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Lions
BehaviorUnlike most members of the cat family, lions are social animals that live in prides (family groups). The pride is composed of a group of often related lionesses, their offspring and one to six nomadic males. Pride members get along harmoniously, displaying warm signs of affection by rubbing heads and cheeks when they greet one another and licking one another. Lions have a lazy lifestyle. They spend most of their time asleep. They’re active for only 2-4 hours a day.ReproductionAfter the 110 days gestation period. Cubs are born blind and with a spotted coat. The curiosity of lion cubs is boundless! Cubs playing help develop the techniques that adult lions employ in hunting.HuntingLions usually hunt at dusk. They have excellent eyesight and can see well in the dark. It is usually the lionesses who do the hunting. The strength of a full-grown lion is remarkable! They hunt in prides and employ stalk-and-ambush techniques to obtain their meals.SOUNDSRoaring is the loudest sound uttered by any cat. It can be heard from a distance of up to 10 km.Enclosure 1 (size: 61 266 m2) This enclosure is currently the biggest one at our Sanctuary, and accommodates also the biggest lion pride at Lionsrock. The group consist of 2 males and 12 females, three groups of siblings and two single females all born 2006. Some of them were born here and hand raised by the previous owners. Enclosure 2 (size: 35 245 m2) In this enclosure lives a group of five lions. The male and three of the females are siblings born in 2004 and were part of an exchange of older lions between the previous owners and a private predator breeder. One female was born 2005 here and hand raised by the previous owner. Enclosure 3 (size: 42 531 m2) In this enclosure lives a family group of 10 lions. They were in urgent need of being rescued when the Safaripark, near Vienna, Austria where they were born, went bankrupt. Their future was very uncertain. FOUR PAWS took over the responsibility for their daily care and on 17th of November 2007, this family became the first new inhabitants at LIONSROCK. They are aged between 5 and 15. The youngest is the only male in the pride – Neo. He lives with his sisters and aunt the oldest female named Emma. Enclosure 4 (size: 34 504 m2) The youngest group of lions lives in this enclosure. Vier Pfoten rescued from very bad conditions in a Rumanian zoo. When we saw them the first time, they were underfed and showed signs of malnutrion. Most of them were much too small for their ages. The hind legs of some are not well developed, which is a sign of a lack of calcium in their nutrition as babies. The cubs were aslo in danger to be sold to private photographers, because the zoo had not enough space for them nor the money to keep them in future. The using of lion cubs for taking photos in tourist areas is illegal, but still practiced. To keep them calm in the hands of hundreds of tourist, they get sedated and have to stay outside for the whole day with their owner no matter what weather condition. When they get older and too big, they are abandoned somewhere in a small cage or even get killed. Enclosure 5 (size: 20 741 m2) Three lions inhabit this enclosure. All three were born in 2005, whereof the male as well as one female were born here and hand raised by the previous owner. The other female was bought from a Rumanian Zoo by a private person. When she became too big to handle, this person asked Four Paws to help re-locate her. She arrived at Lionsrock on 05-12-2005. Enclosure 1a (size: 13 000 m2) Mavi (female) and Jazz (male) are former „photolions“ in Rumania/Europe, and had a very bad life when they were young. Already some years ago, the team of „Vier Pfoten“ Rumania could rescue them from death. As an urgent need to accommodate them, they were brought to a Rumanian zoo, to stay there until Vier Pfoten will find a better place. It was planed that these two lions should be the first new inhabitants of Lionsrock Big Cat Sanctuary. In November last year everything was prepared to bring them to South Africa. Due to bureaucratic problems, the Rumanian authorities stopped the transfer of Jazz in the last minute, and Mavi, had to go alone. Luckily the problems could be solved and in beginning of June 2008 Jazz arrived at Lionsrock and a view weeks later we could reunite them. We adapted an old enclosure, apart on a quiet place, to give them all the conditions and time they need to settle in well. Enclosure 4a (size: 15 000 m2) A group of three lions are living in one of the remaining old enclosures at Lionsrock, which was upgraded after we bought the property. The male was born here in 2002 and was advertised on the internet as a hunting trophy by the previous owner. The two females are mother and daughter, both born here in 1999 and 2004. We try to raise funds for a new enclosure for this small lion family. |
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| NEWS |
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| FOUR PAWS saves seven Lions | ||
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Bank account name: LIONSROCK PARK Bank and Code: First National Bank - South Africa FNB-230133 Account No: 62165825583 |
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