Asiatic Lions

Hello everybody I’m Alex, the new Head of Carnivores and I am sure you are curious about the arrival of our new Asiatic lions Theo, Thor and Rakesh. They joined us on 1^st May and are slowly settling in well to their new environment and keepers. Don’t worry boys, as were both newbies here we can do this together!

Asiatic lions (Panthera leo persica) are now registered as an endangered species on the IUCN red list. There are now estimated to be 350 individuals left in the wild and all located in India’s Gir National Park and wildlife sanctuary, a protected reserve for its wildlife and their home.

Their populations used to range from the forests of Northern Africa to Southwest Asia and Eastern India, but sadly due to habitat loss and fragmentation, human-wildlife conflicts and poaching this is no longer the case. However, remaining populations have been recorded as stable but sadly there is concern for bottleneck genetics due to the dramatic reduction in the size of population and isolation to one area.

Asiatic lions are Apex predators, differing slightly from your African lions as they are a little smaller in size and have shorter, thinner manes and longer elbow and tail hair so they are more adapted for the forest life and dense vegetation, instead of the open plains of Africa.

They live in strongly bonded prides, but smaller ones than that of the African lions, normally composed of a male and a few females. Although a small coalition of males in the same pride have been known, up to 3 males forming alliances together. The female cubs tend to stay with the pride while the young males will venture off and find their own territories and females after 2-3 years of age. Their lifespan varies between 10-20 years.

They will scent mark their territories with loud vocalisations, scent marking such as spraying and scratching logs and trees. They will also rub their faces over objects because just like our pet cats they have glands in their cheeks leaving a musk behind when they rub them.

It is normally the males role to protect his territories and pride, and the lioness’s do the hunting. They will hunt other wildlife such as large mammals like deer, antelope and wild boar. The lioness’ use cooperative hunting to work together to catch their food source. They are known as ambush predators and use stealth to sneak up as close to their prey as they can before giving a short burst of speed, reaching up to 35mph to chase it down.

Conservation efforts are being researched on how to aid the prevention of these lions going extinct in the wild such as establishing or reintroducing other wild populations to help widen the genetic diversity and increase numbers as there is fear that a single epidemic or wildfire could eliminate what remains. However, these actions do come with complications to overcome. Education to local communities and farmers is also required to come to an agreement making room for themselves and the lions while minimizing any further human-animal conflicts and poaching.   

By Alex, Head of Carnivores