View source for Panthera leo leo

{{For the|the internet personality|Northernlion}}{{Short description|Lion subspecies}}
{{Subspeciesbox
| name = ''Panthera leo leo''
| image = Lionss of king.jpg
| image_caption = [[Asiatic lion]]s in [[Gir Forest National Park]]
| genus = Panthera
| species = leo
| species_link = Lion
| subspecies = leo
| authority = ([[Carl Linnaeus|Linnaeus]], [[10th edition of Systema Naturae|1758]])
| synonyms = * ''P. l. gambianus''
* ''P. l. persica''
* ''P. l. senegalensis''
* ''P. l. nubicus''
* ''P. l. kamptzi''
* ''P. l. azandica''
| synonyms_ref = <ref name=MSW3/>
}}

'''''Panthera leo leo''''' is a [[lion]] [[subspecies]] present in [[West Africa]], northern [[Central Africa]] and [[India]].<ref name="Catsg2017">{{cite journal |author1=Kitchener, A. C. |author2=Breitenmoser-Würsten, C. |author3=Eizirik, E. |author4=Gentry, A. |author5=Werdelin, L. |author6=Wilting, A. |author7=Yamaguchi, N. |author8=Abramov, A. V. |author9=Christiansen, P. |author10=Driscoll, C. |author11=Duckworth, J. W. |author12=Johnson, W. |author13=Luo, S.-J. |author14=Meijaard, E. |author15=O'Donoghue, P. |author16=Sanderson, J. |author17=Seymour, K. |author18=Bruford, M. |author19=Groves, C. |author20=Hoffmann, M. |author21=Nowell, K. |author22=Timmons, Z. |author23=Tobe, S. |name-list-style=amp |year=2017 |title=A revised taxonomy of the Felidae: The final report of the Cat Classification Task Force of the IUCN Cat Specialist Group |journal=Cat News |issue=Special Issue 11 |pages=71−73 |url=https://repository.si.edu/bitstream/handle/10088/32616/A_revised_Felidae_Taxonomy_CatNews.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y#page=71}}</ref> In West and Central Africa it is restricted to fragmented and isolated populations with a declining trajectory.<ref name=Chardonnet2002>{{cite book |author=Chardonnet, P. |year=2002 |title=Conservation of the African Lion: Contribution to a Status Survey |location=Paris |publisher=International Foundation for the Conservation of Wildlife, France & Conservation Force, USA |chapter=Chapter II: Population Survey |pages=21–101}}</ref><ref name="Bauer_ vanderMerwe">{{Cite journal |last1=Bauer |first1=H. |last2=Van Der Merwe |first2=S. |name-list-style=amp |doi=10.1017/S0030605304000055 |title=Inventory of free-ranging lions ''Panthera leo'' in Africa |journal=Oryx |volume=38 |year=2004 |issue=1 |pages=26–31|doi-broken-date=2024-09-28 |doi-access=free }}</ref> It has been referred to as the '''northern lion'''.<ref name="Wood1865">{{cite book |last=Wood |first=J. G. |author-link=John George Wood |title=The Illustrated Natural History. Mammalia, Volume 1 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |chapter=Felidæ; or the Cat Tribe |page=129−148 |location=London |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=v1DPAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA147 |year=1865}}</ref><ref name=Hunter2018>{{cite book |last1=Hunter |first1=L. |author-link=Luke Hunter |last2=Barrett |first2=P. |name-list-style=amp |title=The Field Guide to Carnivores of the World |edition=2 |publisher=Bloomsbury |location=London, Oxford, New York, New Delhi, Sydney |isbn=978-1-4729-5080-2 |date=2018 |chapter=Lion ''Panthera leo'' |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4HpxDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA46 |pages=46−47}}</ref><ref name="Aebischer">{{cite journal |author1=Äbischer, T. |author2=Ibrahim, T. |author3=Hickisch, R. |author4=Furrer, R. D. |name-list-style=amp |author5=Leuenberger, C. |author6=Wegmann, D. |year=2020 |title=Apex predators decline after an influx of pastoralists in former Central African Republic hunting zones |journal=Biological Conservation |volume=241 |page=108326 |doi=10.1016/j.biocon.2019.108326 |bibcode=2020BCons.24108326A |s2cid=213766740 |url=https://doc.rero.ch/record/328409/files/weg_apd.pdf}}</ref>

Results of a [[phylogeographic]] study indicate that lion populations in West and Central African range countries are genetically close to populations in India, forming a major [[clade]] distinct from lion populations in [[Southern Africa|Southern]] and [[East Africa]].<ref name="Bertola_al2016">{{cite journal |author1=Bertola, L. D. |author2=Jongbloed, H. |author3=Van Der Gaag, K. J. |author4=De Knijff, P. |author5=Yamaguchi, N. |author6=Hooghiemstra, H. |author7=Bauer, H. |author8=Henschel, P. |author9=White, P. A. |author10=Driscoll, C. A. |author11=Tende, T. |name-list-style=amp |year=2016 |title=Phylogeographic patterns in Africa and High Resolution Delineation of genetic clades in the Lion (''Panthera leo'') |journal=Scientific Reports |volume=6 |page=30807 |doi=10.1038/srep30807|pmid=27488946 |pmc=4973251 |bibcode=2016NatSR...630807B}}</ref> In 2017, the Cat Classification Task Force of the [[IUCN]] Cat Specialist Group subsumed lion populations according to the major clades into two subspecies, namely ''P. l. leo'' and [[Panthera leo melanochaita|''P. l. melanochaita'']].<ref name="Catsg2017"/> Within ''P. l. leo'' three subclades are clearly distinguishable. One from Asia, which includes the extinct [[Barbary lion]]s of North Africa, another one from West Africa and a third one from Central Africa, north of the rainforest belt.<ref name="Bertola_al2016"/>

''P. l. leo'' is [[local extinction|regionally extinct]] in [[North Africa]], [[southern Europe]], and [[West Asia]]. Asia's sole lion population lives in and around [[Gir National Park]], India.<ref name=iucn>{{cite iucn |author=Nicholson, S. |author2=Bauer, H. |author3=Strampelli, P. |author4=Sogbohossou, E. |author5=Ikanda, D. |author6=Tumenta, P.F. |author7=Venktraman, M. |author8=Chapron, G. |author9=Loveridge, A. |year=2024 |amends=2023 |title=''Panthera leo'' |volume=2024 |page=e.T15951A259030422 |doi= |access-date=1 July 2024}}</ref> The West African lion population is geographically isolated and numbers fewer than 250 mature individuals. It is listed as [[critically endangered]] on the [[IUCN Red List]].<ref name=iucn_WAL>{{cite iucn |author=Henschel, P. |author2=Bauer, H. |author3=Sogbohoussou, E. |author4=Nowell, K. |year=2015 |title=''Panthera leo'' (West Africa subpopulation) |volume=2015 |page=e.T68933833A54067639 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-2.RLTS.T68933833A54067639.en |access-date=1 July 2024}}</ref>

== Taxonomy ==
A lion from [[Constantine, Algeria]], was the [[type specimen]] for the [[specific name (zoology)|specific name]] ''Felis leo'' used by [[Carl Linnaeus]] in 1758.<ref name=Linn1758>{{Cite book |last=Linnaeus |first=C. |year=1758 |title=Systema naturae per regna tria naturae: secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis |edition=Tenth reformed |volume=1 |location=Holmiae |publisher=Laurentii Salvii |chapter=Felis Leo |page=41 |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/mobot31753000798865/page/41 |language=la}}</ref> In the 19th and 20th centuries, several lion [[zoological specimen]]s from Africa and Asia were described and proposed as [[subspecies]]:
*''Felis leo persicus'' described in 1826 by Johann N. Meyer was a lion skin from [[Persia]].<ref name=Meyer1826>{{cite book |author=Meyer, J. N. |year=1826 |title=Dissertatio inauguralis anatomico-medica de genere felium |location=Vienna |publisher=University of Vienna}}</ref>
*''Felis leo senegalensis'' also described by Meyer in 1826, but based on a lion skin from [[Senegal]].<ref name=Meyer1826/>
*''Felis leo nubicus'' described in 1843 by [[Henri Marie Ducrotay de Blainville]] was a male lion from [[Nubia]] that had been sent by [[Antoine Clot]] from [[Cairo]] to [[Paris]] and died in the [[Ménagerie du Jardin des Plantes]] in 1841.<ref name="DeBlainville1843">{{cite book |author=Blainville, H. M. D. de |year=1843 |chapter=''F. leo nubicus'' |title=Ostéographie ou description iconographique comparée du squelette et du système dentaire des mammifères récents et fossils pour servir de base à la zoologie et la géologie. Vol 2 |location=Paris |publisher=J. B. Baillière et Fils |page=186}}</ref>
*''Leo gambianus'' described in 1843 by [[John Edward Gray]] was a specimen from [[the Gambia]] in the collection of the [[British Museum of Natural History]].<ref>{{cite book |author=Gray, J. E. |year=1843 |title=List of the specimens of Mammalia in the collection of the British Museum |publisher=Trustees of the British Museum |location=London}}</ref>
*''Felis leo kamptzi'' described in 1900 by [[Paul Matschie]] was a lion [[skull]] from northern Cameroon.<ref name="Matschie1900">{{cite journal |author=Matschie, P. |year=1900 |title=Einige Säugethiere aus dem Hinterlande von Kamerun |journal=Sitzungsberichte der Gesellschaft Naturforschender Freunde zu Berlin |volume=3 |pages=87–100}}</ref>
*''Leo leo azandicus'' described in 1924 by [[Joel Asaph Allen]] was a male lion that was killed in 1912 in northeastern [[Belgian Congo]] as part of a zoological collection comprising 588 [[carnivore]] specimens. Allen admitted a close relationship of this lion specimen to ''Leo leo massaicus'' from [[Kenya]] regarding [[Cranial bones|cranial]] and [[Tooth|dental]] characteristics, but argued that his type specimen differed in [[pelage]] colouration.<ref name=Allen1924>{{cite journal |author=Allen, J. A. |year=1924 |url=https://archive.org/stream/bulletinamerican47ameruoft#page/223/mode/2up |title=Carnivora Collected By The American Museum Congo Expedition |journal=Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History |volume=47 |pages=73–281}}</ref>
In 1930, [[Reginald Innes Pocock]] subordinated the lion to the genus ''[[Panthera]]'' when he wrote about [[Asiatic lion]] specimens in the zoological collection of the British Museum of Natural History.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Pocock, R. I. |year=1930 |title=The lions of Asia |journal=Journal of the Bombay Natural Historical Society |volume=34 |pages=638–665}}</ref>

In the following decades, there has been much debate among zoologists on the validity of proposed subspecies:
*In 1939, [[Glover Morrill Allen]] recognized ''Felis leo kamptzi'' and ''F. l. azandicus'' as [[Valid name (zoology)|valid]] [[Taxon|taxa]] among ten lion subspecies.<ref name=Allen1939>{{cite journal |author=Allen, G. M. |year=1939 |url=https://archive.org/stream/bulletinofmuseum83harv#page/242/mode/2up |title=A Checklist of African Mammals |journal=Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard College |volume=83 |pages=1–763}}</ref>
*Three decades later, [[Sir John Ellerman, 2nd Baronet|John Ellerman]] and [[Terence Morrison-Scott]] recognized only two lion subspecies in the [[Palearctic realm]], namely the African (''P. l. leo'') and Asiatic lions (''P. l. persica'').<ref name=ems66>{{cite book |author1=Ellerman, J. R. |author2=Morrison-Scott, T. C. S. |year=1966 |chapter=''Panthera leo'' Linnaeus, 1758 Lion |chapter-url=https://archive.org/stream/checklistofindia00elle#page/318/mode/2up |title=Checklist of Palaearctic and Indian mammals 1758 to 1946 |edition=Second |publisher=British Museum of Natural History |location=London |pages=319–320}}</ref>
*Some authors considered ''P. l. nubicus'' a valid subspecies and [[Synonym (taxonomy)|synonymous]] with ''P. l. massaica'', a specimen from Kenya.<ref name=Hemmer1974>{{cite journal |author=Hemmer, H. |year=1974 |title=Untersuchungen zur Stammesgeschichte der Pantherkatzen (''Pantherinae'') Teil 3. Zur Artgeschichte des Löwen ''Panthera'' (''Panthera'') ''leo'' (Linnaeus, 1758) |journal=Veröffentlichungen der Zoologischen Staatssammlung |volume=17 |pages=167–280 |url=https://archive.org/stream/verfentlichungen171974zool#page/178/mode/2up}}</ref><ref name=Haasetal2005>{{cite journal |author1=Haas, S.K. |author2=Hayssen, V. |author3=Krausman, P.R. |title=''Panthera leo'' |year=2005 |journal=Mammalian Species |volume=762 |pages=1–11 |url=http://www.science.smith.edu/msi/pdf/762_Panthera_leo.pdf|doi=10.1644/1545-1410(2005)762[0001:PL]2.0.CO;2 |s2cid=198968757  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170728131140/http://www.science.smith.edu/msi/pdf/762_Panthera_leo.pdf |archive-date=28 July 2017}}</ref><ref name="Kingdon_al2013">{{cite book|author1=West, P. M. |title=Mammals of Africa |author2=Packer, C.|date=2013|publisher=[[A & C Black]]|isbn=978-1-4081-8996-2|editor1=Kingson, J.|editor-link=Jonathan Kingdon |editor2=Happold, D. |editor3=Butynski, T.|editor4=Hoffmann, M.|editor5=Happold, M.|editor6=Kalina, J. |volume=((Volume V Carnivores, Pangolins, Equids and Rhinoceroses)) |page=149−159 |chapter=''Panthera leo'' Lion |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=B_07noCPc4kC&pg=RA4-PA149}}</ref>
*Some authors considered ''P. l. azandicus'' synonymous with ''P. l. massaicus'' and ''P. l. somaliensis'', and ''P. l. kamptzi'' synonymous with ''P. l. senegalensis''.<ref name=Hemmer1974/><ref name=Haasetal2005/>
*In 2005, [[Mammal Species of the World|Wallace Christopher Wozencraft]] recognized ''P. l. kamptzi'', ''P. l. bleyenberghi'' and ''P. l. azandica'' as valid taxa.<ref name=MSW3>{{MSW3 Carnivora |id=14000228 |page=546 |heading=Species ''Panthera leo''}}</ref>
*In 2016, [[IUCN Red List]] assessors used ''P. l. leo'' for all African lion populations.<ref name=iucn/>
In 2017, the Cat Classification Task Force of the IUCN Cat Specialist Group subsumed lion populations in North, West and Central Africa and Asia to ''P. l. leo'', based on results of genetic research on lion samples.<ref name="Catsg2017"/>

=== Phylogeny ===
[[File:Lion subspecies distribution3.png|thumb|right|Range map including proposed clades and the two subspecies (''P. l. leo'' and ''P. l. melanochaita'') according to genetic research]]
Since the beginning of the 21st century, several [[phylogenetic]] studies were conducted to aid clarifying the taxonomic status of lion samples kept in museums and collected in the wild. Scientists analysed between 32 and 480 lion samples from up to 22 countries. They all agree that the lion comprises two [[evolution]]ary groups, one in the northern and eastern parts of its historical range, and the other in [[Southern Africa|Southern]] and [[East Africa]]; they are estimated to have [[Genetic divergence|genetically diverged]] between 245,000 and 50,000 years ago. [[Tropical rainforest]] and the [[East African Rift]] possibly constituted major barriers between the two groups.<ref name="Bertola_al2016"/><ref name=Barnett2006>{{Cite journal |last1=Barnett |first1=R. |last2=Yamaguchi |first2=N. |last3=Barnes |first3=I. |last4=Cooper |first4=A. |year=2006 |title=The origin, current diversity and future conservation of the modern lion (''Panthera leo'') |journal=Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences |pmid=16901830 |volume=273 |issue=1598 |pmc=1635511 |pages=2119–2125 |doi=10.1098/rspb.2006.3555 |url=http://www.adelaide.edu.au/acad/publications/papers/Barnett%20PRS%20lions.pdf  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070808182526/http://www.adelaide.edu.au/acad/publications/papers/Barnett%20PRS%20lions.pdf |archive-date=8 August 2007}}</ref><ref name=Antunes2008>{{Cite journal |author1=Antunes, A. |author2=Troyer, J. L. |author3=Roelke, M. E. |author4=Pecon-Slattery, J. |author5=Packer, C. |author6=Winterbach, C. |author7=Winterbach, H. |author8=Johnson, W. E. |title=The Evolutionary Dynamics of the Lion ''Panthera leo'' Revealed by Host and Viral Population Genomics |journal=PLOS Genetics |volume=4 |issue=11 |pages=e1000251 |year=2008 |pmid=18989457 |pmc=2572142 |doi=10.1371/journal.pgen.1000251 |doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=Mazák, J. H. |year=2010 |title=Geographical variation and phylogenetics of modern lions based on craniometric data |journal=Journal of Zoology |volume=281 |issue=3 |pages=194−209 |doi=10.1111/j.1469-7998.2010.00694.x }}</ref><ref name=Bertolaetal2011GD>{{Cite journal |last1=Bertola |first1=L. D. |last2=Van Hooft |first2=W. F. |last3=Vrieling |first3=K. |last4=Uit De Weerd |first4=D. R. |last5=York |first5=D. S. |last6=Bauer |first6=H. |last7=Prins |first7=H. H. T. |last8=Funston |first8=P. J. |last9=Udo De Haes |first9=H. A. |last10=Leirs |first10=H. |last11=Van Haeringen |first11=W. A. |last12=Sogbohossou |first12=E. |last13=Tumenta |first13=P. N. |last14=De Iongh |first14=H. H. |title=Genetic diversity, evolutionary history and implications for conservation of the lion (''Panthera leo'') in West and Central Africa |journal=[[Journal of Biogeography]] |volume=38 |issue=7 |pages=1356–1367 |year=2011 |url=http://dspace.learningnetworks.org/bitstream/1820/4311/1/2011_Bertola,Hooft,Vrieling,Weerd,York,Bauer,Prins,Haes,Iongh_GeneticDiversityEvolutionaryHistoryAndImplicationsForConservationOfTheLionInWestAndCentralAfrica.pdf |doi=10.1111/j.1365-2699.2011.02500.x |bibcode=2011JBiog..38.1356B |s2cid=82728679 |access-date=2018-08-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190608070014/http://dspace.learningnetworks.org/bitstream/1820/4311/1/2011_Bertola,Hooft,Vrieling,Weerd,York,Bauer,Prins,Haes,Iongh_GeneticDiversityEvolutionaryHistoryAndImplicationsForConservationOfTheLionInWestAndCentralAfrica.pdf |archive-date=2019-06-08 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=Dubach, J. M. |author2=Briggs, M. B. |author3=White, P. A. |author4=Ament, B. A. |author5=Patterson, B. D. |year=2013 |title=Genetic perspectives on "Lion Conservation Units" in Eastern and Southern Africa |journal=Conservation Genetics |volume=14 |issue=4 |pages=741−755 |doi=10.1007/s10592-013-0453-3|bibcode=2013ConG...14..741D |s2cid=751286 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Bertola|first1=L. D.|last2=Tensen|first2=L.|last3=Van Hooft|first3=P.|last4=White|first4=P. A.|last5=Driscoll|first5=C. A.|last6=Henschel|first6=P.|last7=Caragiulo|first7=A.|last8=Dias-Freedman|first8=I.|last9=Sogbohossou|first9=E. A.|last10=Tumenta|first10=P. N.|last11=Jirmo|first11=T. H. |year=2015 |title=Autosomal and mtDNA markers affirm the distinctiveness of lions in West and Central Africa |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=10 |issue=10 |pages=e0137975 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0137975 |pmid=26466139 |pmc=4605676 |bibcode=2015PLoSO..1037975B |doi-access=free }}</ref>

The two lion groups overlap in Ethiopia, as lion samples from [[Bale Mountains National Park]] clustered with lion samples from Central Africa, whereas other samples from this country clustered with samples from East Africa. Three [[clade]]s can be distinguished within ''P. l. leo''. Lion samples from North Africa and India clustered into a single clade, and the lions in West Africa and northern parts of Central Africa also form distinct clades.<ref name="Bertolaetal2011GD" /> Analysis of [[phylogenetic]] data of 194 lion samples from 22 countries revealed that Central and West African lions diverged about 186,000–128,000 years ago from the ''melanochaita'' group in East and Southern Africa.<ref name=Bertola_al2016/>

Samples from West Africa shared [[alleles]] with samples from Southern Africa, and samples from Central Africa shared alleles with samples from Asia. This indicates that Central Africa was a melting pot of lion populations after they had become isolated. They possibly migrated through corridors in the [[Nile Basin]] during the early [[Holocene]]. [[Genome]]-wide data of a historical lion sample from Sudan showed that it clustered with ''P. l. leo'' in [[mitochondrial DNA]]-based phylogenies, but with a high affinity with ''P. l. melanochaita''. The taxonomic position of lions in Central Africa may therefore require revision.<ref name="DeManuel_al2020">{{cite journal |name-list-style=amp |author1=Manuel, M. d. |author2=Ross, B. |author3=Sandoval-Velasco, M. |author4=Yamaguchi, N. |author5=Vieira, F. G. |author6=Mendoza, M. L. Z. |author7=Liu, S. |author8=Martin, M. D. |author9=Sinding, M.-H. S. |author10=Mak, S. S. T. |author11=Carøe, C. |author12=Liu, S. |author13=Guo, C. |author14=Zheng, J. |author15=Zazula, G. |author16=Baryshnikov, G. |author17=Eizirik, E. |author18=Koepfli, K.-P. |author19=Johnson, W. E. |author20=Antunes, A. |author21=Sicheritz-Ponten, T. |author22=Gopalakrishnan, S. |author23=Larson, G. |author24=Yang, H. |author25=O'Brien, S. J. |author26=Hansen, A. J. |author27=Zhang, G. |author28=Marques-Bonet, T. |author29=Gilbert, M. T. P. |title=The evolutionary history of extinct and living lions |journal=[[Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America]] |volume=117 |issue=20 |pages=10927–10934 |doi=10.1073/pnas.1919423117 |year=2020 |pmid=32366643 |pmc=7245068 |bibcode=2020PNAS..11710927D |doi-access=free}}</ref>

== Characteristics ==
{{multiple image |align=right |direction=vertical
 |image1=Panthera leo leo skull at University of Pisa Natural History Museum.jpg |caption1=A skull of ''P. leo leo'' in the [[Natural History Museum of the University of Pisa]]  |image2=Lion au repos parc pendjari.jpg |caption2=[[Maneless lion]] in Pendjari National Park}}

The lion's fur varies in colour from light buff to dark brown. It has rounded ears and a black tail tuft. Average head-to-body length of male lions is {{cvt|2.47-2.84|m}} with a weight of {{cvt|148.2-190.9|kg}}. Females are smaller and less heavy.<ref name=Guggisberg1975>{{cite book |last=Guggisberg |first=C. A. W. |chapter=Lion ''Panthera leo'' (Linnaeus, 1758) |title=Wild Cats of the World |year=1975 |publisher=Taplinger Publishing |location=New York |isbn=978-0-8008-8324-9 |pages=138–179 |chapter-url-access=registration |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/wildcatsofworld00gugg/page/138}}</ref> Zoological lion specimens range in colour from light to dark tawny. Male skins have short manes, light manes, dark manes or long manes.<ref name=Mazak1970>{{cite journal |author=Mazák, V. |year=1970 |title=The Barbary lion, ''Panthera leo leo'' (Linnaeus, 1758); some systematic notes, and an interim list of the specimens preserved in European museums |journal=Zeitschrift für Säugetierkunde |volume=35 |pages=34−45}}</ref> [[Taxonomy (biology)|Taxonomists]] recognised that neither skin nor mane colour and length of lions can be adduced as distinct subspecific characteristics. Then they turned to measuring and comparing lion [[skull]]s and found that skull length of Barbary and Indian lion samples does not differ significantly, ranging from {{cvt|28-31.17|cm}} in females and {{cvt|33.8-36.2|cm}} in males.<ref name=Hemmer1974/><ref name=Mazak1970/> A few lion specimens from West Africa obtained by museums were described as having shorter manes than lions from other African regions.<ref name=Hemmer1974/> In general, the West African lion is similar in general appearance and size as lions in other parts of Africa and Asia.<ref name=Haasetal2005/>

Skeletal muscles make up 58.8% of the lion's body weight.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Calder|first=W. A. |date=1996 |chapter=Skeletal muscle |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-iBS6-2OO3wC&pg=PA19|title=Size, Function, and Life History |publisher=Courier Corporation |place=New York |isbn=978-0-486-69191-6 |pages=17–21}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Davis|first=D. D. |date=1962 |title=Allometric relationships in Lions vs. Domestic Cats |journal=Evolution |volume=16|issue=4|pages=505–514|doi=10.1111/j.1558-5646.1962.tb03240.x|doi-access=free}}</ref>

== Distribution and habitat ==

Today, ''P. l. leo'' occurs in West and Central Africa and India.<ref name="Catsg2017"/> It is regionally extinct in [[The Gambia]], [[Mauritania]], [[Sierra Leone]], the [[Western Sahara]], Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, [[Saudi Arabia]], [[Kuwait]], [[Jordan]], [[Lebanon]], [[Syria]], Turkey, [[Palestine (region)|Palestine]], [[Israel]], Iraq, Iran and [[Pakistan]].<ref name=iucn/>
In 2005, a Lion Conservation Strategy was developed for West and Central Africa.<ref name=csg2006>{{cite book |title=Conservation Strategy for the Lion West and Central Africa |publisher=IUCN |author=IUCN Cat Specialist Group |year=2006 |location=Yaounde, Cameroon |url=http://www.catsg.org/fileadmin/filesharing/3.Conservation_Center/3.4._Strategies___Action_Plans/African_lion/IUCN_CatSG_2006_West_and_Central_Africa_Lion_Conservation_Strategy.pdf}}</ref>
Contemporary lion distribution and habitat quality in [[savannah]]s of West and Central Africa was assessed in 2005, and Lion Conservation Units (LCU) mapped.<ref name=csg2006/> Educated guesses for size of populations in these LCUs ranged from 3,274 to 3,909 individuals between 2002 and 2012.<ref name=Chardonnet2002/><ref name=Riggio_al2013>{{cite journal |author=Riggio, J. |author2=Jacobson, A. |author3=Dollar, L. |author4=Bauer, H. |author5=Becker, M. |author6=Dickman, A. |author7=Funston, P. |author8=Groom, R. |author9=Henschel, P. |author10=de Iongh, H. |author11=Lichtenfeld, L. |author12=Pimm, S. |year=2013 |title=The size of savannah Africa: a lion's (''Panthera leo'') view |journal=Biodiversity Conservation |volume=22 |issue=1 |pages=17–35|doi=10.1007/s10531-012-0381-4|doi-access=free |bibcode=2013BiCon..22...17R }}</ref>

=== West African clade ===
{{multiple image |perrow=1 |header=Habitat in: |image1=River gambia Niokolokoba National Park.gif |caption1=Niokolo-Koba National Park |image2=Parc national de la Pendjari-Baobab et échassier (2).jpg |caption2=Pendjari National Park}}
The last populations of the West African lion clade are surviving in a few protected areas from [[Senegal]] in the west to [[Nigeria]] in the east. This population has lost 99% of its former range. Between 246 and 466 lions live in the [[W-Arly-Pendjari Complex|WAP-Complex]], a large system of protected areas formed mainly by [[W National Park|W]], [[Arli National Park|Arli]], and [[Pendjari National Park]]s in [[Burkina Faso]], [[Benin]], and [[Niger]].<ref name="HenschelAzani_al2010">{{cite journal |author1=Henschel, P. |author2=Azani, D. |author3=Burton, C. |author4=Malanda, G. |author5=Saidu, Y. |author6=Sam, M. |author7=Hunter, L. |name-list-style=amp |year=2010 |title=Lion status updates from five range countries in West and Central Africa |url=http://www.panthera.org/sites/default/files/Henscheletal_2010_LionstatusupdatesfromfiverangecountriesinWestandCentralAfrica_CatNews.pdf |journal=Cat News |volume=52 |pages=34–39 |access-date=2018-11-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130730134841/http://www.panthera.org/sites/default/files/Henscheletal_2010_LionstatusupdatesfromfiverangecountriesinWestandCentralAfrica_CatNews.pdf |archive-date=2013-07-30 }}</ref><ref name=Henschel_al2014>{{Cite journal |last1=Henschel |first1=P. |last2=Coad |first2=L. |last3=Burton |first3=C. |last4=Chataigner |first4=B. |last5=Dunn |first5=A. |last6=MacDonald |first6=D. |last7=Saidu | first7=Y. |last8=Hunter |first8=L. T. B. |name-list-style=amp |title=The Lion in West Africa is Critically Endangered |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0083500 |journal=[[PLOS One]] |volume=9 |issue=1 |pages=e83500 |year=2014 |pmid=24421889 |pmc=3885426 |doi-access=free |bibcode=2014PLoSO...983500H}}</ref> It is [[Local extinction|regionally extinct]] in [[Mauritania]], [[Gambia]], [[Guinea-Bissau]], [[Mali]], [[Sierra Leone]], [[Ivory Coast]], and [[Togo]], and possibly extinct in [[Guinea]] and [[Ghana]].<ref name=iucn_WAL/>
The border between the West African and the Central African lion clade is following largely the lower Niger River, which seems to act as a permanent barrier for gene flow.<ref name="Bertola_al2016"/>
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|- valign=bottom
! Range countries !! Lion Conservation Units !! Area in km<sup>2</sup> 
|-
|Senegal, Mali, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea ||[[Niokolo-Koba National Park]] ||90,384<ref name=Riggio_al2013/>
|-
|Guinea ||[[National Park of Upper Niger]] ||613<ref name=Riggio_al2013/>
|-
|Benin, Burkina Faso, Niger ||[[W-Arly-Pendjari Complex]] ||29,403<ref name=Riggio_al2013/>
|-
|Benin ||three unprotected areas ||6,833<ref name=Riggio_al2013/>
|-
|Nigeria ||[[Kainji National Park]] ||5,340<ref name=Riggio_al2013/>
|}

=== Central African clade ===
{{multiple image |perrow=1 |header=Habitat in: |image3=Drone view at Benoue.jpg |caption3=Bénoué National Park |image4=Parc_Waza2.jpg |caption4=Waza National Park |image5=Garamba National Park overhead.jpg |caption5=Garamba National Park |image6=Bale Mountains (3) (29252380886).jpg |caption6=Bale Mountains}}
The Central African lion population inhabits protected areas of:
*[[Cameroon]], where lions are present in Bénoué National Park.<ref name=Croes_2011>{{cite journal |author=Croes, B. M. |author2=Funston, P. J. |author3=Rasmussen, G. |author4=Buij, R. |author5=Saleh, A. |author6=Tumenta, P. N. |author7=De Iongh, H. H. |year=2011 |title=The impact of trophy hunting on lions (''Panthera leo'') and other large carnivores in the Bénoué Complex, northern Cameroon |journal=Biological Conservation |volume=144 |issue=12 |pages=3064−3072 |doi=10.1016/j.biocon.2011.09.013 |bibcode=2011BCons.144.3064C }}</ref> In the [[North Province, Cameroon]], lions were recorded during a survey between January 2008 and May 2010.<ref>{{cite journal |author=de Iongh, H.H. |name-list-style=amp |author2=Croes, B. |author3=Rasmussen, G. |author4=Buij, R. |author5=Funston, P. |year=2011 |title=The status of cheetah and African wild dog in the Bénoué Ecosystem, North Cameroon |journal=Cat News |volume=55 |pages=29−31 |url=https://openaccess.leidenuniv.nl/bitstream/handle/1887/18286/CB_2011_Iongh_The_status_of_cheetah.pdf?sequence=2}}</ref> The small lion population in [[Waza National Park]] is isolated, and by 2008 had declined to maximum 20 individuals.<ref name="Tumenta_al2010">{{cite journal |author1=Tumenta, P. N. |author2=Kok, J. S. |author3=Van Rijssel, J. C. |author4=Buij, R. |author5=Croes, B. M. |author6=Funston, P. J. |author7=De Iongh, H. H. |author8=Udo de Haes, H. A. |year=2010 |title=Threat of rapid extermination of the lion (''Panthera leo leo'') in Waza National Park, Northern Cameroon |journal=African Journal of Ecology |volume=48 |issue=4 |pages=888−894|doi=10.1111/j.1365-2028.2009.01181.x |bibcode=2010AfJEc..48..888T |hdl=1887/14372 |s2cid=56451273 |hdl-access=free }}</ref><ref name="Brugière_al2015">{{cite journal |title=Large-scale extinction of large carnivores (lion ''Panthera leo'', cheetah ''Acinonyx jubatus'' and wild dog ''Lycaon pictus'') in protected areas of West and Central Africa |author=Brugière, D. |author2=Chardonnet, B. |author3=Scholte, P. |journal=Tropical Conservation Science |year=2015 |volume=8 |issue=2 |pages=513–527|doi=10.1177/194008291500800215 |doi-access=free }}</ref> In the southern part of the country, 2 lions were discovered in [[Mpem and Djim National Park]] in April 2019.<ref>{{cite news |publisher=Africa Sustainable Conservation News |title=Cameroon – Hans Bauer finds two lions in southern Cameroon |url=https://africasustainableconservation.com/2019/04/29/cameroon-hans-bauer-finds-two-lions-in-southern-cameroon/ |date=2019-04-29 |access-date=2019-08-02}}</ref>
*[[Central African Republic]], where lions are present in [[Bamingui-Bangoran National Park and Biosphere Reserve]], [[Manovo-Gounda St. Floris National Park|Manovo-Gounda St. Floris]] and Awakaba National Parks, [[Aouk Aoukale Faunal Reserve|Aouk Aoukale]], [[Yata Ngaya Faunal Reserve|Yata Ngaya]], [[Nana Barya Faunal Reserve|Nana Barya]] and [[Zemongo Faunal Reserve]]s, and in several hunting reserves of the country.<ref name="Mesochina2010">{{cite book |author1=Mésochina, P. |author2=Mamang-Kanga, J. B. |author3=Chardonnet, P. |author4=Mandjo, Y. |author5=Yaguémé, M. |year=2010 |title=Statut de conservation du lion (''Panthera leo'' Linnaeus, 1758) en République Centrafricaine |location=[[Bangui]] |publisher=Fondation IGF |url=http://agritrop.cirad.fr/556718/1/document_556718.pdf}}</ref> Estimated lion numbers in the country are generally thought to be unreliable.<ref name="Bauer_ vanderMerwe"/>
*[[Chad]], where lions inhabit [[Siniaka-Minia Faunal Reserve]] and [[Zakouma National Park|Zakouma]] and [[Aouk National Park]]s, but have been extirpated in [[Manda National Park]]. Lions may still be present in pastoral rangelands and mountain ranges outside protected areas.<ref name="Chardonnet2002"/> In 2004, the lion population in the country was estimated at maximum of 225 individuals.<ref name="Bauer_ vanderMerwe"/>
*northern parts of the [[Democratic Republic of the Congo]], where lions permanently inhabit [[rainforest]]s and clearings in rainforest mixed with [[savannah]] grassland.<ref name="Chardonnet2002"/>
*Sudan's [[Southern Darfur]] province, where lions were abundant in the 1950s; some caused damage to livestock and were poisoned; 76 lions were shot between 1947 and 1952.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Wilson, R. T. |year=1979 |title=Wildlife in Southern Darfur, Sudan: Distribution and status at present and in the recent past |journal=Mammalia |volume=43 |issue=3 |pages=323−338|doi=10.1515/mamm.1979.43.3.323 |s2cid=85228859 }}</ref> Lions were recorded in the [[Dinder National Park|Dinder]]–[[Alatash National Park|Alatash]] protected area complex during surveys between 2015 and 2018.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Bauer, H. |author2=Mohammed, A.A. |author3=El Faki, A. |author4=Hiwytalla, K.O. |author5=Bedin, E. |author6=Rskay, G. |author7=Sitotaw, E. |author8=Sillero-Zubiri, C. |year=2018 |title=Antelopes of the Dinder-Alatash transboundary Protected Area, Sudan and Ethiopia |journal=Gnusletter |volume=35 |issue=1 |pages=26–30 |url=https://www.marwell.org.uk/media/other/GNUSLETTER_Vol_35_12018.pdf#page=26 |access-date=2018-12-03 |archive-date=2021-07-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210703060238/https://www.marwell.org.uk/media/other/GNUSLETTER_Vol_35_12018.pdf#page=26 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
*[[South Sudan]], where little is known about lion distribution and population sizes. Lions in [[Radom National Park|Radom]] and [[Southern National Park]]s are probably connected to lions in the Central African Republic.<ref name=Chardonnet2002/>
*[[Ethiopia]] has lions from the Northern as well as from the Southern lion subspecies and is considered an admixture zone. While lions from [[Gambella National Park]] belong to the Northern subspecies (''P. l. leo''), lions from other parts of the country belong to the Southern lion.<ref name="Bertola_al2016"/>

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|- valign=bottom
! Range countries !! Lion Conservation Units !! Area in km<sup>2</sup> 
|-
|Nigeria ||[[Yankari National Park]]||2,250<ref name=Riggio_al2013/>
|-
|Cameroon ||[[Waza National Park|Waza]] and [[Bénoué National Park]]s ||16,134<ref name=Tumenta_al2010/><ref name=Croes_2011/><ref name=Riggio_al2013/>
|-
|Central African Republic ||eastern part of the country; Bozoum and [[Nana Barya Faunal Reserve]]s ||339,481<ref name="Mesochina2010"/>
|-
|Chad ||southeastern part ||133,408<ref name=Riggio_al2013/>
|-
|Democratic Republic of Congo||[[Garamba National Park|Garamba]]-[[Domaine Chasse Bili Uere|Bili Uere]] ||115,671<ref name=csg2006/>
|-
|Sudan, South Sudan || ||331,834<ref name=csg2006/>
|-
|South Sudan, Ethiopia ||[[Boma National Park|Boma]]-[[Gambella National Park|Gambella]] ||106,941<ref name=csg2006/>
|}

=== Asian/North African clade ===
The [[Asiatic lion]] is the last surviving population of this clade. Once also found in the Middle East, it is nowadays confined in the wild to [[Gujarat]] in India. Genetically, the extinct lions from Northern Africa, formally termed as [[Barbary lion]]s, fall into the same clade as the Asiatic lion.<ref name="Bertola_al2016"/> Therefore, the range of this lion clade encompassed historically North Africa, [[southeastern Europe]], the [[Arabian Peninsula]], the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent.<ref name="Catsg2017"/> In these regions, lions occurred in:
*the [[Sahel]], mountain ranges of the [[Sahara]], [[Barbary Coast]] and [[Maghreb]],<ref name=Chardonnet2002/><ref name=Hemmer1974/><ref name="Black_2013">{{cite journal |last1=Black |first1=S. A. |last2=Fellous |first2=A. |last3=Yamaguchi |first3=N. |last4=Roberts |first4=D. L. |year=2013 |title=Examining the Extinction of the Barbary Lion and Its Implications for Felid Conservation |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=8 |issue=4 |page=e60174 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0060174 |pmid=23573239 |pmc=3616087|bibcode=2013PLoSO...860174B |doi-access=free }}</ref>
*the eastern [[Mediterranean Basin]] and the [[Black Sea]] region,<ref name="Guggisberg1975"/><ref name="Frazer1898">{{cite book |editor=Frazer, J. G. |year=1898 |title=Pausanias's Description of Greece |location=London |publisher=Macmillan and Co. |url=https://archive.org/stream/pausaniassdescri01pausuoft/pausaniassdescri01pausuoft#page/n5/mode/2up}}</ref><ref name=Geptner>{{cite book |author=Heptner, V. G. |author2=Sludskij, A. A. |orig-date=1972 |year=1992 |title=Mlekopitajuščie Sovetskogo Soiuza. Moskva: Vysšaia Škola |trans-title=Mammals of the Soviet Union. Volume II, Part 2. Carnivora (Hyaenas and Cats) |publisher=Smithsonian Institution and the National Science Foundation |location=Washington DC |chapter=Lion |chapter-url=https://archive.org/stream/mammalsofsov221992gept#page/82/mode/2up |pages=83–95 |isbn=978-90-04-08876-4}}</ref>
*reed [[swamp]]s of [[Mesopotamia]], wooded [[steppe]] vegetation and [[pistachio]]-[[almond]] woodlands in Iran,<ref name="Blanford1876">{{cite book |last=Blanford |first=W. T. |year=1876 |chapter=Felis leo L. |title=Zoology and Geology, Volume II. Eastern Persia: An Account of the Journeys of the Persian Boundary Commission, 1870-71-72 |publisher=Macmillan and Co. |location=London |pages=29–34}}</ref><ref name=Pocock1939>{{cite book |author=Pocock, R. I. |year=1939 |chapter=''Panthera leo'' |chapter-url=https://archive.org/stream/PocockMammalia1/pocock1#page/n261/mode/2up |title=The Fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma. Mammalia. – Volume 1 |publisher=Taylor and Francis Ltd. |location=London |pages=212–222}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=Khosravifard, S. |name-list-style=amp |author2=Niamir, A. |year=2016 |title=The lair of the lion in Iran |journal=Cat News |issue=Special Issue 10 |pages=14–17 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/309410288}}</ref>
*the northwestern part of the [[Indian subcontinent]] up to [[Rajasthan]] and [[Bengal]] in [[North India]].<ref name=Kinnear1920>{{cite journal |author=Kinnear, N. B. |year=1920 |title=The past and present distribution of the lion in south eastern Asia |journal=Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society |volume=27 |pages=34–39 |url=https://archive.org/stream/journalofbombayn27192022bomb#page/32/mode/2up}}</ref>

The Barbary lion population in North Africa is extinct since the mid 1960s.<ref name=iucn/>
The Asiatic lion population survives in Gir Forest National Park and remnant forest habitats in the two hill systems of Gir and [[Girnar]] that comprise [[Gujarat]]'s largest tracts of [[Tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests|dry deciduous forest]], [[Deserts and xeric shrublands|thorny forest]] and savanna.<ref name=Singh2011>{{cite journal |url=http://www.dbs.nus.edu.sg/lab/cons-lab/documents/Singh_Gibson_Biol_Cons_2011.pdf |title=A conservation success story in the otherwise dire megafauna extinction crisis: The Asiatic lion (''Panthera leo persica'') of Gir forest |author1=Singh, H. S. |author2=Gibson, L. |year=2011 |journal=Biological Conservation |volume=144 |issue=5 |pages=1753–1757 |doi=10.1016/j.biocon.2011.02.009|bibcode=2011BCons.144.1753S }}</ref> It is listed as [[Endangered species|Endangered]] on the [[IUCN Red List]] because of its small size and [[area of occupancy]].<ref name="IUCN2008AL">{{cite iucn |author=Breitenmoser, U. |author2=Mallon, D.P. |author3=Ahmad Khan, J. |author4=Driscoll, C. |year=2008 |title=''Panthera leo'' ssp. ''persica'' |volume=2008 |page=e.T15952A5327221 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2008.RLTS.T15952A5327221.en |access-date=1 July 2024}}</ref>

== Behaviour and ecology ==
[[File:Asiatic Lions Mating in Gir Forest.jpg|thumb|left|Asiatic lions mating in [[Gir Forest]]]]

Male Asiatic lions are solitary or associate with up to three males forming a loose pride. Pairs of males rest, hunt and feed together, and display [[Marking territory|marking behaviour]] at the same sites. Females associate with up to 12 females forming a stronger pride together with their cubs. They share large carcasses among each other, but seldom with males. Female and male lions usually associate only for a few days when [[mating]], but rarely travel and feed together.<ref name=Joslin1973>{{cite book |author=Joslin, P. |year=1973 |title=The Asiatic lion: a study of ecology and behaviour |location=University of Edinburgh, UK |publisher=Department of Forestry and Natural Resources}}</ref><ref name=Meena2008>{{cite book |author=Meena V. |year=2008 |title=Reproductive strategy and behaviour of male Asiatic Lions |location=Dehra Dun |publisher=Wildlife Institute of India}}</ref>

In Pendjari National Park, groups of lions range from 1–8 individuals. Outside the National Park, groups are smaller and with a single male.<ref name="Sogbohossou_al2014">{{cite journal |author1=Sogbohossou, E. A. |author2=Bauer, H. |author3=Loveridge, A. |author4=Funston, P. J. |author5=De Snoo, G. R. |author6=Sinsin, B. |author7=De Iongh, H. H. |year=2014 |title=Social structure of lions (''Panthera leo'') is affected by management in Pendjari Biosphere Reserve, Benin |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=9 |issue=1 |page=e84674 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0084674|pmid=24416263 |pmc=3885576 |bibcode=2014PLoSO...984674S |doi-access=free }}</ref>
In Waza National Park, three female and two male lions were [[Radio telemetry|radio-collared]] in 1999 and tracked until 2001. The females moved in home ranges of between {{cvt|352|and|724|km2}} and stayed inside the park during most of the survey period. The males used home ranges of between {{cvt|428|and|1054|km2}}, both inside and outside the park, where they repeatedly killed livestock. One was killed and the other shot at by local people. After the pellets were removed, he recovered and shifted his home range to inside the park, and was not observed killing livestock any more.<ref name=Bauer_al2005>{{cite journal |author1=Bauer, H. |author2=De Iongh, H. H. |year=2005 |title=Lion (''Panthera leo'') home ranges and livestock conflicts in Waza National Park, Cameroon |journal=African Journal of Ecology |volume=43 |issue=3 |pages=208−214 |doi=10.1111/j.1365-2028.2005.00570.x |bibcode=2005AfJEc..43..208B |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/230221295}}</ref>

===Hunting and diet===
{{multiple image |perrow=1
|image1=Lions and a Zebra b.jpg
|caption1=Lions feeding on a [[zebra]]
|image2=Lions Devour a Boar.jpg 
|caption2=[[Roman mosaic]] from [[Tunisia]] showing lions attacking a [[wild boar]]
}}

In general, lions prefer large prey species within a weight range of {{cvt|190|-|550|kg}}. They hunt large [[ungulate]]s in the range of {{cvt|40|-|270|kg}} including [[gemsbok]] (''Oryx gazella''), [[Cape buffalo]] (''Syncerus caffer''), [[blue wildebeest]] (''Connochaetes taurinus''), [[giraffe]] (''Giraffa camelopardalis''), [[common eland]] (''Tragelaphus oryx''), [[greater kudu]] (''T. strepsiceros''), [[nyala]] (''T. angasii''), [[roan antelope]] (''Hippotragus equinus''), [[sable antelope]] (''H. niger''), [[zebra]] (''Equus quagga''), [[bushpig]] (''Potamochoerus larvatus''), [[common warthog]] (''Phacochoerus africanus''), [[hartebeest]] (''Alcephalus buselaphus''), [[common tsessebe]] (''Damaliscus lunatus''), [[Thomson's gazelle]] (''Eudorcas thomsonii''), [[waterbuck]] (''Kobus ellipsiprymnus'') and [[kob]] (''K. kob'').<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Hayward, M. W. |author2=Kerley, G. I. |year=2005 |title=Prey preferences of the lion (''Panthera leo'') |journal=Journal of Zoology |volume=267 |issue=3|pages=309–322 |doi=10.1017/S0952836905007508|citeseerx=10.1.1.611.8271 }}</ref>
Analysis of 119 faecal samples of lions collected in Cameroon's [[Faro National Park]] revealed that lions preyed foremost on kob and [[harnessed bushbuck]] (''Tragelaphus scriptus''), and to a lesser extent also on waterbuck, [[crested porcupine]] (''Hystrix cristata''), bushpig, roan antelope, [[olive baboon]] (''Papio anubis'') and [[oribi]] (''Ourebia ourebi'').<ref>{{cite journal |author=Breuer, T. |year=2005 |title=Diet choice of large carnivores in northern Cameroon |journal=African Journal of Ecology |volume=43 |issue=3 |pages=181−190 |doi= 10.1111/j.1365-2028.2005.00562.x|bibcode=2005AfJEc..43..181B |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/227531699}}</ref>
In India's Gir Forest National Park, lions predominantly kill [[chital]] (''Axis axis''), [[Sambar deer]] (''Rusa unicolor''), [[nilgai]] (''Boselaphus tragocamelus''), [[cattle]] (''Bos taurus''), [[domestic buffalo]] (''Bubalus bubalis'') and less frequently also [[wild boar]] (''Sus scrofa''). Outside the protected area where wild prey species do not occur, lions prey on buffalo and cattle, rarely also on [[Arabian camel]] (''Camelus dromedarius''). They kill most prey less than {{cvt|100|m}} away from water bodies, charge prey from close range and drag carcasses into dense cover.<ref name=Chellam1993>{{cite book |author=Chellam, R. |author2=Johnsingh, A. J. T. |year=1993 |chapter=Management of Asiatic lions in the Gir Forest, India |pages=409–423 |title=Mammals as predators: the proceedings of a symposium held by the Zoological Society of London and the Mammal Society, London. Volume 65 of Symposia of the Zoological Society of London |editor1-last=Dunstone |editor1-first=N. |editor2-last=Gorman |editor2-first=M. L. |publisher=Zoological Society of London |location=London}}</ref>

Lions probably prey on livestock when wild prey species occur at lower densities, especially during the wet season.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Ten Years of Ecological Research on Lions in Waza National Park, Northern Cameroon |author1=De Iongh, H. |author2=Bauer, H. |journal=Cat News |volume=48 |year=2008 |pages=29−32}}</ref> An interview survey among livestock owners in six villages in Waza National Park's vicinity revealed that lions attack [[cattle]] mostly during the [[wet season|rainy season]] when wild prey disperses away from artificial waterholes.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Factors affecting livestock predation by lions in Cameroon |last1=Van Bommel|first1=L.|last2=Bij de Vaate|first2=M. D.|last3=De Boer|first3=W. F.|last4=De longh|first4=H. H. |journal=African Journal of Ecology |volume=45 |year=2007 |issue=4 |pages=490−498 |doi=10.1111/j.1365-2028.2007.00759.x|bibcode=2007AfJEc..45..490V }}</ref>

== Threats ==
In Africa, lions are killed pre-emptively or in retaliation for preying on livestock. Populations are also threatened by depletion of prey base, loss and conversion of habitat.<ref name=iucn/>

The lion population in West Africa is fragmented and isolated, comprising fewer than 250 mature individuals.<ref name=iucn_WAL/> It is threatened by [[poaching]] and [[illegal wildlife trade|illegal trade]] of body parts. Lion body parts from Benin are smuggled to Niger, Nigeria, Gabon, Ivory Coast, Senegal and Guinea, and from Burkina Faso to Benin, Ivory Coast, Senegal and Guinea.<ref name="Williams2017">{{cite journal |author1=Williams, V. L. |author2=Loveridge, A. J. |author3=Newton, D. J. |author4=Macdonald, D. W. |year=2017 |title=Questionnaire survey of the pan-African trade in lion body parts |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=12 |issue=10 |pages=e0187060 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0187060 |pmid=29073202 |pmc=5658145|bibcode=2017PLoSO..1287060W |doi-access=free }}</ref>
In Nigeria, the isolated lion population in Gashaka Gumti National Park is hunted and poisoned by local people.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Nicholas, A. |year=2004 |title=An update on the status of important large Mammal species in Gashaka Gumti National Park, Nigeria |journal=Antelope Survey Update |issue=9 |pages=40−42}}</ref>

The lion population in Central Africa is threatened by loss of habitat and prey base and [[trophy hunting]]. Between seven and 12 lion trophies were exported from Cameroon every year between 1985 and 2010.<ref name=Chardonnet2002/><ref name=Croes_2011/>
In Bénoué National Park, local people were observed at a lion kill cutting off chunks of meat.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Schoe, M. |author2=De Iongh, H. H. |author3=Croes, B. M. |year=2009 |title=Humans displacing lions and stealing their food in Bénoué National Park, North Cameroon |journal=African Journal of Ecology |volume=47 |issue=3 |pages=445−447|doi=10.1111/j.1365-2028.2008.00975.x |doi-access=free |bibcode=2009AfJEc..47..445S }}</ref> Local people living in the vicinity of the protected area accounted in interviews that lions frequently attack livestock during the dry season. They use poison on carcasses to kill carnivores.<ref>{{cite book |author=Croes, B. M. |author2=Buij, R. |author3=van Dalen, J. |author4=de Iongh, H. H. |year=2008 |title=International seminar on the conservation of small and hidden species. Management and conservation of large carnivores in West and Central Africa |publisher=Institute of Environmental Sciences, Leiden University |location=Leiden |pages=29−40 |chapter=Livestock-carnivore conflicts: results of an inventory around Bénoué National Park, Cameroon |editor1=Croes, B.M. |editor2=Buji, R. |editor3=de Iongh, H.H. |editor4=Bauer, H.}}</ref> In Waza National Park, two of four radio-collared lions were killed between 2007 and 2008, and probably also an adult female, two other adult males and three cubs. Nomadic herders use bow and arrows poisoned with cobra [[venom]] to kill lions in retaliation for attacks on livestock.<ref name=Tumenta_al2010/>
In northern parts of Cameroon, increased migration of people from Nigeria following the [[Boko Haram insurgency|political insecurity]] in the region posed a threat to the area's lion population.<ref name="Brugière_al2015"/>

Poaching of lions by [[paramilitary forces]] has been reported by local people living in the vicinity of Ethiopia's Gambella National Park.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Gebresenbet, F. |author2=Bauer, H. |author3=Vadjunec, J. M. |author4=Papeş, M. |year=2018 |title=Beyond the numbers: Human attitudes and conflict with lions (''Panthera leo'') in and around Gambella National Park, Ethiopia |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=13 |issue=9 |page=e0204320 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0204320|pmid=30252886 |pmc=6155518 |bibcode=2018PLoSO..1304320G |doi-access=free }}</ref> Local people around [[Chebera Churchura National Park]] kill lions, [[leopard]]s (''Panthera pardus'') and [[spotted hyena]]s (''Crocuta crocuta'') using [[trapping#Trap types|traps]] to retaliate against attacks on their livestock.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Acha, A. |author2=Temesgen, M. |year= 2015 |title=Approaches to human-wildlife conflict management in and around Chebera-Churchura National Park, Southern Ethiopia |journal=Asian Journal of Conservation Biology |volume=4 |issue=2 |pages=136–142}}</ref>

Surveys in the Central African Republic's [[Chinko]] area revealed that the number of lions decreased significantly between 2012 and 2017 after [[transhumant]] [[Pastoralism|pastoralist]]s from the border area with Sudan moved into the area. Rangers found multiple lion [[cadaver]]s and confiscated large amounts of [[poison]] in the camps of livestock herders. They were accompanied by armed merchants who also engaged in [[poaching]] large herbivores, sale of [[bushmeat]] and trading lion skins.<ref name="Aebischer"/>

== Conservation ==
In India, the lion is protected, and included in [[CITES Appendix I]].<ref name="IUCN2008AL" /> African lions are included in [[CITES Appendix II]].<ref name=iucn/> In 2004, it was proposed in 2004 to list all lion populations in CITES Appendix I to reduce exports of lion trophies and implement a stricter permission process, due to the negative impact of trophy hunting.<ref name="Nowell2004">{{cite journal |author=Nowell, K. |year=2004 |title=The Cat Specialist Group at CITES 2004 |journal=Cat News |volume=41 |page=29}}</ref>

In 2006, a Lion Conservation Strategy for West and Central Africa was developed in cooperation between IUCN regional offices and several wildlife conservation organisations. The strategy envisages to maintain sufficient habitat, ensure a sufficient wild prey base, make lion-human coexistence sustainable and reduce factors that lead to further fragmentation of populations.<ref name=csg2006/>
Surveys and interviews with herders around protected areas revealed that improved enclosures for livestock significantly decreased depredation by lions, and hence contributed to mitigating human-lion conflict.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Assessment and mitigation of human-lion conflict in West and Central Africa |author=Bauer, H. |author2=de Iongh, H. |author3=Sogbohossou, E. |journal=Mammalia |year=2010 |volume=74 |issue=4 |pages=363–367 |doi=10.1515/MAMM.2010.048|s2cid=86228533 }}</ref>

The effect of lion trophy hunting and whether it is a sustainable conservation measure, has been discussed controversially.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Whitman |first1=K. |last2=Starfield |first2=A. M. |last3=Quadling |first3=H. S. |last4=Packer |first4=C. |year=2004 |title=Sustainable trophy hunting of African lions |journal=Nature |volume=428 |issue=427 |pages=175–178 |doi=10.1038/nature02395 |pmid=14990967 |bibcode=2004Natur.428..175W |s2cid=4328700 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Loveridge |first1=A. |last2=Searle |first2=A. |last3=Murindagomo |first3=F. |last4=Macdonald |first4=D. |year=2007 |title=The impact of sport-hunting on the population dynamics of an African lion population in a protected area |journal=Biological Conservation |issue=4 |volume=134 |pages=548–558 |doi=10.1016/j.biocon.2006.09.010 |bibcode=2007BCons.134..548L }}</ref>
In 2016, a group of authors recommended a quota for lion trophy hunting of one lion per {{convert|1000|km2|sqmi|abbr=on}} in the WAP protected area complex, and to refrain from imposing an import embargo of lion trophies from this region.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Bouché |first1=P. |last2=Crosmary |first2=W. |last3=Kafando |first3=P. |last4=Doamba |first4=B. |last5=Kidjo |first5=F. C. |last6=Vermeulen |first6=C. |last7=Chardonnet |first7=P. |year=2016 |title=Embargo on Lion Hunting Trophies from West Africa: An Effective Measure or a Threat to Lion Conservation? |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=11 |issue=5 |page=e0155763 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0155763 |pmid=27182985 |pmc=4868358 |bibcode=2016PLoSO..1155763B |doi-access=free }}</ref>
This recommendation was questioned and strongly opposed, with the argument that the estimate for lion population size in the WAP region is not reliable and therefore the suggested quota inappropriate.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Bauer |first1=H. |last2=Henschel |first2=P. |last3=Packer |first3=C. |last4=Sillero-Zubiri |first4=C. |last5=Chardonnet |first5=B. |last6=Sogbohossou |first6=E. A. |last7=De Iongh |first7=H. H. |last8=Macdonald |first8=D. W. |year=2017 |title=Lion trophy hunting in West Africa: A response to Bouché et al. |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=12 |issue=3 |page=e0173691 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0173691 |pmid=28323837 |pmc=5360238 |bibcode=2017PLoSO..1273691B |doi-access=free }}</ref>

=== In captivity ===
[[File:Lionne du Cameroun.JPG|thumb|Captive lions in [[Mefou National Park]]]]
In 2006, 1258 [[captive animal|captive]] lions were registered in the International Species Information System, including 13 individuals originating from Senegal to Cameroon, 115 from India and 970 with uncertain origin.<ref name=Barnett2006/> In addition, several lions kept in Ethiopia's [[Addis Ababa Zoo]] were thought to be genetically similar to wild lions from Cameroon and Chad. They also differed from lions kept at [[Sana'a Zoo]], which were suspected to be of Ethiopian origin.<ref name=Brucheetal2012>{{Cite journal |last=Bruche |first=S. |author2=Gusset, M. |author3=Lippold, S. |author4=Barnett, R. |author5=Eulenberger, K. |author6=Junhold, J. |author7=Driscoll, C. A. |author8=Hofreiter, M. |title=A genetically distinct lion (''Panthera leo'') population from Ethiopia |journal=European Journal of Wildlife Research |year=2012 |pages=215–225 |doi=10.1007/s10344-012-0668-5 |volume=59 |issue=2|s2cid=508478}}</ref> Genetic research did not corroborate this result, but placed these lions in ''P. l. melanochaita''.<ref name=Bertola_al2016/>

In 2023, a lion in the [[Niokolo-Koba National Park]] in Senegal has given birth to three cubs, two males and a female. The park is aiming to increase the lion population to 50 lions by the end 2025, before doubling that population in the 5 years after that.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Greenfield | first= P. |date=2023 |title= Florence and her cubs give hope that west African lion can come roaring back |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/mar/03/west-african-lion-senegal-cubs-save-from-extinction}}</ref>

==See also==
*''[[Damnatio ad bestias]]''
*[[Cape lion]]
*[[White lion]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
{{Commons|Panthera leo}}
{{Commons category|Lions of Asia}}
{{Commons category|Lions of West Africa}}
{{Commons category|Lions of North Africa}}
*{{cite web |title=Lion (''Panthera leo'' ssp. ''leo'') |year=2016 |website=ECOS Environmental Conservation Online System |url=https://ecos.fws.gov/ecp0/profile/speciesProfile?sId=9138}}
* [https://www.flickr.com/photos/8834404@N02/sets/72157604851044321/ Photos of West African lions at Pendjari National Park at flickr]
* [http://www.rocal-lion.org/projects-en.htm ROCAL West and Central African lion conservation network]
* [https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-25722058 BBC News: Lions 'facing extinction in West Africa']
* [https://edition.cnn.com/2015/04/02/africa/gabon-africa-first-lion/index.html Is this one of Central Africa's last lions? (2015)]
* [https://www.earthtouchnews.com/conservation/conservation/take-two-gabons-lone-lion-makes-another-on-camera-appearance/ Take two: Gabon's lone lion makes another on-camera appearance (2016)]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0f_j0VGD7U The Rare Central African Lion - أسود حديقة الدندر فيديو فبراير 2017] (in Dinder National Park, [[YouTube]])
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20180917181820/https://www.telegraphindia.com/travel/pride-of-india-254571 The Telegraph, August 2018: Pride of India]

{{Taxonbar|from=Q221094}}

[[Category:Panthera leo leo| ]]
[[Category:Lions]]
[[Category:Subspecies]]
[[Category:Mammals of West Africa]]
[[Category:Mammals of Cameroon]]
[[Category:Mammals of the Central African Republic]]
[[Category:Mammals of the Democratic Republic of the Congo]]
[[Category:Mammals of Ethiopia]]
[[Category:Mammals of South Sudan]]
[[Category:Mammals of Sudan]]
[[Category:Felids of India]]
[[Category:Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus]]
[[Category:Fauna of Benin]]
[[Category:Fauna of Burkina Faso]]
[[Category:Fauna of Niger]]
[[Category:Fauna of Nigeria]]
[[Category:Fauna of Senegal]]