Lion pictures and videos

[Sanju]

(04-09-2019, 07:48 PM)Lycaon Wrote: I have also noticed that spotted lions occur, in more wet regions of africa. That have forests perhaps an adaptation to the environment.

Great, that's not a guess but it's actually true.

The marozi or "spotted lion" is variously claimed by zoologists, to be a distinct race of the lion adapted for a montane rather than savanna-dwelling existence lacking any distinguishable mane. It has been reported in the wild and the skin of a specimen exists, but it has yet to be confirmed as either a separate species or subspecies. Belgian cryptozoologist Dr Bernard Heuvelmans proposed the specific name Leo maculatus in 1955. Presently they resumed in spp status with no further research being done.

While Africans have been familiar with the animal and Europeans have reported seeing spotted lions since roughly 1904, the first documentable encounter by a European was in 1931 when Kenyan farmer Michael Trent shot and killed two individuals in the Aberdare Mountains region at an elevation of 10,000 feet (3,000 m).

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

Two years later, explorer Kenneth Gandar-Dower headed an expedition into the region in an attempt to capture or kill more specimens. He returned with only circumstantial evidence: three sets of tracks found at a similar elevation as Trent's lions (10,000–12,500 feet or 3,000–3,800 metres). They were believed to have been left by individuals that were tracking a herd of buffalo during a hunt, ruling out the possibility of the marozi being cubs. "ntararago" in Uganda, "ikimizi" in Rwanda, and "abasambo" in Ethiopia. 

There were other sightings around the same time:

• Four animals sighted by Game Warden Captain R.E.Dent in the Aberdare Mountain region at an elevation of 10,000 feet (3,000 m).
• A pair sighted on the Kinangop Plateau by G. Hamilton-Snowball at an elevation of 11,500 feet (3,500 m). They were shot at but escaped.
  

These couldn't be leopard - lion hybrids as no such event has ever been recorded in the wild. The two species are natural enemies and live different lifestyles, so the chance of a naturally occurring hybrid is very small and would likely lead to the leopard's death.

Genetic aberration: It is possible that the marozi was a result of a recessive gene that spread through a population of lions as a result of inbreeding. Big cats have been known to have their coats affected by recessive genes, as seen in black leopards (panthers), white tigers, white lions, and the king cheetah. A genetic mutation might result in the lion's juvenile spots being retained into adolescence or even into adulthood.

This does not explain the smaller size of the marozi and its preferred habitat of elevated, wooded areas instead of the traditional savanna habitat of other lions. The Aberdare region is home to many endemic species and subspecies.

or could be New taxon: The marozi could have been a yet-undiscovered species or subspecies of lion. The answer to this largely depends on when, if ever, a closer inspection and DNA analysis is done on the skin of the Trent specimen.


No reports of the marozi have surfaced from the Aberdare region since the 1930's and it is believed that the population has long since become extinct.

Quote:Reports of spotted lions are still fairly common throughout other parts of Africa, though.

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