LEOANIMALIACHORDATA MAMMALIA CARNIVORA FELIDAEPANTHERA

THE KING OF THE JUNGLE

PANTHERA LEO

o Lions have yellow/gold fur with brown manes.

o They have tails (1 each) extending their anuses.

o Sensory Organs:o Sight – Lions have very good eyesight. They can see very

well during the night; they can see color.o Smell – They have a very keen sense of smell, allowing

them to hunt efficiently.o Hearing – Lions have good hearing; they use it to sense

danger.o Taste – Lions have the ability to taste the food they eat.o Touch – They can feel when their bodies come into contact

with other objects.

o Lions have darker fur around their heads called manes.

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

o Lions are native to the southern half of Africa, and certain parts of Asia.

o The temperature of lion’s habitats ranges from hot to cool.

o Lions require large amounts of water to survive –not only for their survival, but for the survival of their prey.

o Lions have a population below 21,000; considered vulnerable, but not endangered.

o The population of lions is being protected by the creation and maintenance of game reserves in both Africa and Asia.

HABITAT & POPULATION

o Lions eat a wide variety of animals including wildebeest, impala, zebra, giraffe, buffalo, wild hogs and even rhinos.

o Lions usually sleep after eating, during the day or the night. Lionesses usually hunt for the males; males without prides do hunt for themselves.

o Lions maintain their body temperature by using energy in the food the eat.

o Lions live in organized groups of 10-20 called prides.o Usually contains 2-3 males; females and their relatives

make up the rest of the space.

o Males are the heads of prides. They protect the pride’s territory, and reproduce with lionesses. Lions mark their territory by scent.

BEHAVIOUR

o Females go into heat multiple times every year, males can reproduce at any time.

o The average gestation period is around 110 days (3½ months).

o Females give birth to litters of 1-4 cubs.

o Most lionesses reproduce by 4 years of age.

o Lions reproduce sexually, and give birth to live young.

REPRODUCTION

o Lions have 4-chambered hearts, with closed circulatory systems.

o The lions’ digestive system is fairly simple –food goes from the mouth to the esophagus; then to the stomach, where food is reduced to liquid form; it goes to the liver, where bile salts are provided; the food proceeds to the pancreas; and finally the small and large intestines.

o The lion is a very cephalized animal, as 4 of its 5 senses are on the head.

o Lions move when muscles attached to skeletons in the body contract, pulling the bones and causing the lion to move.

INTERNAL ORGANS

PICTURES OF LIONS

Did you know?

A lion’s roar can be heard from more than 8 kilometers away.

Bauer, H., Nowell. Panthera leo (Lion, African Lion). 2008. 24 May 2011 <http://www.iucnredlist.org/apps/redlist/details/15951/0>.

Bowen, R. Basic Functional Anatomy of the Digestive System. 18 March 2004. 18 May 2011 <http://www.vivo.colostate.edu/hbooks/pathphys/digestion/basics/anatomy.html>.

S., Chase. Lion - Panthera Leo. 2000. 23 May 2011 <http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/lion.htm>. 

REFERENCES