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Lions stand between 3.5 and 4 feet (1 and 1.2 meters) tall at the shoulder. Males grow to lengths of 10 feet (3 meters) and have a 2 to 3 foot (60 to 91 centimeter) tail. They weigh from 330 to 550 pounds (150 to 250 kilograms). Slightly smaller, females grow to lengths of 9 feet (2.7 meters) and weigh between 265 and 395 pounds.

Lions inhabit a wide range of habitats, from open plains to thick brush and dry thorn forest. Except for a small population of the Indian lion subspecies that remains in the Gir Forest of northwest India, lions now live only in Africa, from the Sahara's southern fringe to northern South Africa. They are absent from equatorial areas dominated by moi...

Lions primarily eat large animals that weigh from 100 to 1,000 pounds (45 to 453 kilograms), such as zebra and wildebeest. In times of shortage, they also catch and eat a variety of smaller animals, from rodents to reptiles. Lions also steal kills from hyenas, leopards and other predators. At times, they may lose their own catches to hyena groups. ...

Lions are the world's most social felines. They live in groups of related females, called prides, which may comprise several to as many as 40 individuals, including adults, sub-adults (between the ages of 2 and 4) and cubs, plus one or more resident males. Abundance of prey availability plays a significant role in the size of a lion pride. Pride ma...

Females usually stay in their mothers' prides for life, unless food scarcity forces them out. Young males are driven from their prides when they grow large enough to compete with the dominant males (usually between the ages of 2 and 4). They create coalitions, usually with brothers and cousins, and search for a pride to take over. Males entering a ...

Males take on most of the defensive duties. However, both males and females mark their territories by roaring which can be heard up to five miles away and scent marking with urine. Females raise the cubs and are the primary hunters, although males will sometimes join females during a hunt. Depending on the prey item, several lions may stalk prey ...

Females are receptive to mates for a few days several times a year, unless they are pregnant or nursing, and mating spurs ovulation. They typically give birth to a litter every two years.

Females usually give birth to one to four cubs after a gestation of about 3 1/2 months. Cubs typically nurse for six months but start eating meat at three months. Due to dangers, including starvation during times of food shortage and attacks by male lions taking over prides, up to 80 percent of lion cubs die within their first 2 years of life.

Lions in zoos may live into their late teens or early 20s. In the wild, a lioness may live up to 16 years, but males rarely live past the age of 12.