Asian Lion


Now Let's start our safari for "Asian Lion"





Introduction Part

  • The Asian Lion is a subspecies of the lion which survives today only in India and therefore it is known as the Indian lion. Asian lions once ranged from the Mediterranean to India, covering most of Southwest Asia where it was known as the Persian Lion.


Asiatic Lion




List of Contents

  • Characteristics
  • Pride Structure
  • Population 
  • Relation of Gujarat People with Asian Lion
  • Government Steps to protect the Asian Lion


Characteristics

  • Compared to African lions, Asian Lions have shaggier coats, with a longer tassel on the end of the tail and longer tufts of hair on the elbows. The most noticeable characteristic found in all Asian lions, but rarely in African lions, is a longitudinal fold of skin running along their belly.
  • The mane of the Asian lion is generally shorter than that of the African lion, so the ears are always visible. Asian lions are slightly smaller than the African lions.
  • Male lions measure 1.7-2.5 metres long and weight 150-250 kg, while female lions measure 1.4-1.75 metres in length and weight is at 120-182 kg.
  • The Asian lions tail averages around 70-105 centimetres long.
  • Like all cats Asian lions are equipped with powerful retractable claws and long sharp canine teeth that are used in dragging their prey to the ground.  


Pride Structure


  • Asian Lions live in  prides, similar to those of the African lions, but these are smaller  and include only two or five females each. This is due to the fact that Asian lions prey on much smaller animals than their African counterparts and therefore do not need large numbers to kill their prey cooperatively.


Population
  • As per the article in Indian express, there are 523 Asiatic lions in Gir forest, other protected areas and revenue areas in Junagadh, Gir Somnath, Amreli and Bhavnagar districts of Saurashtra region of Gujarat, India.
  • This means the population has increased by 112 as compared to the figure of 411 counted in 2010.
  • According to 2015 census, there are 109 male, 201 female and 213 sub-adult (Lion cubs below the age of three years) lions in the wilderness of these four districts.


Relation of Gujarat People with Asian Lion

  • The Villagers do not appear to mind that the lions kill hundreds of cows each year.
  • "It is their right. This is the lion's land", says Bhupat Babu Bhuvva, a farmer in Dhanej village, which loses 3 or 4 cows a month.
  • The Gujarat Forest Department pays the farmers about Rs. 15,000 per cow as compensation, but that is a fraction of what the beast in worth. Some villagers do not even claim the money, though they are so poor that many still use bullock and camel carts instead of trucks and tractors. 
  • So, Gujarati people fill proud to be a neighbor of Asian Lion & they see lions as their family members.



Government Steps to protect the Asian lion


  • The Asiatic Lion Reintroduction Project is the initiative of the Indian government to provide safeguard to the Asiatic lion from in the wild by means of reintroduction.
  • The project aims to establish a second independent population of Asiatic lions at the Kuno Wildlife sanctuary in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. However, the proposed translocation is unpopular in Gujarat and has been bitterly contested by the state government.
  • Also, ZSL's Asiatic lion project aims to strengthen conservation efforts in India to safeguard the future of Asiatic lion in captivity and in the wild.


WII-ZSL team in Gir

  • This collaborative project developed jointly by Gujarat Forest Department, government of Gujarat, Wildlife institute of India and ZSL focuses on key conservation priorities and includes adoption of "SMART approach" 
  





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