Makana – Asian / African / Barbary Lion

Makana is a male Asian/African/Barbary Lion (Panthera leo persica/Panthera leo leo), born in August 2011. He is developing the physical characteristics of the Barbary Lion. Like our other Asian/African/Barbary Lion, Makana is a budding star! He has been on the Jay Leno show, and was featured in the December issue of the magazine Upgraded Living.

The lion is unusual amongst the cat species because it lives in organized social groups called prides. The pride can consist of as many as 30-40 lions, the majority being females and their young, along with a small number of resident males. It is common for the females within the pride to be closely related. This family bonding is often extended through communal suckling and caring of the young within the group.

Asiatic Lion: Slightly smaller than its African cousin, it once roamed over a range extending from Greece to South Asia, but relentless human persecution has now restricted the Asiatic Lion to a single reserve in the Gir Forest, in the west Indian state of Gujarat.

African Lion: In the wild, African Lions live in the savannah, which is a large, open, grassy, plain. They hunt zebra, antelope, wildebeest, and deer. Hunting is a shared process. Lionesses hunt by ambush, with

the majority of the hunting group chasing the prey toward individuals lying in wait who are then able to give chase over short distances before leaping on the selected animal for the kill. Once the prey is taken it is common for the males of the pride to eat first even though they take no part in the hunting process.

Barbary Lion: Females as well as young males possess longer hairs around the neck and throat, on the back of their front legs and along their belly. Males have a huge mane covering the head, neck and shoulders, which also extends behind the shoulders and covers the belly.

The color of their mane varies among the parts of the body, becoming darker towards the hindquarters. These lions have a lot of fur creating a real shaggy look. They also have a larger tuft on the tip of their tail and are known to be the largest of all lions. Male Barbary lions can weigh up to 600 pounds. The only way to find out a true Barbary lion is DNA.

Barbary Lions are an extremely endangered subspecies of lion, and are extinct in the wild. 2,000 years ago they ranged from Northern Africa to Rome. The ancient Roman Empire sought to entertain the people of Rome, and imported these huge lions from North Africa to use in the games of the Coliseum. Literally thousands were taken from their African homes to serve as gladiator’s rivals.

Asian / African / Barbary Lion Statistics: