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Modern Weights and Measurements of Wild Lions

United States Pckts Offline
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#76

(04-01-2020, 08:04 PM)Pantherinae Wrote:
(04-01-2020, 07:02 PM)Pckts Wrote:
(04-01-2020, 06:31 PM)Hello Wrote: Here is an another big and bulky Okavango lion.I put him in 500 lb+ league



He's full bellied, not necessarily massive.

@Pantherinae 
Unfortunately with those same 3 images, they have the benefit of a flattering perspective.
Im sure you can find the same cat's with less impressive angles 
As of now I have 2 reliable sources saying they are smaller than Lions elsewhere.
Do I think that is a representation of all Delta Lions, probably not but it's definitely interesting to note.
Here is a big male lion from the Delta, impressive 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

*This image is copyright of its original author

Response I got from Looking for lions. 
Yes, he was quite a big lion! We measure along the body curves, so for body length from the top of the nose pad and over the head, along the spine to the start of the tail. He measured 197.5 cm, with a tail length of 92cm (from the start of the tail to the tip of the last caudal vertebra). Chest girth was 130.5 cm and shoulder height (from the spine to the start of the paw pad) 131.5cm. Unfortunately, I didn't have a scale but  the vet estimated him to be around 240kg. 

Robynne

Yes I agree the angle is flattering, but still that is a big lion. people say Renoka (this lions name) is very big and dwarfs the females in his pride.

This quote was directly from Looking for Lions

"Some of the largest lions I've seen, and also talking to people around Botswana - the lions in the Kalahari are some of the biggest. I can't speak personally of East Africa because i havent been there. One of the males I collared south in the Delta was quite large, but the females higher up in the Delta, in the really swampy areas, are defintely of smaller stature, but they have impressive muscular builds which we assume is from wading in the water and the sand. I have heard other guides/travellers comment on this as well."
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Pantherinae Offline
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( This post was last modified: 04-01-2020, 10:19 PM by Pantherinae )

(04-01-2020, 09:35 PM)Pckts Wrote:
(04-01-2020, 08:04 PM)Pantherinae Wrote:
(04-01-2020, 07:02 PM)Pckts Wrote:
(04-01-2020, 06:31 PM)Hello Wrote: Here is an another big and bulky Okavango lion.I put him in 500 lb+ league



He's full bellied, not necessarily massive.

@Pantherinae 
Unfortunately with those same 3 images, they have the benefit of a flattering perspective.
Im sure you can find the same cat's with less impressive angles 
As of now I have 2 reliable sources saying they are smaller than Lions elsewhere.
Do I think that is a representation of all Delta Lions, probably not but it's definitely interesting to note.
Here is a big male lion from the Delta, impressive 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

*This image is copyright of its original author

Response I got from Looking for lions. 
Yes, he was quite a big lion! We measure along the body curves, so for body length from the top of the nose pad and over the head, along the spine to the start of the tail. He measured 197.5 cm, with a tail length of 92cm (from the start of the tail to the tip of the last caudal vertebra). Chest girth was 130.5 cm and shoulder height (from the spine to the start of the paw pad) 131.5cm. Unfortunately, I didn't have a scale but  the vet estimated him to be around 240kg. 

Robynne

Yes I agree the angle is flattering, but still that is a big lion. people say Renoka (this lions name) is very big and dwarfs the females in his pride.

This quote was directly from Looking for Lions

"Some of the largest lions I've seen, and also talking to people around Botswana - the lions in the Kalahari are some of the biggest. I can't speak personally of East Africa because i havent been there. One of the males I collared south in the Delta was quite large, but the females higher up in the Delta, in the really swampy areas, are defintely of smaller stature, but they have impressive muscular builds which we assume is from wading in the water and the sand. I have heard other guides/travellers comment on this as well."

Yes, but still that lion was big so lions can be big there. Maybe in the swampiest areas lions are not as large, but in other parts they grow larger. 
Joubert said the Tsaro male lions where the biggest he had ever seen and that females where as large as inland males. Although I don’t agree with the last part of his statement, this is a different opinion of a filmaker with much experience. 

So I think lions grow large here. Lions in some parts might be small, while in other lions are big. Most likely it’s down to availability of prey. Letchwe is hard to hunt in floods. So if Buffalo is scarce it’s probably a very hard life for lions in the swamp. Whereas Buffalos are abundant in say Duba plains and in parts of Moremi so they grow larger. 
We have different opinions from several people with much experience and that I see as reliable. And we have recorded small and big lions there. So I think we both are right. Lions can be both big and small in the delta.
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GuateGojira Offline
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(04-01-2020, 10:16 PM)Pantherinae Wrote: Joubert said the Tsaro male lions where the biggest he had ever seen and that females where as large as inland males. Although I don’t agree with the last part of his statement, this is a different opinion of a filmaker with much experience.

As far I remember, in the documentary and in the news article he never said anything about the male lions, he only said that the females were as large a "inland males". However it depends of what "inland males" he was refering too. Did he saw other male lions of South Africa or Kenya/Tanzania? Is his average "inland male" of the same size as the figures reported by Dr Craig Packer (about 160 - 170 kg)?
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Pantherinae Offline
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(04-02-2020, 02:13 AM)GuateGojira Wrote:
(04-01-2020, 10:16 PM)Pantherinae Wrote: Joubert said the Tsaro male lions where the biggest he had ever seen and that females where as large as inland males. Although I don’t agree with the last part of his statement, this is a different opinion of a filmaker with much experience.

As far I remember, in the documentary and in the news article he never said anything about the male lions, he only said that the females were as large a "inland males". However it depends of what "inland males" he was refering too. Did he saw other male lions of South Africa or Kenya/Tanzania? Is his average "inland male" of the same size as the figures reported by Dr Craig Packer (about 160 - 170 kg)?

I don’t know about which lions he has seen in the past, but I know he was filming in Savuti. 
Which also has impressive looking males. 

Here is what he said about male lions from the Okavango Delta:
Male lions in the Okavango Delta, a lush wetland where the Okavango River collides with the Kalahari Desert, are the largest lions on Earth, said filmmaker Dereck Joubert. Dereck and his wife, Beverly, both National Geographic explorers-in-residence, made a film about how these male lions survive,

https://www.google.no/amp/s/www.livescience.com/amp/41584-photos-the-biggest-lions-on-earth.html
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(04-02-2020, 07:23 AM)Pantherinae Wrote: I don’t know about which lions he has seen in the past, but I know he was filming in Savuti. 
Which also has impressive looking males. 

Here is what he said about male lions from the Okavango Delta:
Male lions in the Okavango Delta, a lush wetland where the Okavango River collides with the Kalahari Desert, are the largest lions on Earth, said filmmaker Dereck Joubert. Dereck and his wife, Beverly, both National Geographic explorers-in-residence, made a film about how these male lions survive,

https://www.google.no/amp/s/www.livescience.com/amp/41584-photos-the-biggest-lions-on-earth.html

Interesting article, so they do mentioned "males". Now, my question is what is the experience of the Jouberts in "size" especifically. I know that they are experts in lion behaviour and ecology and I REALLY respect that. But how many lions had they captured, or what is the point of appreciation to say that those lions were the largest?

I mean, this is the same case as the lions of the Crater and the tigers of Kaziranga and Orang, there are several people in litterature and the web that say that those lions/tigers are the largest, but there are no measurements to prove it. At least we have a couple of measurements from Assam tigers (and they are not exceptionally large in comparison with other Bengal/Nepal populations) and we have chest girth measurements from the Ngorongoro crater (and, again, they are not exceptional compared with populations of lions in Southern Africa region).

So, I don't want to sound "exceptical" but unless they can provide evidence that those lions are really "large", they statement will be just they personal appreciation.


For the moment, my vote for the largest lions are those from South Africa.
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(04-04-2020, 10:27 AM)GuateGojira Wrote:
(04-02-2020, 07:23 AM)Pantherinae Wrote: I don’t know about which lions he has seen in the past, but I know he was filming in Savuti. 
Which also has impressive looking males. 

Here is what he said about male lions from the Okavango Delta:
Male lions in the Okavango Delta, a lush wetland where the Okavango River collides with the Kalahari Desert, are the largest lions on Earth, said filmmaker Dereck Joubert. Dereck and his wife, Beverly, both National Geographic explorers-in-residence, made a film about how these male lions survive,

https://www.google.no/amp/s/www.livescience.com/amp/41584-photos-the-biggest-lions-on-earth.html

Interesting article, so they do mentioned "males". Now, my question is what is the experience of the Jouberts in "size" especifically. I know that they are experts in lion behaviour and ecology and I REALLY respect that. But how many lions had they captured, or what is the point of appreciation to say that those lions were the largest?

I mean, this is the same case as the lions of the Crater and the tigers of Kaziranga and Orang, there are several people in litterature and the web that say that those lions/tigers are the largest, but there are no measurements to prove it. At least we have a couple of measurements from Assam tigers (and they are not exceptionally large in comparison with other Bengal/Nepal populations) and we have chest girth measurements from the Ngorongoro crater (and, again, they are not exceptional compared with populations of lions in Southern Africa region).

So, I don't want to sound "exceptical" but unless they can provide evidence that those lions are really "large", they statement will be just they personal appreciation.


For the moment, my vote for the largest lions are those from South Africa.
I also vote for Kruger lions when it comes to size with highest averages of 195-200 kg,Skull length and are the tallest cats on average.
Some average Krugers



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Pantherinae Offline
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(04-04-2020, 10:27 AM)GuateGojira Wrote:
(04-02-2020, 07:23 AM)Pantherinae Wrote: I don’t know about which lions he has seen in the past, but I know he was filming in Savuti. 
Which also has impressive looking males. 

Here is what he said about male lions from the Okavango Delta:
Male lions in the Okavango Delta, a lush wetland where the Okavango River collides with the Kalahari Desert, are the largest lions on Earth, said filmmaker Dereck Joubert. Dereck and his wife, Beverly, both National Geographic explorers-in-residence, made a film about how these male lions survive,

https://www.google.no/amp/s/www.livescience.com/amp/41584-photos-the-biggest-lions-on-earth.html

Interesting article, so they do mentioned "males". Now, my question is what is the experience of the Jouberts in "size" especifically. I know that they are experts in lion behaviour and ecology and I REALLY respect that. But how many lions had they captured, or what is the point of appreciation to say that those lions were the largest?

I mean, this is the same case as the lions of the Crater and the tigers of Kaziranga and Orang, there are several people in litterature and the web that say that those lions/tigers are the largest, but there are no measurements to prove it. At least we have a couple of measurements from Assam tigers (and they are not exceptionally large in comparison with other Bengal/Nepal populations) and we have chest girth measurements from the Ngorongoro crater (and, again, they are not exceptional compared with populations of lions in Southern Africa region).

So, I don't want to sound "exceptical" but unless they can provide evidence that those lions are really "large", they statement will be just they personal appreciation.


For the moment, my vote for the largest lions are those from South Africa.

All I said was that they where large and capable of reaching those big sizes as other lions do. I think Joubert from over the years can tell if a lion is big or small. However I agree that we need more evidence to back it up about them being the biggest. 

Biggest lions are from Kgalagadi and probably also in Chobe and Etosha, which has migrating lions from the Kalahari. 
Private parks in South Africa has gotten lions from Etosha and Kgalagadi in them as well. Madikwe has a reputation for having very big lions. 
"The lion in Madikwe were originally introduced into the park from Etosha National Park (in Namibia).  However, recently two new males were introduced from the Kgalahadi Transfrontier National Park in order to introduce new genes into the pool."
https://www.madikwegamereserve.co.za/big-5/ 
Who knows, but I just don’t see Kruger lions being that big.
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United States Pckts Offline
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(04-04-2020, 07:26 PM)Pantherinae Wrote:
(04-04-2020, 10:27 AM)GuateGojira Wrote:
(04-02-2020, 07:23 AM)Pantherinae Wrote: I don’t know about which lions he has seen in the past, but I know he was filming in Savuti. 
Which also has impressive looking males. 

Here is what he said about male lions from the Okavango Delta:
Male lions in the Okavango Delta, a lush wetland where the Okavango River collides with the Kalahari Desert, are the largest lions on Earth, said filmmaker Dereck Joubert. Dereck and his wife, Beverly, both National Geographic explorers-in-residence, made a film about how these male lions survive,

https://www.google.no/amp/s/www.livescience.com/amp/41584-photos-the-biggest-lions-on-earth.html

Interesting article, so they do mentioned "males". Now, my question is what is the experience of the Jouberts in "size" especifically. I know that they are experts in lion behaviour and ecology and I REALLY respect that. But how many lions had they captured, or what is the point of appreciation to say that those lions were the largest?

I mean, this is the same case as the lions of the Crater and the tigers of Kaziranga and Orang, there are several people in litterature and the web that say that those lions/tigers are the largest, but there are no measurements to prove it. At least we have a couple of measurements from Assam tigers (and they are not exceptionally large in comparison with other Bengal/Nepal populations) and we have chest girth measurements from the Ngorongoro crater (and, again, they are not exceptional compared with populations of lions in Southern Africa region).

So, I don't want to sound "exceptical" but unless they can provide evidence that those lions are really "large", they statement will be just they personal appreciation.


For the moment, my vote for the largest lions are those from South Africa.

All I said was that they where large and capable of reaching those big sizes as other lions do. I think Joubert from over the years can tell if a lion is big or small. However I agree that we need more evidence to back it up about them being the biggest. 

Biggest lions are from Kgalagadi and probably also in Chobe and Etosha, which has migrating lions from the Kalahari. 
Private parks in South Africa has gotten lions from Etosha and Kgalagadi in them as well. Madikwe has a reputation for having very big lions. 
"The lion in Madikwe were originally introduced into the park from Etosha National Park (in Namibia).  However, recently two new males were introduced from the Kgalahadi Transfrontier National Park in order to introduce new genes into the pool."
https://www.madikwegamereserve.co.za/big-5/ 
Who knows, but I just don’t see Kruger lions being that big.
I agree on Kruger Lions or S. African Lions in general.
None impress the way the big hippo/buffalo killers of East Africa do imo. 
But S. Africans do seem taller in frame.
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Pantherinae Offline
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(04-04-2020, 08:42 PM)Pckts Wrote:
(04-04-2020, 07:26 PM)Pantherinae Wrote:
(04-04-2020, 10:27 AM)GuateGojira Wrote:
(04-02-2020, 07:23 AM)Pantherinae Wrote: I don’t know about which lions he has seen in the past, but I know he was filming in Savuti. 
Which also has impressive looking males. 

Here is what he said about male lions from the Okavango Delta:
Male lions in the Okavango Delta, a lush wetland where the Okavango River collides with the Kalahari Desert, are the largest lions on Earth, said filmmaker Dereck Joubert. Dereck and his wife, Beverly, both National Geographic explorers-in-residence, made a film about how these male lions survive,

https://www.google.no/amp/s/www.livescience.com/amp/41584-photos-the-biggest-lions-on-earth.html

Interesting article, so they do mentioned "males". Now, my question is what is the experience of the Jouberts in "size" especifically. I know that they are experts in lion behaviour and ecology and I REALLY respect that. But how many lions had they captured, or what is the point of appreciation to say that those lions were the largest?

I mean, this is the same case as the lions of the Crater and the tigers of Kaziranga and Orang, there are several people in litterature and the web that say that those lions/tigers are the largest, but there are no measurements to prove it. At least we have a couple of measurements from Assam tigers (and they are not exceptionally large in comparison with other Bengal/Nepal populations) and we have chest girth measurements from the Ngorongoro crater (and, again, they are not exceptional compared with populations of lions in Southern Africa region).

So, I don't want to sound "exceptical" but unless they can provide evidence that those lions are really "large", they statement will be just they personal appreciation.


For the moment, my vote for the largest lions are those from South Africa.

All I said was that they where large and capable of reaching those big sizes as other lions do. I think Joubert from over the years can tell if a lion is big or small. However I agree that we need more evidence to back it up about them being the biggest. 

Biggest lions are from Kgalagadi and probably also in Chobe and Etosha, which has migrating lions from the Kalahari. 
Private parks in South Africa has gotten lions from Etosha and Kgalagadi in them as well. Madikwe has a reputation for having very big lions. 
"The lion in Madikwe were originally introduced into the park from Etosha National Park (in Namibia).  However, recently two new males were introduced from the Kgalahadi Transfrontier National Park in order to introduce new genes into the pool."
https://www.madikwegamereserve.co.za/big-5/ 
Who knows, but I just don’t see Kruger lions being that big.
I agree on Kruger Lions or S. African Lions in general.
None impress the way the big hippo/buffalo killers of East Africa do imo. 
But S. Africans do seem taller in frame.
I agree Kruger lions have an impressive frame, but on bulk and muscle the seem inferior to Chobe and Kgalagadi males which I can’t see being smaller in frame. 
Yes Notch boys where larger in every way except maybe height than the largest Kruger lion I have seen at least. 
The more normal Mara males I saw however was not that impressive, and I might say a more average looking Kruger Lion was tad bigger, this is ofc just my opinion, but I really wanna see lions from Kgalagadi and Chobe, I think they are bigger. 
Also with hyenas, zebra and wildebeest in perticular they where all much smaller in East Africa than South Africa.
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GuateGojira Offline
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(04-04-2020, 07:26 PM)Pantherinae Wrote: Biggest lions are from Kgalagadi and probably also in Chobe and Etosha, which has migrating lions from the Kalahari.

Do you have evidence of this, or is just your personal opinion?
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Pantherinae Offline
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(04-07-2020, 07:06 AM)GuateGojira Wrote:
(04-04-2020, 07:26 PM)Pantherinae Wrote: Biggest lions are from Kgalagadi and probably also in Chobe and Etosha, which has migrating lions from the Kalahari.

Do you have evidence of this, or is just your personal opinion?

Personal opinion, but based on people that have had conutless trips/works in both Kgalagadi and Kruger. Chobe lions often are lions who has entered from Kalahari so I would assume they are about the same size. Also some individuals from East are huge. 

In South Africa Timbawati and Madikwe is said to have very big lions. Madikwe as mentioned has gotten lions from Etosha and Kgalagadi.
Problem with Kruger lions are that they are so lean that with 90% of the males you can see their spine.
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(04-07-2020, 10:46 AM)Pantherinae Wrote: Personal opinion, but based on people that have had conutless trips/works in both Kgalagadi and Kruger. Chobe lions often are lions who has entered from Kalahari so I would assume they are about the same size. Also some individuals from East are huge. 

In South Africa Timbawati and Madikwe is said to have very big lions. Madikwe as mentioned has gotten lions from Etosha and Kgalagadi.
Problem with Kruger lions are that they are so lean that with 90% of the males you can see their spine.

It would be interesting to see figures from Kgalagadi and Chobe. We have info from Etosha, and although they seems to be heavier, they figures include stomach content, while those used for South Africa did not in the mayority of the specimens.

We most be carefull with personal estimations based in sightings and pictures, as you know, sometimes the emotion and the personal feelings may affect the perception. Check the case of the Indian lions, for example.

However, again, it will be interesting to have more date of these lion populations at the south of Africa, definitelly they are the largest of the lion populations in modern days and a male of 190 kg is normal for these latitudes.
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Pantherinae Offline
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(04-07-2020, 10:53 AM)GuateGojira Wrote:
(04-07-2020, 10:46 AM)Pantherinae Wrote: Personal opinion, but based on people that have had conutless trips/works in both Kgalagadi and Kruger. Chobe lions often are lions who has entered from Kalahari so I would assume they are about the same size. Also some individuals from East are huge. 

In South Africa Timbawati and Madikwe is said to have very big lions. Madikwe as mentioned has gotten lions from Etosha and Kgalagadi.
Problem with Kruger lions are that they are so lean that with 90% of the males you can see their spine.

It would be interesting to see figures from Kgalagadi and Chobe. We have info from Etosha, and although they seems to be heavier, they figures include stomach content, while those used for South Africa did not in the mayority of the specimens.

We most be carefull with personal estimations based in sightings and pictures, as you know, sometimes the emotion and the personal feelings may affect the perception. Check the case of the Indian lions, for example.

However, again, it will be interesting to have more date of these lion populations at the south of Africa, definitelly they are the largest of the lion populations in modern days and a male of 190 kg is normal for these latitudes.

I agree that we must be careful to say which is bigger, but it’s just as I said my opinion with the Chobe and Kgalagadi lions. 
Would like as you say to see actual weights from those places. Until then I agree that on average Kruger lions are the biggest. And East Africa has the heaviest, as I personally accept the 272 kg lion from Kenya.
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Velizar Simeonovski



The lessons of a growing lion:
What a skull of about 18* months old lion could tell about evolution
A) skull of a subadult male lion from Kenya - (Measurements; GL 275 , KBL 262.5, P4 35.3, m1 28.3)
B) an adult male from Botswana (Measurements; 395.6, KBL 340, P4 34.6 , m1 26 )
1 Growth and development:
As it can be seen it is obvious that the young lion (skull) would have a long away to grow until it reaches its adults size. Unlike the skull though the completely erupted permanent dentition of the young specimen is in its full adult size. This discrepancy between the growth rate of the dentition and the cranium gives an opportunity to illustrate the elusive but important process of the locally-specific growth (LSG) - a process of different speed, rate and or direction of growth of neighboring areas of the skull (and other bones).In this particular case in the maxilla and the mandible. Although LSG is likely a wide spread process, it is hard to be observed and illustrated, and as a consequence to define the areas which differ in growth. (To make the things even more difficult the differences in the growth rate could only be temporal )On the picture - The areas underlined with blue needs to retain their size (by holding the growth or modifying its direction) in order not to increase the volume of the alveoli and to loose the teeth. But the neighboring areas in red will grow freely until reaching the adult size (approximately as in the adult lion skull) . What are the mechanisms that determine those spatial differences of the growth on the local level, what those mechanism are depended on, and what controls them is unknown. But all of the skull /bone characteristics used in taxonomy and used for functional interpretations are product of the process of the growth - the general growth process but also the locally specific ones.
*the age is estimated based on teeth eruption see: Smuts, G.L., Anderson, J.L., Austin, J., 1978. Age determination of the African lion. J. Zool.185, 115–146.
2 Paleo -diet
The permanent teeth in cats are erupting in their full adult size, although the animal itself is still far from reaching the adult size. Since the teeth are completely developed they arrest their growth, which includes also the development (forming) of the dentin - i.e. the exchange of substances between the dentin and the environment (including that of isotopes) stops there. So any isotope analysis in cats based on dentin would provide data about the food habits of the animal at the time when it is about 30% - 40% smaller of the regular adult size.


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( This post was last modified: 04-29-2020, 05:33 AM by Dark Jaguar )

164 kilos young male lion from South Luangwa.

https://robinpopesafaris.net/blog/2000/01/its-monday-11th-january-and-champagne-moments/

''We had sighted a snoozing male lion on the previous day and he was encumbered by a snare, which had got entangled around his neck. Although it did not restrict his movement he seemed bothered. On the morning in question, we came across him resting on a main road. Daudi radioed to contact Matt of the AWDC and the SLCS team, who had already set out with a view finding the lion and removing the snare.''


*This image is copyright of its original author


''We then had a close spectator view of the team and their strategy for darting the lion and removing the snare. Firstly, Matt in his Land Rover, after much manoeuvring fired the dart into the lion’s shoulder. The lion then slowly walked away and then slumped in a shaded area. By this time there were a number of RPS guides and guests eagerly taking a keen view.''



*This image is copyright of its original author


''Matt calmly explained the procedures and where we could safely view the proceedings. His team regularly took temperature and applied water to cool the animal, whilst he applied an injection of antibiotics, removed the snare and cleaned the wounds''



*This image is copyright of its original author



''The guides assisted in the task of measuring the lion, and then with the weighing. The scales read 164 kg (which we believe indicates that he is not yet fully grown). I do not know who was more excited – the guides or the guests! ''



*This image is copyright of its original author



*This image is copyright of its original author


''Finally, before the reversal injection, Matt advised us that we should leave. He had been brilliant in involving us as spectators, whilst undertaking what must have been a stressful task.

We will be interested to learn of how the lion fares after his “health check”. ''








181.4kg Ugandan Male Lion https://blog.nationalgeographic.org/2017/02/17/saving-ugandan-lions-one-radio-collar-at-a-time/


http://www.michaelwschwartz.com/conservation.html


He was named “the Big Guy ”


*This image is copyright of its original author


Dr. Siefert manages to dart a male lion UCP unofficially refers to as “the Big Guy.” Photo by Michael Schwartz.



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''Successfully darting a 400-pound (181.4 kg) male lion is about as easy as sweeping leaves on a blustery day. Already we’ve been sitting for more than an hour in the scorching heat, waiting to see if Big Guy will leave the thicket, but he’s much too comfortable. To make matters worse, Bridget ( the lioness ) is sitting directly in Lu’s line of site.''



Big Guy resting comfortably after the UCP team fits him with a radio collar and performs a health examination. Photo by Amber Frank.


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''I’m reminded of all this as James continually scans the brush for Bridget or any of the other lions around us during the collaring process. Fortunately, Bridget stays put as Lu finishes fastening the collar around Big Guy, while I keep him cool by emptying my water bottle onto his coat.''




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The team moves Big Guy to a more secure spot. Photo by Amber Frank.


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*This image is copyright of its original author




Inspecting Big Guy’s claws. Photo by Michael Schwartz.


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''With the collar securely fastened, Lu and James start collecting blood, saliva, and ectoparasite (tick) samples, all while performing a routine clinical exam to evaluate his health status. Part of this involves checking the teeth, paws, and other areas where lions are prone to injury or infection.''



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Dr. Ludwig Siefert examines Big Guy’s massive canines. Photo by Michael Schwartz.


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*This image is copyright of its original author





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*This image is copyright of its original author



''The entire procedure takes about one hour. Then Lu reverses the anesthesia with an intravenous, intramuscular injection. Finally, we get to work moving the lion into a safe position in the shade before he wakes up.

Leaving a lion alone while it recovers from a sedative can be dangerous if an elephant or buffalo happens to pass by. And so we wait not far off for Big Guy to recover, our day’s hard work proving to be a great success.''


''As we watch Big Guy from a safe distance, I can’t help but dwell on the fact that Lu is one of the only wildlife veterinarians out here. One man, a small handful of assistants, 70 lions in a park that’s almost the size of Rhode Island, many impoverished communities, and plenty of other wildlife that needs looking after.''







Big Guy wakes up after getting his new radio collar. Photo by Michael Schwartz.


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''It may be difficult for some to share in his optimism, but as I watch Big Guy wake up, his gaze fixed carefully on us in the heat of midday, I realize that, so long as there are people like Lu out here in the thick of it, there will always be reason to hope.''




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