Ep.76: Lions – 7 Subspecies

April 9, 2023 Peter Jans

Intro

Hello and Welcome to this episode of the podcast, "The Mnemonic Tree", where we add a single mnemonic leaf, to our Tree of Knowledge.

Today's episode is on the “King of the Jungle”, the “Top of the Food chain” lion. The lion is definitely one of the most recognisable and loved animals on the planet. It has been depicted a myriad of times as characters in movies, television, cartoons, and video games.

Just some of the better-known characters are Mufasa, Scar and Simba from The Lion King, Aslan from The Chronicles of Narnia, the Cowardly Lion from The Wizard of Oz, Snagglepuss from Yogi’s Great Escape, Kimba the White Lion from Kimba the White Lion, Leonore Lionheart from Zootopia, and Leo the Lion, who is the mascot for the Hollywood film studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

But for me, my favourite lion in Hollywood would definitely have to be Elsa, from the movie “Born Free”. It is a true-life story about an orphaned lion cub who was raised by a couple, Joy and George Adamson, who were in a race against time to reintroduce Elsa, back into the wild, something that had never been done before.

Their initial attempts were heartbreaking for a number of reasons which I can’t say because I don’t want to spoil the movie for you. But in the end a beautiful result with the last scenes of the movie illustrating what life is all about, love, life, freedom, and family.

With that being said, we will begin with a summary from Wikipedia.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lion_d%27Afrique.jpg

Wikipedia Summary

The lion (Panthera leo) is a large cat of the genus Panthera native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphic; adult male lions are larger than females and have a prominent mane. It is a social species, forming groups called prides. A lion's pride consists of a few adult males, related females, and cubs. Groups of female lions usually hunt together, preying mostly on large ungulates. The lion is an apex and keystone predator; although some lions scavenge when opportunities occur and have been known to hunt humans, lions typically do not actively seek out and prey on humans.

The lion inhabits grasslands, savannas and shrublands. It is usually more diurnal than other wild cats, but when persecuted, it adapts to being active at night and at twilight. During the Neolithic period, the lion ranged throughout Africa and Eurasia from Southeast Europe to India, but it has been reduced to fragmented populations in sub-Saharan Africa and one population in western India. It has been listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List since 1996 because populations in African countries have declined by about 43% since the early 1990s. Lion populations are untenable outside designated protected areas. Although the cause of the decline is not fully understood, habitat loss and conflicts with humans are the greatest causes for concern.

One of the most widely recognised animal symbols in human culture, the lion has been extensively depicted in sculptures and paintings, on national flags, and in contemporary films and literature. Lions have been kept in menageries since the time of the Roman Empire and have been a key species sought for exhibition in zoological gardens across the world since the late 18th century. Cultural depictions of lions were prominent in Ancient Egypt, and depictions have occurred in virtually all ancient and medieval cultures in the lion's historic and current range.

Extracted from: [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lion]

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Leones_(Panthera_leo)_deborando_un_b%C3%BAfalo_africano_negro_(Syncerus_caffer_caffer),_parque_nacional_de_Chobe,_Botsuana,_2018-07-28,_DD_94-96_PAN.jpg

Mnemonic

Lions – 7 Subspecies – CAB Escorts King of The Wild

(Picture Kimba the White Lion escorted around Africa in a custom-made cab sitting on an elevated seat with his head out the sun roof keeping an eye on the savannah)

1. Congo Lion (Northeast Congo Lion)

2. Asiatic Lion

3. Barbary Lion

4. East African Lion (Nubian Lion)

5. Katanga Lion (Southwest African Lion)

6. Transvaal Lion (Southeastern Lion)

7. West African Lion

Five Fun Facts

1. On average a male lion weighs around 190kg, while the females average around 126kg

2. A lion’s mane can grow up to 16cm long. The purpose behind the mane is to attract females and it also provides protection for the lion’s head and neck during fights. The older a lion gets, the darker the mane becomes.

3. “The lion’s share” aphorism is for good reason. Lions can eat up to 40kg of meat in a single sitting. Their tongues are specially adapted to scrape the meat of the bone with sharp-pointed rasps, called papillae (pap-eel-ii).

4. Lions like to hunt during storms or at night time. The storms provide noise and wind making it harder for the prey to see or hear them, while the night is also their domain, with their eyes adapted for the dark.

5. Lions love to roar and this roar can be heard from approximately 8km away. They use this roar to mark their territory, scare off intruders, warn of potential danger and also as a show of power among other males.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lion_waiting_in_Namibia.jpg

Three Question Quiz

Q.1. Which is the bigger cat; a Lion or a Tiger?

Q.2. Approximately how long does a lion live in the wild? Options are 10 to 14 years, 20 to 24, or 30 to 34

Q.3. How fast can lions run? Options are approximately 50kmph, 65kmph or 80kmph

Bonus Q. How many cubs do lions have at a time? Options are, up to 3, up to 6, or up to 10

Bonus Q. What is the main difference between a Tiger and a Lion?

Mnemonic Recap