Lions how fast

How fast can a lion run? Lions aren't the world's speediest animals, but they are fast. Top lion speed is between 36 and 50 mph, put to good use when a lion is chasing down its prey.

But since its prey - antelopes, wildebeests, zebras - can often run as fast or faster, lions must devise strategies that involve surprise - and other lions - to catch dinner. Compare a lion's top speed to a human's top sprinting speed - about 27 mph - and you can see that humans are no match. But in an all-animal Olympics, how would lions and humans compare to the competition?

Scientists say cheetahs are the fastest of the land animals. At a furious flat-out run - say, chasing a gazelle across the African veldt - the swiftest cheetahs can probably reach 70 mph.

So on the freeway, an impatient cheetah would easily pass a Sunday-driver lion. Of course, many animals move mainly by flying or swimming or even slithering. A cheetah's speed would be no match for a falcon diving for a mouse; the plummeting falcon may be traveling upwards of mph.

The falcon, however, has the benefit of gravity: combining powerful flying with a controlled fall. There have also been recorded attacks on humans by lions in captivity; tigers are statistically much more likely to attack humans in captivity. Wild lions are also much less likely to attack humans than wild tigers are. Tawny colored: African lions the predominant lion left are usually a tawny color. There are cases of white lions, but those are rare - a white lion has a disadvantage when it comes to hunting: it can be given away by its color, unlike the regular lion which blends in with its surroundings.

White lions are born almost pure white without the normal camouflaging spots seen in lion cubs. Their color gradually darkens to cream or ivory co lour known as blonde. Lions have a large head and a sturdy, and long, deep chested body. The unusual and useful mane: Lions are the only big cat that have such a distinct difference between the male and female, other than size - the mane. The mane protects the lion's necks from other lion's claws during territory fights with other males.

The maneless lion: The first lions are presumed to have been maneless. Until around 10 years ago, maneless forms seem to have persisted in Europe, and possibly the New World. The maned form may have appeared c. This maned form may have had a selective advantage that enabled it to expand to replace the range of earlier maneless forms throughout Africa and western Eurasia by historic times.

Now there are primarily only African lions. That wasn't always the case! Because of humans, lions were driven out of many other parts of the world.

Even now, because of human use of the grasslands where lions live, the lions' range has been drastically reduced. In Iran the last lion was shot in The subspecies now survives only in and around the Gir Forest of northwestern India. Asiatic lions are very endangered. European lions: Lions had become extinct in Greece, their last European outpost, by Other extinct subspecies are the Cape Lion, the European Cave Lion subspecies Panthera leo spelaea which coexisted with humans throughout the last Ice Age, and the American lion subspecies Panthera leo atrox , a close relative of the European cave lion not to be confused with the mountain lion or puma.

The major differences between lion subspecies are location, mane appearance, size and distribution. Genetic evidence suggests that all modern lions derived from one common ancestor only circa 55, years ago. Therefore most sub-Saharan lions could be considered a single subspecies Panthera leo leo. Poor cubs: To reproduce, the lions mate over long periods of time. When a new male or a coalition takes over a pride and ousts the previous master s , the conquerors often kill any remaining cubs.

This is explained by the fact that the females would not become fertile and receptive until the cubs grow up or die. The male lions reach maturity at about 3 years of age and are capable of taking over another pride at years old.

They begin to age and thus weaken at around 8. This leaves a short window for their own children to be born and mature — the fathers have to procreate as soon as they take over the pride. With its limited levels of endurance and significant size , a slog through the undergrowth is an unnecessary problem that can easily be avoided.

The only instances in which the lion may prefer the secrecy of the bush is when in need of cover to conceal its killer advances or, indeed, when in search of shade for a nap. Simply saying that the lion can run faster than its peers and prey may lead to the simplistic conclusion that it can catch or overtake the other creatures it encounters.

To think this is simply inaccurate. So how fast can a lion run? As fast as it needs to in order to catch a meal. But not very fast for very long. Weighing as much as a whopping kg , and growing as long as nine or ten feet, the lion is the biggest cat on the African savannah. Tigers do weigh more and you may want to check jaguar vs leopard. Despite its bulk, the lion boasts a sleek shape with a balance of torque and stealth.

This tightly wound machine of tendons and muscle can accelerate at breakneck pace. But the energy this requires takes its toll and lions can only run fast over very short distances.

Being a sprinter rather than a marathon runner , the lion has to be selective and prepared in any attempts to capture its prey. Not having the endurance of hyenas or wild dogs , the lion must rely on its unique set of hunting attributes.

If it can get close enough to its intended target, a lion can leap as far as 11 metres 36 feet from its hiding place. This is one edge it can use to come down upon an unwitting victim. As the only known species of cat to hunt in packs, strength and solidarity in trained formations give lions the ability to overwhelm their adversaries.