World Lion Day 2021:History, significance, celebration and interesting facts about King of the jungle

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Here is all you need to know about the King of Jungle on World Lion Day 2021.

World Lion day is observed every year on August 10 to raise awareness about the conservation of lions. The lion is an endangered species on the IUCN Red List. The 5 biggest cats are found mostly in India, including the Royal Bengal Tiger, Indian leopard, Clouded Leopard, and Snow leopard. India is also recorded as the highest lion population with an increase of 29 percent from 2015 to 2020. Lions maintain the ecological balance and ensure the protection of natural forests and help in the conservation of biodiversity.

History:
In 2013, co-founders Dereck and Beverly Joubert the Big Cat Initiative, and National Geographic made a partnership to create World Lion Day. The lion is also known as Panthera leo and is considered the king of the jungle, being the largest species on earth. There has been a decline in 80 percent of the population of lions in the past 100 years. This is the major reason for the observance of the day to protect these wild cats in their natural habitat. This also works on the safety measures of the lion communities.

Significance:
Lions maintain ecological balance and ensure the protection of natural forests and help in the conservation of biodiversity. The government of India is initiating schemes and projects for the conservation of lions. The increase in the number of lions has led to animals coming closer to humans in search of prey and territory. If the majestic predators are not protected, it might affect the ecosystem of the region.

Celebration:

The day is volunteered around the globe at zoos and natural habitats to protect the lions and take care of them. Various organisations raise funds and make donations to conserve the species. In this pandemic situation, digital initiatives are taken to raise awareness on social media platforms.

World Lion Day: Interesting Facts

1. The name for lion in Swahili, an African language, is ‘simba’.
2. Lions are the most sociable of all big cats and they live in groups called prides.
3. In the wild, males typically live 12 years; females average a lifespan of 15 years. Also, the male lions possess an iconic mane, long thick hair around their head, neck and shoulder which makes them appear larger and more intimidating.
4. Female lions are the main hunters and while they search for food, the males guard the pride’s territory and their young.
5. Fully mature males weigh between 330 and 550 lbs.; females weigh between 265 and 395 lbs.
6. A lion’s roar can be heard up to eight kilometres away.
7. Lions usually hunt in the dark due to the different skills of their eyes over dark and this provides them a huge advantage over their prey.
8. Lions have significantly more rod cells than cone cells in the retina of their eyes, especially when compared to humans. Lions have around 25 rods to each cone, while humans have about 4 rods to each cone.
9. A lion usually lives for max 16 years within the wild and 25 years in captivity.
10. A lion’s heels don’t touch the ground when it walks.

We now have all the more reasons why we all need to come together and participate to protect these majestic Lions. And now is the time to guard and protect these big cats, especially by protecting their habitat. This will truly make a difference to preserve and improve the population of lions.

By: Radio1 | Michael Agyapong Agyapa | 2021