Lion - The King of the Jungle

I’ve always thought of lions as symbols of courage and strength. Whenever i see a lion, I'm ALWAYS awed by its magnificence! For those of you who remember the Walt Disney animation “The Lion King”, you may recall the final scene where Simba, after his victory fight with uncle Scar, walks up Pride Rock and lets out a powerful roar (which was joined by the lionesses). 

Lions have sandy colour fur, but males have manes of darker hair on head and shoulder that make them look powerful and threatening. The mane also protects a lion from bites and scratches if he gets into a fight with another.  Known as the King of the Jungle, do you know that the lions are in fact NOT the biggest cat in the feline family? The tiger is actually the largest of all cats. And you may ask – “ Then why is the lion the King of the Jungle if he is not the largest?!?”  Well , lions attack so quickly that their prey usually doesn’t get much time to protect itself. They attack big animals like buffalos and giraffes from behind and tears them apart with its paws and teeth. And due to such excellent quickness and power, some believe that's how they earned the title "King of the Jungle".

Some of you may not know that the lions are the only social cat – that is, they stay together in a family unit known as a pride and exercises teamwork during hunting. Remember the youtube clip on the heart-warming big reunion between Christian and John and Ace? That clip captured everyone’s attention some years ago, and I believe has everything to do with a lion’s natural need and appreciation for companionship. Youtube video - Christian the Lion

As much as the lion is “man of the family”, a male lion does not hunt. Maybe his mane makes him too difficult to hide/camouflage during a hunt. So the lionesses hunt while the male lion stays home to defend their territory, protect the cubs, and even play with the cubs. Lionesses hunt in a very instinctively cooperated manner, especially the way they stalk and fan down the prey and pressure the prey into exactly the direction the lionesses want it to. And when a hunt is successful, the lion, being the man of the family, will still be the first to eat.

You may think now it's all nice and glam- being a lion. But stop and think again. Many of these big cats hunt to survive, but are hunted for pleasure. I stumbled upon this distrurbing article on National Geographic some time ago and will like to share this with you as a takeaway from my post today. Do they really deserve this? Lion Hunting Scandal