for the females is from 160 to 184 cm (63-72 inches).
- The male lion weighs 180 kg (400ib) while average female lions weigh 130kg (290ib).The heaviest lion on record was 375kg(826ib).lions can reach speeds of 81 kph(50mph) but only in short burst because of a lack of stamina.an adult males roar can be heard up to 8kms (5miles) away.
- African lions eat large animals that they find in the grasslands i.e., antelopes, zebras and wilderbeasts.a female lion needs 5kgs of meat a day and a male needs 7kgs or more a day.
- The female lion going through a gestation period of 4 months period and they start mating at the ages of 3 to 4 years, they produce 6 cubs and hide them for the first 6 weeks of their lives.
- Female cubs stay with the group as thy age.at around two years old, they become capable hunters but young males are forced the pride at that age. Two or more lionesses in a group tend to give birth around the same time and the cubs are raised together. Cubs are extremely playful.
Lions can often survive in extreme drought conditions, eating tsama melons for moisture in the Kalahari Desert. In cases where food is not available or for the purposes of easing digestion lions eat GRASS
- Lions eat loads of meat, sometimes they suffer from indigestion and to come out of this problem, they eat grass as a natural remedy for that problem. The particles in that grass cleans the intestines of such animals.
“Without grass for animals to eat, the world would be a very different place”
