You know what they say – “Know before you go.”  Here are five interesting facts about lions, to get you ready for that Tanzanian safari  you’ve always wanted to take.

Male lions are responsible for protecting the pride from predators. Their manes darken as they age.

• Young lions have spots, which fade as they mature.
• Lions at the Smithsonian National Zoo  are fed beef, and horsetails once a week to keep their teeth and jaws strong.
• As recently as 10,000 years ago, lions roamed across the world from North and South America to Europe, Africa, and Asia. Today, they live only in the southern Sahara, South Africa, and India.
• Ancient images of lions can be found in the Lascaux caves  in France.
• Lions are highly social animals, and live in a matriarchal society. Female lions in a pride work together to hunt and care for their cubs, and are known to synchronize birth cycles to make cub care easier.

Ready to see some lions up close? Join Smithsonian Journeys for a Tanzania Safari. We’ve also designed a special family safari to Tanzania in July, 2010.

What’s your favorite big cat?

Tags: lions, national zoo, pride, safari, tanzania, tanzaniafamily2010, tanzaniawildlifesafari10

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 7th, 2010 at 8:00 am and is filed under Africa, Destinations. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can share your comments, or trackback from your own site.