What Is the Classification for a Lion?
The classification for a lion is, in its entirety, “Kingdom, Animalia; Phylum, Chordata; Class, Mammalia; Order, Carnivora; Family, Felidae; Genus, Panthera; Species, Leo,” according to SeaWorld. The word “leo” means “lion” and the word “panthera” means panther or leopard cat, so other large wild cats are also members of the “panthera” genus.
African Lions are carnivorous in nature and eat meat. They hunt together and share their food amongst one another. The lion is the only wild cat that is considered to be social and to live in large groups. A lion’s group is called a “pride” and it is made up of anywhere from five to 30+ lions that are all related. The African Lion is, unfortunately, in a “vulnerable” protection status even though the lion is the largest carnivore in Africa and is considered to be vital to herbivore population control in the ecosystem.
African Lions spend as many as 21 hours each day resting and relaxing. They tend to only be active for a few short hours each day. Lions are also able to roar much louder than other wild jungle cats. The lion can roar so loud that it can be heard as many as five miles away. This loud roar is helpful when lions are roaming on their own and need to be called back to the pride.
