Lion Facts

Latin name: Panthera leoa full stomach they can go 4 days quite comfortably
 without having to hunt again.
Weights and weight records:The under-part of the lions’ belly is very light in
 colour, almost white and when their bellies are full
The average adult female weighs 160 kg. A reallythey will often lay down on their backs exposing the
large female will reach 200 kg.lighter colour to the sun. The light colour absorbs less
The average adult male weighs 230 kg, with reallyheat from the sun, thus keeping them cooler,
large males reaching 280kg.especially in areas with limited shade.  Lying on their
The heaviest recorded wild lion in South Africa wasbacks also helps with the uncomfortable pressure off
a man-eating lion that was shot, just south of thetheir full stomachs.
Kruger National Park. He weighed 313kg.On a hot day lions will often lick the pads of their
The heaviest living lion today, if he is still alive, isfeet, especially the front feet and then turn them
one that lives in a Canadian zoo weighing at 366kg.upwards to cool them down in the breeze. 
The World Record is 375kg! 
 Running Speed:
Lifespan: 
 From standstill too sprinting, a lion can reach a speed
On average, the females live for 17 years and theof close on 80km/h in just 3 seconds! It can run at
males 15.this speed for 300 - 400 meters.
The oldest lion that I've heard of was a male in a 
Zoo in Sri Lanka that reached the age of 26 Interesting Lion Theory
years. Lions living in Zoo's don't have the stress of 
defending their territories against other males andIn many game reserves in Africa there are
don't have to hunt for themselves, which couldover-populations of lion and what is often
possibly be the reason for living a longer life span.noticeable is how many of the pregnant females
 are giving birth to more male cubs than females. On
Feeding and temperature control:average a mother will give birth to three cubs,
 normally 2 females and 1 male, but in over-populated
The females hunt more than the males do. They areareas this is often the reverse with the mother
also more successful at hunting as they have agiving birth to 2 males and 1 female cub.  
better camouflage and are far more paient.. MatureOver a period of time as the population increases,
male lions are often seen by their prey from longthere will be far too many males. At the age of
distances, especially if they have full dark manes. Theabout 3 and a half years these males will be forced
males are very capable of hunting and will often joinout of their prides by their parents and then
the hunt when it involves large prey such as buffalostart living a nomadic life until they are old enough to
or even rhino and young elephant where extrafight for their own territories. Competition between
weight and power is needed to pull down such largethe males is very tough with there being so many
animals. Once a kill has been made the males willof them in the same area and not enough
often take over. The males being stronger and largerspace, resulting in more fighting and thus an increase
will get more to eat, leaving the females to feed offin the male mortality rate. Gradually the male lion
the scraps or nothing atpopulation will drop, leaving only the strong and
 Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â    healthy ones behind.
A big male lion will very easily eat 20kg of meat! ItAt the same time, with there being so few female
can eat equivalent to 10% of its own body mass.cubs, this will also slow the population growth as
Once a lion has eaten as much as it can, it starts tothere are now fewer females to give birth to their
breathe very heavily. With the stomach being so full,own young in the future.
it puts pressure on the ribcage, making breathingSo nature seems to control its own animal numbers is
more difficult. The heavy breathing cools downsome way or another.
the lion and slows its metabolism down as well. On