Desert Lions

[BorneanTiger]

Once upon a time, the sandy deserts of Arabia had them (and I don't know why the Romanian flag is being shown): https://archive.org/stream/naturalistsli...+of+arabia, https://archive.org/stream/wildbeastsstu...the+desert

But it's worth mentioning that not all of Arabia is a sandy desert, with its coastal sides in the east, south and west being rather mountainous, including the Hijaz (https://web.archive.org/web/200711121323..._Lion.html). An ancient legend has it that an Imam who was a descendant of Muhammad met a lion north of Medina in the Hijaz (https://www.al-islam.org/articles/infall...h-al-mufid), which is known to have had leopards (http://www.catsg.org/fileadmin/fileshari...Arabia.pdf), and the Arabian lion apparently went extinct in the middle of the 19th century: http://www.catsg.org/cheetah/05_library/...Arabia.pdf

Ancient Yemeni or South Arabian relief showing both the lion and leopard attacking prey, in the Walters Art Museum: https://art.thewalters.org/detail/76505

*This image is copyright of its original author

Lion pictures from Saudi Arabia: http://saudi-archaeology.com/subjects/lion/

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

Apparently, there's even ancient Greek literature on the Arabian lion: https://snarla.wordpress.com/2007/08/31/arabian-lions/
“The lions of Arabia”, wrote Agatharchides, “are less hairy and bolder. They are uniform in colour just are those in Babylonia. The sheen of their mane is such that the hair on the back of their neck gleams like gold. …the leopards are unlike those found in caria and Lycia. their bodies are large, and they are much better able to endure wounds and pain. In strength, moreover, they surpass the others by as much as a wild animal does a domesticated one.”

Interesting video which also shows the leopard and cheetah: 

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