The lion is a big cat, in the same group as tigers, leopards and jaguars. Almost all wild lions live in Africa, and a small group lives in India. Lions live on grassy plains called savannas and in open woodlands. They do not live in tropical rainforests. Most kinds of cats live alone, but lions live together in groups. Lions live in family groups called prides.

A pride is built around related adult females and their young, plus a few adult males who are not their relatives. A pride can have as few as two lions or as many as 40. Female lions usually stay in the pride they were born into, often for life.

Male lions guard the pride and patrol its territory. Lions roar to mark their territory and to keep in touch with their own pride. A lion's roar can be heard from up to five miles (8 kilometers) away.

Female lions, called lionesses, do most of the hunting for the pride. Lions mostly hunt at night, around dusk and dawn. Lions hunt together, which gives them a better chance of getting food. Hunting lionesses fan out and come at their prey from different directions. Lions rely on stalking and a short chase rather than a long run. Most lion hunts do not succeed.

Lions are meat eaters that hunt big animals such as zebra and wildebeest. Together, lions can take down animals as big as buffalo and giraffe. When prey is scarce, lions will eat almost any animal and scavenge the kills of other predators.

Male lions weigh about 330 to 550 pounds (150 to 250 kilograms), and females weigh about 265 to 395 pounds. Lions stand about 3.5 to 4 feet (1 to 1.2 meters) tall at the shoulder. Both male and female lions have a tuft of fur at the tip of the tail. Lions walk on their toes.

Male lions grow a shaggy mane, and no other kind of wild cat grows one. A male lion's mane gets darker as he gets older. A male lion's mane makes him look bigger and more impressive to rivals and to females.

A lioness carries her cubs for about three and a half months before they are born. Lion cubs are born with dark spots on their fur. A lion cub can drink milk from other lionesses in the pride, not just from its own mother.

Lions have long been admired as symbols of courage and strength.

Lions are threatened by habitat loss and by conflict with people over livestock.

Words to know

• savannas: grassy plains
• territory: a pride's land
• scavenge: eat others' kills
• stalking: creeping up