How old are lions? To understand this issue, you need to understand what this predator is, in what conditions it exists, and also on what factors the duration of its life depends.
King of beasts
A lion is a large feline mammal. Everyone knows that this predator is called the king of animals. To understand why the ancient peoples so called it, it is enough to see how this animal lies. Leo always retains a powerful, and I want to say - regal, posture. A chic mane makes his appearance even more magnificent.
The weight of the male is about 200 kilograms, it reaches 2.8 m in length (by the way, as many as 90 centimeters fall on a beautiful tail). Lionesses are a little smaller. Their weight is 140 kilograms, and the body length reaches 2.5 meters. Females, unlike males, have no mane.
A lion can knock down a zebra weighing about three hundred kilograms with one paw strike (!). It is impossible not to say that the wild cats we are considering are good jumpers.
Habits and habits
Lions live and hunt in flocks (another name is pride). Predators feed on zebras, giraffes, rodents, hares and antelopes, it happens that sometimes they eat carrion. In rare cases, lions attack buffaloes, elephants and rhinos. And they hunt, as a rule, and the lions guard the prey. There are frequent cases when these wild cats took food from small predators.
After the "meal" the lions rest in the shade or on the branches. Yes, yes, they climb trees perfectly! Thanks to their claws, they can climb to a height of about six meters. Note that lions are still dormouse! The duration of their sleep is more than twenty hours a day. But even when the male is sleeping, he hears everything. Sensitive sleep is necessary to save offspring and a lioness.
These predators may not drink for a long period, since the liquid contained in the eaten animal is quite enough for them. At a time, one such beast is able to eat up to forty kilograms of meat, then it will wait a week until the food is digested, and then you can go hunting again. Of course, in this situation, one should not be surprised to hear that lions can go without food for a long time.
Scientists have concluded that the lion's lifespan in natural conditions is fifteen years, but this is not always the case. Unfortunately, many predators die much earlier.
At two years of age, they begin puberty. Mating takes place all 12 months of the year. Pregnancy of the female lasts 110 days. In one offspring, two to five cubs are born. The female can bring offspring every two years. It happens that a lioness does not allow the male to the cubs, as she fears for their life.
The first three months of their life, lion cubs spend only with their mother, away from the group. When a baby is born, it resembles a domestic cat in size. Reliable camouflage for babies is spotted wool. Young mothers very often unite, organizing a kind of nursery, where they collect all their offspring. Having given the cubs under the supervision of one lioness, the rest of the mothers can safely hunt, knowing that the babies are protected. Lion grown up are already taken with them on a hunt in order to learn how to track prey, and then kill. At two or three years old, the mane already grows in males. This is the time when the strongest drives the weaker out of the pack. At the age of five, a lone lion tries to create his own pride.
Specifically about age
So, lion … How long does this proud handsome man live? His life span depends on many factors. For example, how many years do lions live in the wild? In the wild, these predators face a lot of dangers, but their main enemy is man. Due to the raids of hyenas and poachers, as well as due to adverse conditions, the lion's lifespan in natural conditions is short - about eight years. But this time is enough to mature, and also leave offspring.
Note that females live several years longer. Probably due to the fact that they do not have to defend the territory in the fight against strangers.
Life in nature reserves
How many years have lions lived in reserves? In this zone, their life is longer, because the animals are protected from poachers. Here, predators live up to fourteen years, which is almost twice as much as in freedom.
