Interesting Facts about Lions

Have you watched the Disney movie- ‘The Lion King’? If yes, then you probably remember the little Simba. Yes? Ever wonder what ‘Simba’ means? Well, ‘Simba’ is derived from a native African language called Swahili, and it merely means ‘Lion.’ Now, isn’t Simba a fantastic name? I mean, Simba is so iconic that people very often mistake it to be the title of the movie. Alright, without further cuteness overload- let’s see some of the interesting facts about lions: –

• The lions are the only big cats that live in groups. A group of lions is called a ‘Pride’ (Remember the Pride Rock?). Other big cats include tiger, leopard, snow leopard, and jaguar.
• A pride can be about 15 to 40 lions- where the female lions account for more than the male lions.
• One of the interesting facts about lions is that they can count. Prides usually challenge each other by knowing how many lions are there in a pride. The more immense the pride, the stronger they are.
• You can hear a lion’s roar from as far as eight kilometers away.
• A pride marks their territory by the male lion going about urinating and defecating to leave a pungent smell, which acts as the territory’s border.
• Generally, it is not the male lion who hunts for food even though they are the biggest and strongest but the female lions. Male lions can hunt but typically take the responsibility of protecting the territories.
• Lions are the more social one among the big cats.
• Every lion cub is born with spots on them, which eventually fades away as they get older. These spots help to camouflage them from predators.
• African and Asiatic lions are under threat for extinction, with only about 20,000 and 600 of them, respectively. The danger is mainly due to organized poaching and climate changes.
• Lions came from different parts of Europe, Africa, and Asia. However, you can now only see lions in Africa and a national forest park at Gir in India.
• Ever heard the phrase- ‘lion is the king of the jungle’? Well, an interesting fact about lions is that they do not live precisely in a jungle (imagine Mowgli’s jungle). Lions’ habitat is usually out in open grasslands and woodlands. But yes, they are definitely ‘the king.’
• You can tell the age of a lion by the color of its mane. The darker the color, the older the lion.
• A lion’s heel never touches the ground when it walks.
• One of the interesting facts about lions is that though they’re mighty and robust- they can also be lazy animals. They sleep for a long 16 to 20 hours a day.
• Lions cannot run for a long time; they’re generally sprinters. They can run short distances for about 50 mph and jump a distance of about 36 feet.
• An interesting fact about lions is that they can go for days without drinking water, but they need to eat food every day.
• Lions generally roar to scare off other lion prides and animals, but they also communicate with each other through mews and purrs.
• Lions rub their heads on each other to spread their scent as a way of bonding.
• Finally, for the cutest fact about lions- lion babies are also called, besides cubs, lionets, and whelps.