Jenny Kellett - Lion Books: The Big Lion Book for Kids: 100+ Amazing Lion Facts, Photos + Quiz (Learn About Lions)

The average male lion weighs between 160-225kg (350-496 lb), depending on where they are from. Southern African lions are the heaviest.

The average female lion weighs between 110-143kg (240-316 lb).

The heaviest lion ever recorded weighed an incredible 375kg (827 lb).

Lions are the second fastest land mammals in Africa they can reach speeds of up to 81 km/h (50.3 mph), but only in very short bursts.

The roar of a lion can be heard 8 km (5 miles) away.

Lions roar mostly at night time and its used to let others know they are there.

Lions dont only roar. They make a range of noises, including purring, bleating, humming and puffing.

Most wild lions can be found in southern and eastern Africa, however, their numbers are rapidly decreasing. In the late half of the 20th century, lion numbers decreased by an estimated 30-50%.

Researchers estimate there are 16,500 and 47,000 lions living in the wild in Africa today.

Unlike other cat species, lions are very sociable. They usually live in prides that include males, females and a few cubs.

Lions spend an average of two hours a day walking and 50 minutes eating.

Like the domestic cat, lions spend a lot of time resting up to 20 hours a day!

Lions are most active just after dusk. This is when they usually do their hunting.

Most male lions have distinctive manes, while female lions do not.

There might not be any lions living in the wild in Europe, but many European countries have a lion as their national animal, including Bulgaria, Albania, England, Luxembourg, Belgium and the Netherlands.

In the wild, lions live for around 12-15 years. In captivity, they live for up to 20 years.

Evidence from cave paintings suggests that lions didnt always have a mane. The mane may have evolved 320,000190,000 years ago.

Different species within the Panthera genus (which includes the other big cats) have been cross-bred to produce new breeds such as ligers, tigons, leopons and jaglions. Males from hybrid breeds are usually infertile.

White lions exist, but they are very rare. They have a genetic condition called leucism, which is different from albinism.

Lionesses are better hunters than lions, as they can run 30% faster. Male lions protect the pride while the lionesses are out hunting.

As lions can only run short distances quickly, they get as close as possible to their prey before attacking.

Young lions dont start hunting until they are one year old, and its not until they are two years old that they are good hunters.

Fossil records show that lions used to exist in Europe and even in Siberia, however, they became extinct due to global warming around 11,900 years ago.

Despite being called the king of the jungle, there are no lions living in jungles.

The darker a lion's mane, the older it is. A thick, dark mane is a good indication of a healthy lion.

Asiatic lions generally have sparser manes than their African relatives.

Most male West African lions in Pendjari National Park are either maneless or have very short manes.

The word Simba means lion in Swahili. The word also means aggressive, king and strong.

Lions heels dont touch the ground when they walk.

The word for lion in Turkish and Mongolian is Aslan. This is also the name of the lion in C.S. Lewiss book The Chronicles of Narnia.

While they dont love water, lions are great swimmers when they need to cross water.

Wild lions eat between 4.5-11.3 kg (10-25 lbs) of meat a day. Male lions need more.

Lions are the only cats that have a tuft on the end of their tails.

Sadly, only one in ten male lions make it to adulthood. The majority die after leaving their pride (they are usually kicked out by the older males) at the age of two. Lionesses generally stay behind in the pride.

Lions have great night vision. They can see six times better in the dark than humans. Can you see the white patch under their eyes? This is used to reflect light into their eyes. They also have a reflective coating on the back of their eyes to capture maximum moonlight.

Lions see mostly in blues and greens.

The largest population of lions in Africa is in Tanzania.

Lionesses are pregnant with cubs for around 3.5 months. The typical number of cubs a lioness will have is 3, but it ranges from 1-6.

Lions come in all different colours, including red, yellow, tan and brown.

Prides have an average of 13 members, but they can range from 2-40 lions.

There are two species of lions still around today African and Asian.

Lions cant properly roar until the age of two.

Lions are apex predators, meaning that they are at the top of the food chain and have no natural predators.

Lions are also keystone predators. This means that they have a huge impact on their surrounding habitat. If lions were gone, the whole ecosystem would change. Other keystone predators around the world include wolves, sea otters and the jaguar.

Lions are mostly diurnal much more so than other cats. This means that they are most active during the day and rest mostly at night. However, they will hunt on bright nights if they are hungry.

There is a small critically endangered population of lions in western India. All other wild lions live in sub-Saharan Africa.