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Panthera leo
– Vulnerable
Taxonomy
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Kingdom:
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ANIMALIA
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Phylum:
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CHORDATA
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Class:
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MAMMALIA
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Order:
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CARNIVORA
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Family:
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FELIDAE
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Scientific Name:
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Panthera leo
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Species Authority:
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(Linnaeus, 1758)
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Infra-specific Taxa Assessed:
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See Panthera leo ssp. persica
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Common Name/s:
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AFRICAN LION (Eng)
LION (Eng)
LION D'AFRIQUE (Fre)
LEÓN (Spa)
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Assessment Information
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Red List Category & Criteria:
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VU A2abcd ver 3.1 (2001)
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Year Assessed:
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2004
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Assessor/s:
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Nowell, K. & Bauer, H. (Cat Specialist Group)
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Evaluator/s:
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Breitenmoser, U., Breitenmoser, C. & Jackson, P. (Cat Red List Authority)
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Justification:
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A species population reduction of 30–50% is suspected over the past two decades (three lion generations). The causes of this reduction are not well understood, are unlikely to have ceased, and may not be reversible. This suspected reduction is based on direct observation; appropriate indices of abundance; a decline in area of occupation, extent of occupation and habitat quality; and actual and potential levels of exploitation.
The range of the lion in North Africa and South-West Asia formerly stretched across the coastal forests of northern Africa and from northern Greece across south-west Asia to eastern India. Today the only living representatives of the lions once found throughout much of South-West Asia occur in India’s Gir Forest (Nowell and Jackson 1996). This population of the Asiatic lion, Panthera leo persica, is classified as Critically Endangered (CR C2a(ii)). The Asiatic lion population currently stands at approximately 250 mature breeding individuals, all occurring within one area. Since the population now extends beyond the boundary of the lion sanctuary, the numbers are expected to suffer a decrease due to increasing conflict with people.
In Sub-Saharan Africa, the lion conservation community works in the context of four regions: West, Central, East and Southern. The lion population is classified as Endangered in the region of West Africa (Bauer and Nowell, in submission). It is isolated from lion populations of Central Africa, with little or no exchange of breeding individuals (Chardonnet 2002, Bauer and Van Der Merwe 2004). The number of mature individuals in West Africa is estimated by two separate recent surveys at 850 (Bauer and Van Der Merwe 2004) and 1,163 (Chardonnet 2002). Both estimates are well below the Endangered criterion level of 2,500. Lions in West Africa are grouped into three isolated subpopulations by Chardonnet (2002) and approximately seven by the African Lion Working Group (Bauer and Van Der Merwe 2004). Chardonnet’s (2002) three subpopulations consist of 18 different individual populations, between which there may be some interchange of individuals, although this is unknown. There is disagreement over the size of the largest individual population in West Africa: the African Lion Working Group (Bauer and Van Der Merwe 2004) estimates 100 lions in Burkina Faso’s Arly-Singou ecosystem, while Chardonnet (2002) estimates 404 for the same area (mean 250).
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History:
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| 1996 | - | Vulnerable (Baillie and Groombridge 1996) |
| 2001 | - | Vulnerable (IUCN 2002) |
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Geographic Range
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Range Description:
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The lion formerly ranged from Northern Africa through Southwest Asia (where it disappeared from most countries within the last 150 years), west into Europe (where it apparently became extinct almost 2,000 years ago) and east into India (where a relict population survives today in the Gir Forest) (Nowell and Jackson 1996). Most lions now occur in sub-Saharan Africa. The most recent estimate of the population of the isolated Asiatic lion P. leo persica subspecies in the Gir Forest, India, is 327 (The Asiatic lion news page).
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Countries:
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Native:
Angola; Benin; Botswana; Burkina Faso; Burundi; Cameroon; Central African Republic; Chad; Congo; Congo, The Democratic Republic of the; Côte d'Ivoire; Ethiopia; Gabon; Ghana; Guinea; Guinea-Bissau; India; Kenya; Malawi; Mali; Mozambique; Namibia; Niger; Nigeria; Rwanda; Senegal; Somalia; South Africa; Sudan; Swaziland; Tanzania, United Republic of; Togo; Uganda; Zambia; Zimbabwe
Regionally extinct:
Afghanistan; Algeria; Djibouti; Egypt; Eritrea; Gambia; Iran, Islamic Republic of; Iraq; Jordan; Kuwait; Lebanon; Lesotho; Liberia; Libyan Arab Jamahiriya; Mauritania; Morocco; Pakistan; Saudi Arabia; Sierra Leone; Syrian Arab Republic; Tunisia; Turkey; Western Sahara
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Population
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Population:
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There have been few efforts in the past to estimate the number of lions in Africa. Former IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group Chairman Norman Myers carried out status surveys for the leopard Panthera pardus and cheetah Acinonyx jubatus in Africa, and also looked, in less detail, at the status of the lion. Myers (1975) wrote, "Since 1950, their numbers may well have been cut in half, perhaps to as low as 200,000 in all or even less". Later, Myers (1984) wrote, "In light of evidence from all the main countries of its range, the lion has been undergoing decline in both range and numbers, often an accelerating decline, during the past two decades". In the early 1990s, IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group members made educated "guesstimates" of 30,000 to 100,000 for the African lion population (Nowell and Jackson 1996).
The most quantitative historical estimate of the African lion population in the recent past was made by Ferreras and Cousins (1996), at the UK’s Cranfield University. They developed a GIS-based model to predict African lion range and numbers, calibrated by surveying lion experts about the factors affecting lion populations. First they correlated vegetation (Leaf Area Index) with lion densities, using known values from 37 studies in 19 African protected areas, and mapped potential lion range. Then the reduction effect of human activities on lion range and numbers were estimated. Lion experts were surveyed in order to develop and rank a set of factors which would lead to lower lion densities as well as lion absence. These included agriculture, human population density, cattle grazing, and distance from a protected area, and were derived from GIS databases of varying age. For example, in areas identified as main cattle grazing areas lion density was reduced by 90%, and in areas identified as having widespread agricultural cultivation or high human population density (> 2.5 people/km²) lions were considered absent. Lion density was reduced by 50% in areas with low human population density (1–2.5 people/km²). Because of the age of their data sources on extent of agriculture and pastoralism, Ferreras and Cousins (1996) selected 1980 as the base year for their predicted African lion population of 75,800. They emphasized the need for ground-truthing their estimate by censusing lions, particularly outside protected areas.
Two recent surveys have provided the first current estimates of the African lion population, with some ground-truthing. The African Lion Working Group, a network of lion specialists affiliated with the IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group, conducted a mail survey and compiled estimates of 100 known African lion populations. Not included were lion populations of known existence but unknown or unestimated size. The ALWG African lion population estimate is 23,000, with a range of 16,500–30,000 (Bauer and Van Der Merwe 2004). The second survey was carried out by Philippe Chardonnet and sponsored by the International Foundation for the Conservation of Wildlife and Conservation Force (Chardonnet 2002). He also compiled estimates for 144 individual African lion populations, grouped into 36 largely isolated subpopulations. His methodology included extrapolation of estimates of known populations into areas where lion status was unknown, and his total figure is larger: 39,000 lions in Africa, with a range of 29,000–47,000.
Approximately 30% of the individual population estimates compiled by the African Lion Working Group were based on scientific surveys. Techniques for these surveys included total count based on individually identified body features, sampling by use of calling stations playing recordings of hyaena and/or lion prey, and mark-recapture methods including radio telemetry, photo databases, and spoor counts (Bauer and Van Der Merwe 2004). Seventy percent of their population figures were derived from expert opinion or guesstimate. In the other survey, 63% of Chardonnet’s (2002) individual population estimates were based on expert opinions or guesstimates. Twelve percent of Chardonnet’s (2002) estimates were based on scientific surveys, and a further 25% were derived from extrapolation of variables from nearby populations and catch-per-unit effort-estimates based on lion trophy hunting.
Follow the link below for a comparison of African lion population estimates by two recent surveys.
In the early 1990s, the status of the African lion population was described as follows by the IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group’s Cat Action Plan: "East and Southern Africa are home to the majority of the continent’s lions; in west Africa, numbers have greatly declined" (Nowell and Jackson 1996: 20). This situation does not seem to have changed much, according to the new surveys: both find that the lions of Eastern and Southern Africa comprise approximately 90% of the estimated continental population (Bauer and van der Merwe 2004, Chardonnet 2002). The African Lion Working Group found that "in East and Southern Africa, many large lion populations have been stable over the last three decades…In West and Central Africa, lion populations are generally small and isolated; they are declining in some protected areas and have virtually disappeared from non-protected areas" (Bauer and Van Der Merwe 2004). Chardonnet (2002) compiled estimates of trends in lion numbers for many individual lion populations. While 39% of West African lion populations and 53% of Central African lion populations are described as declining, the figures for Southern Africa and East Africa are much lower, at 11% and < 1%, respectively. Overall, Chardonnet (2002) describes 25% of individual lion populations as currently declining.
Like lion numbers, habitat for lions is also suspected to have declined over the past two decades. Since the 1960s, the human population, land cultivation and numbers of livestock have steadily increased (Ferreras and Cousins 1996, Chardonnet 2002). Myers (1975) suggested lion range to total two million square miles or 5,178,000 km², remarking that extent was likely only about half of lion range in the 1950s. The African Mammal Databank project estimated the lion’s potential area of occurrence at approximately 10 million km², while noting that much of the most suitable habitat is fragmented and unprotected. The most detailed range calculation is Chardonnet’s (2002) estimate of approximately three million km², with about half having some form of protection, from national park to hunting reserve. Overall, habitat for 18% of African lion populations is described currently as declining. The highest rate is in West Africa (39%), with lower rates for Central (18%), Southern (16%) and East (9%) (Chardonnet 2002).
Estimating the size of the African lion population is an ambitious exercise involving many uncertainties. The three main efforts (Ferreras and Cousins 1996, Chardonnet 2002, Bauer and Van Der Merwe 2004) all use different methods. The African Lion Working Group compiled individual population estimates primarily from protected areas (23,000 lions: Bauer and Van Der Merwe 2004). In 1980, Ferreras and Cousins (1996) predicted 18,600 lions to occur in protected areas. This was probably an underestimate as not all protected areas inhabited by lions at that time were included. Still, the comparison suggests that the number of lions in African protected areas has remained stable or possibly increased over time. But Ferreras and Cousins (1996) predicted that most lions in 1980 were found outside protected areas. Chardonnet (2002) finds that unprotected areas still comprise a significant portion (half) of the lion’s current African range. Comparison of Ferreras and Cousin’s (1996) prediction of 75,800 lions in 1980 (three lion generations ago) to Chardonnet’s (2002) estimate of 39,000 lions yields a suspected decline of 48.5%. This calculation suggests a substantial decline in lions outside protected areas over the past two decades, and supports the recommendation of the African Lion Working Group that the lion continue to be classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (Bauer and Van Der Merwe 2004). Ferreras and Cousins (1996) may have over-estimated the African lion population in 1980, as their number was derived from a model rather than actual lion counts. While it is possible that the rate of decline of the African lion population may be lower (e.g., less than 30%), the precautionary principle precludes removing the lion from the list of Threatened Species (IUCN 2004). The rate of decline is quite unlikely to have been as high as 90%, as reported in a series of news reports in 2003 (Kirby 2003, Frank and Parker 2003).
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Population Trend:
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Habitat and Ecology
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Habitat and Ecology:
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Optimal habitat appears to be open woodlands, and thick bush, scrub and grass complexes, where sufficient cover is provided for hunting and denning. The lion has a broad habitat tolerance, absent only from tropical rainforest and the interior of the Sahara desert (Nowell and Jackson 1996). Although lions drink regularly when water is available, they are capable of obtaining their moisture requirements from prey and even plants (such as the tsama melon in the Kalahari desert), and thus can survive in very arid environments. Medium- to large-sized ungulates (including antelopes, zebra and wildebeest) are the bulk of their prey, but lions will take almost any animal, from a rodent to a rhino. They also scavenge, pushing other predators (such as the spotted hyaena) off their kills. Lions are the most social of the cats, with related females remaining together in prides, and related and unrelated males forming coalitions competing for tenure over prides. Average pride size (including males and females) is four to six adults; prides generally break into smaller groups when hunting (Nowell and Jackson 1996). The average age of reproduction (generation time) for female African lions is 6.5 years (C. Packer, pers. comm. 2004, Packer et al. 2001).
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System:
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Terrestrial; Freshwater; Marine
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Threats
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Threats:
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The increase of agriculture and pastoralism has reduced the lion’s wild prey base. Lions can be serious problem animals when living alongside humans, as is increasingly the case. Lion predation on livestock is the main form of conflict. The economic impact of stock raiding can be significant: Patterson et al. (2004) estimated that each lion cost ranchers in Kenya living alongside Tsavo East National Park US$290 per year in livestock losses. The scavenging behaviour of lions makes them particularly vulnerable to poisoned carcasses put out to eliminate predators. Lions also kill people.
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Conservation Actions
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Conservation Actions:
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P. leo is included in CITES Appendix II; the Critically Endangered Asiatic lion subspecies P. leo persica is included in CITES Appendix I. There is a significant level of trophy hunting of lions in Africa. Forty percent (13 out of 32) range states have such programs (Chardonnet 2002). Analysis of the CITES trade database kept by UNEP-WCMC for the 1990s shows that four countries – Botswana, Zimbabwe, South Africa and Tanzania – exported a total of over 1,000 lion trophies each over the ten year period. Namibia and Zambia exported several hundred each, and twelve other range states exported fewer than 100 each (Cameroon, Mozambique, Ethiopia, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Benin, Kenya, Malawi, Senegal, Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo and Chad) (Chardonnet 2002). Many countries attempt to use the revenues derived from lion trophy hunting to support and build local support for lion conservation, and this has been a valuable tool for conserving lion populations as well as dealing with dangerous problem animals. Lions are generally perceived by Africans as having a negative value, but trophy hunting is a management tool that can provide positive economic value to local people (Chardonnet 2002). Lion researchers in some of the main trophy hunting countries have raised the alarm that hunting reached unsustainable levels in some places. Botswana put a lion hunting moratorium in place in 2000 (Chardonnet 2002), and lion research in Zimbabwe’s Hwange National Park persuaded government managers to significantly reduce their annual hunting quota. Whitman et al. (2004) suggest that hunters and guides use nose colour as a selection tool to remove only older males and therefore not harm the population’s rate of reproduction.
Little information exists on the number of lions killed as problem animals by local people, even though this is considered the primary threat to their survival outside protected areas. Certain areas are hotspots for conflict, such as the area surrounding Nairobi National Park in Kenya, where an estimated 40 lions were killed over the last four years by farmers seeking revenge for livestock attacks (Standring 2004). Implementation of appropriate livestock management measures, coupled with problem animal control measures and mechanisms for compensating livestock losses, are the conservation priorities for range state management of lion populations.
Lions are one of the most popular animals on the must-see lists of tourists and visitors to Africa. Most range states in East and Southern Africa have an infrastructure which supports wildlife tourism, and in this way lions generate significant cash revenue for park management and local communities and provide a strong incentive for wildland conservation
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