The lion (Panthera leo) is a large cat of the genus Panthera, currently ranging only in Sub-Saharan Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; a short, rounded head; round ears; and a dark, hairy tuft at the tip of its tail. It is sexually dimorphic; adult male lions are larger than females and have a prominent mane that extends from the head to the shoulders and chest. The lion inhabits grasslands, savannahs, and shrublands. It is an apex and keystone predator, preying mostly on medium-sized and large hooved mammals. It is usually more diurnal than other wild cats, but when persecuted, it adapts to being active at night and at twilight. It is a social species, forming groups called prides. A lion pride consists of related females and cubs, and a few or one adult male who is unrelated to the females. Groups of female lions usually hunt together. Adult males often compete to keep or gain their membership in the pride. During the Neolithic period, the lion ranged throughout Africa and Eurasia, from Southeast Europe to India. Still, 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. The lion has been extensively depicted in sculptures and paintings, on national flags, and in literature and films. It is one of the most widely recognised animal symbols in human culture. 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 have occurred worldwide, particularly as a symbol of power and royalty. They figure prominently as symbols and deities in ancient religions.
Etymology The generic name Panthera is traceable to the classical Latin word 'panthēra' and the ancient Greek word πάνθηρ 'panther'. The English word lion is derived via Anglo-Norman liun from Latin leōnem (nominative: leō), which in turn was a borrowing from ancient Greek λέων léōn. The Hebrew word לָבִיא lavi may also be related.
Taxonomy
Felis leo was the scientific name used by Carl Linnaeus in 1758, who described the lion in his work Systema Naturae. The genus name Panthera was coined by Lorenz Oken in 1816. Between the mid-18th and mid-20th centuries, 26 lion specimens were described and proposed as subspecies, of which 11 were recognised as valid in 2005. They were distinguished mostly by the size and colour of their manes and skins.
Subspecies In the 19th and 20th centuries, several lion type specimens were described and proposed as subspecies, with about a dozen recognised as valid taxa until 2017. Between 2008 and 2016, IUCN Red List assessors used only two subspecific names: P. l. leo for African lion populations, and P. l. persica for the Asiatic lion population. In 2017, the Cat Classification Task Force of the Cat Specialist Group revised lion taxonomy, and recognises two subspecies based on results of several phylogeographic studies on lion evolution, namely:
P. l. leo (Linnaeus, 1758) − the nominate lion subspecies includes the Asiatic lion, the regionally extinct Barbary lion, and lion populations in West and northern parts of Central Africa. Synonyms include P. l. persica (Meyer, 1826), P. l. senegalensis (Meyer, 1826), P. l. kamptzi (Matschie, 1900), and P. l. azandica (Allen, 1924). It has been called 'northern lion' and 'northern subspecies'. P. l. melanochaita (Smith, 1842) − includes the extinct Cape lion and lion populations in East and Southern African regions. Synonyms include P. l. somaliensis (Noack 1891), P. l. massaica (Neumann, 1900), P. l. sabakiensis (Lönnberg, 1910), P. l. bleyenberghi (Lönnberg, 1914), P. l. roosevelti (Heller, 1914), P. l. nyanzae (Heller, 1914), P. l. hollisteri (Allen, 1924), P. l. krugeri (Roberts, 1929), P. l. vernayi (Roberts, 1948), and P. l. webbiensis (Zukowsky, 1964). It has been referred to as 'southern subspecies' and 'southern lion'. Based on nuclear and mitochondrial DNA, the two subspecies can be further divided into seven clades. Scientists have recommended these clades as basal units for possible translocations of lions between different areas of occurrence. There is, however, some degree of overlap between the two groups in northern Central Africa. DNA analysis from a more recent study indicates that Central African lions are derived from both northern and southern lions, as they cluster with P. leo leo in mtDNA-based phylogenies. In contrast, their genomic DNA indicates a closer relationship with P. leo melanochaita. Lion samples from some parts of the Ethiopian Highlands cluster genetically with those from Cameroon and Chad, while lions from other areas of Ethiopia cluster with samples from East Africa. Researchers, therefore, assume Ethiopia is a contact zone between the two subspecies. Genome-wide data of a wild-born historical lion sample from Sudan showed that it clustered with P. l. leo in mtDNA-based phylogenies, but with a high affinity to P. l. melanochaita; this suggested that the taxonomic position of lions in Central Africa may require revision.
Fossil records Other lion subspecies or sister species to the modern lion existed in prehistoric times:
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