Modern Weights and Measurements of Wild Lions

[Stealthcat]

(01-19-2018, 12:55 PM)Spalea Wrote: @Stealthcat :

About your post #24: If I may so:

"The Indian cattle is also sometimes easier to kill, their cows are different, very heavy stomachs large with considerable mass in the mid section, yet very thin necks,  and the horns go backwards not forwards, so a large tiger could easily kill a huge Indian cattle with such small neck and throat area.   In contrast the African buffalo has a neck specially designed to resist the lions bite force, which it can contract the neck muscles and tendons like steel rods making it extremely hard to penetrate. "

You cannot compare the indian cattle (not the "domestic" gaurs) with the wild African buffalo (never domesticated). It's impossible...

*This image is copyright of its original author

 

*This image is copyright of its original author

But if you want to consider wild bovids only: Asiatic buffalo and gaurs are bigger than African buffalo, that's a fact. On the other hand, perhaps African buffalo, living still in big herds have a reputation for being agressive (see ancient stories of explorers and hunters) that the other bovids haven't. To be confirmed... And I confess that the african buffalos, in my opinion, have the most impressive horns among all living wild bovids.

As concerns lions and tigers, by reading accounts and other accounts, in short, I must admit that the greatest tigers are greater than the greatest lions, the biggest tigers are bigger than the biggest lions. Not by much perhaps, but here is... And yes, as @peter says, at equal length the tiger is a little bit heavier.

Yes but you have to compare the size that is attacked, lions are routinely hunting larger prey by habit, a male lion is designed for endurance and fighting, as well as taking down larger prey.  So it by habit learns to be unafraid of larger animals.  From birth it fights over sized opponents, you can't discount this experience, our environments early on shape us to be who we are, this coupled with the natural selection would be even stronger.  Young lions have experience assisting the pride in attacking adult buffalo, a younger tiger does not.  Yes there is help, but again it doesn't discount this valuable experience having to avoid the deadly horns of the buffalo and even attack it head on trying to suffocate its mouth or hang on the neck, or rear.  The young lion is exercising its jaws and muscles on this huge animal that it could otherwise never have the experience attacking if the rest of the pride wasn't there.  Later on, when the male lion is older, even without a pridemate or the pride, yet on his own, he will not hesitate to attack and try to bring down a good size buffalo.  Which does happen from time to time, and we have footage of this.  The tiger would be less likely to do so, as its not conditioned to do so, and it only has to feed itself, its faster, and it can easily and more likely expend less energy, be in less danger to catch a smaller but yes quicker prey. 

So yes while there may be some large qaurs, you have to look at the whole anatomy, do the tigers attack such larger gaurs on a regular basis, I don't think so, and do the guars have the same robust neck muscles that an African Buffalo has?  I have not seen that, and it is said the African buffalo is the most aggressive species. 
I had recently seen a clip were an Asiatic lion killed a larger cow near the locals houses, it feasted on the cow right in front of them while they watched, this was a lot of food.  Regardless of comparing wild cows to buffalo, it is true many tigers have gotten to larger sizes and weights killing Indian cattle, and if you look at that cattle, yes the horns do go backwards, they have larger midsections providing much meat, and their necks are quite small and thin in proportion to other domestic cattle.  The result is going to be an easy meal, and a huge food source and potential to really hit a high weight.   I've seen this quite a few times on different nature docs, lions trying to put the death hold on the throat of an African buffalo, and the buffalo contracts its muscles and tendons in the neck prolonging its death, giving time for the rest of the buffalo to stampede back and rescue it.  I have never seen a gaur do that. Reply