South+African+Lions;+Behavior,+Socialization,+Prides+and+Communication

Although there are different types of lions, all living in different regions of the world, for the most part, they all have the same activities and socialization. For about 20 hours per day, lions usually are resting. For the most part, their activity is at dusk, through the night, they have their grooming, and socialization. Until morning, bursts of energy occur and most hunting occurs at this time. On average they spend an average of two hours a day walking and 50 minutes eating. The big cats socialization methods consist of many parts, the most used gestures shown in lions socializing are head/neck rubbing, and body licking. These are usually used after a lion has been away for some time, or after a fight or confrontation. The licking and head rubbing happens at the same time, just like humans give a hug and a kiss at the same time. The lions tend to rub the same gender, males to males, while females and cubs to females. The head and neck are the most utilized licking places, this may be because the lions and lion cubs cannot lick those places on their own. Not only do they show how they feel through those gestures, they also show it through their vocalization and facial expressions. Their variety of vocal sounds is wide, variations in loudness and pitch. The sounds include snarling, hissing, coughing, meowing, woofing, and roaring. When roaring, they tend to start with a few lengthy loud roars, and finish with a hand full of shorter ones. The roar can be heard from five miles away and are usually heard mostly at night, lions tend to have the loudest roar of any big cat. Not all lions live in groups, or prides, to survive, but some lions live in the groups of related lionesses called prides and protect their families. Females will not let outside females into their group, the only way the group can change is with new births or deaths. Although outside females cannot join other prides, females can leave the pack and become nomadic. The pride usually contains five or six females, their babies, and one or two males who mate with the adult females. The number of adult males in a coalition is usually two but may increase to as many as four and decrease again over time. Male cubs at the age of two or three are then kicked out of the pride to go find life on their own, and find their own prides. If the lion or lioness is not in a pride, they are considered nomadic. They either travel alone or in pairs, while pairs are more common. All males are nomadic for at least part of their lifetime, some staying nomadic forever. Lions can switch lifestyles also, nomads can be in prides, and lions or lionesses in prides can become nomadic. Prides stay on their territory called “pride area” while the area of a nomadic lion is called a “range."