King of forest - LION

Lion is known for it's strength and excellent hunting tactics.The lion (Panthera leo) is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera and a member of the family Felidae. They are known as KING OF FOREST. Here are some interesting facts about them.

•  African lions are the most social of all big cats and live together in groups or “prides.” A pride consists of about 15 lions.
• Male lions defend the pride’s territory while females do most of the hunting. Despite this, the males eat first.
• These majestic cats are threatened by habitat loss. The lion is listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
• The lion was once found throughout Africa, Asia and Europe but now exists only in Africa with one exception. The last remaining Asiatic lions are found in Sasan-Gir National Park in India, which was primarily created to protect the species. Currently, there are approximately 350-400 lions in the park.
• A lion’s roar can be heard from as far as 5 miles away.
• A lion can run for short distances at 50 mph and leap as far as 36 feet.
• Even though the lion is sometimes referred to as the “king of the jungle,” it actually only lives in grasslands and plains. The expression may have come from an incorrect association between Africa and jungles or may refer to a less literal meaning of the word jungle.
• A good gauge of a male lion’s age is the darkness of his mane. The darker the mane, the older the lion.
• A lion’s heels don’t touch the ground when it walks.
• A lion may sleep up to 20 hours a day.

Top 5 Strange Lion Facts
The lion's worst enemy might come as a surprise, as the culprit is the size of a small dog: turns out the porcupine is the thorn in the big cat's side, or rather mouth, as a lion tricked into sniffing the clever porcupine's sharp quills often ends up with one or more stuck in its jaw for life.

Top 5 Strange Lion Facts

4. Tantalizing Tail
The lion is the only member of the cat family with a tasseled tail, which serves a purpose beyond aesthetics. It's often used to signal to other members of the pride, with messages ranging from directional, "this way" commands to flirtatious, "come hither" invitations!

3. A Manicurist's Nightmare
A lion's claws are not only very sharp, but also retractable, which helps maintain the big cat's slice-and-dice capabilities by preventing injury during play. Their claws grow as a series of layers. These eventually shred to expose new claws that can reach lengths of up to 1 1/2 inches from the base to tip.

2. Armed to the Teeth
A lion's back teeth (called carnassals) work like a pair of scissors, which comes in handy when tackling a fresh piece of meat. Though the teeth help cut up their meals, lions don't actually chew their food, but rather swallow it in chunks, using only one side of their mouth at a time.

1. Rub-a-Dub-Dub
Male and females greet each other not with a handshake but with a rub, which sometimes becomes so vigorous that one gets knocked down in the process. The act is meant as a means of bonding, as lions leave scent markings on each other during the process, similar to how house cats rub up against their pet parents to demonstrate ownership (but hopefully, with less injury!).

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