Tiger versus lion

Lion and Tiger Fighting by James Ward, 1797

Historically, the comparative merits of the tiger versus the lion have been a popular topic of discussion by hunters, naturalists, artists, and poets, and continue to inspire the popular imagination in the present day.[1][2][3][4] Lions and tigers, in the past, may have competed in the wild, where their ranges overlapped, in Eurasia.[5][6][7] The most common reported circumstance of their meeting is in captivity, either deliberately or accidentally.[3][5][8][9][10]

History in captivity

In the circuses of Ancient Rome, exotic beasts, including lions and tigers[11] were commonly pitted against each other. The contest of the lion against the tiger was a classic pairing and the betting usually favored the tiger.[8] A mosaic in the House of the Faun in Pompeii shows a fight between a lion and a tiger.[12] There are different accounts of which of these animals beat or killed the other, throughout time.[3][13][14] Although lions and tigers can be kept together in harmony in captivity,[15] conflicts between the two species in captivity, ending up in fatalities, have also been recorded.

Tigers defeating or killing lions

Titus, the Roman Emperor, had Bengal tigers compelled to fight African lions, and the tigers always beat the lions.[16] A tiger called 'Gunga' that belonged to the King of Oude killed thirty lions, and destroyed another after being transferred to the zoological garden in London.[9] A British officer who resided many years at Sierra Leone saw many fights between lions and tigers, and the tiger usually won.[17]

Atlas the Barbary lion versus the Bengal tiger of Simla

Towards the end of the 19th Century, in India, the Gaekwad of Baroda arranged a fight in an amphitheater, between a Barbary lion called 'Atlas', from the Atlas Mountains between Algeria and Morocco, and a Bengal tiger from the Indian region of Shimla, both large and hungry (with their diets reduced before the fight), before an audience of thousands, instead of between the Asiatic lion of India, and the tiger, as Asiatic lions were believed to be no match for Bengal tigers. The tiger was more than ten feet long, over four feet at the shoulder, had long teeth and claws, had strong shoulders, and was agile. The lion looked taller at the head than the tiger, and had large legs, mane and paws. The tiger was seen as "the personification of graceful strength and supple energy," whereas the lion was seen as the "embodiment of massive power and adamantine muscle."[14] In the fight, both cats sustained injuries, and although the tiger sometimes retreated from Atlas, it would come back to fight it, and in the end, managed to scratch Atlas to death, though Atlas pushed it off in one final move, before dying. The Gaekwad agreed to pay 37,000 rupees, accepted that the tiger was the "King of the Cat Family," decreed that Atlas' body be given a Royal burial, and that the tiger should have a "cage of honour" in the menagerie of Baroda, and decided to prepare the tiger for a battle with a Sierran Grizzly bear weighing more than 1,500 lb (680 kilograms). The battle was to happen after the tiger recovered from its wounds.[3][14]

Accidental fights

The most recent account of a fight in captivity happened on March 2011, where a Bengal tiger at the Ankara Zoo passed through a gap, between its cage and that of a lion, and killed it with a single paw swipe.[18] "The tiger severed the lion's jugular vein in a single stroke with its paw, leaving the animal dying in a pool of blood," officials said.

At the Coney Island animal show in 1909, a performing lion attacked a chained tiger by leaping through the air, landing on the tiger's back. Though hampered by the heavy neck chain fastened to the iron bars of the arena, the tiger was more than a match for the lion and mangled it to death.[19]

In 1857 an 18-month-old tiger at the Bromwich Zoo broke into the cage of an adult lion. The pair fought, and the young tiger ripped the lion's stomach. The lion died minutes later.[20]

Lions defeating or killing tigers

There are also reports of lions beating or mauling tigers. For example, there was a filmed fight, organized by an Indian Prince, in a deep pit in the compound of his palace, and the lion killed the tiger, according to Kailash Sankhala (1978).[21] Other cases are discussed or elaborated upon, in the Section "Accidental fights in captivity" below, and in "Expert opinions".[10][13][21][22]

Accidental fights

In 1934 a fully grown African lion killed a mature Bengal tiger a short time after these circus animals were unloaded from the train before trainers could separate them.[10]

At South Perth Zoo, 1949, in a three-minute fight between a lion and a tiger, the lion killed the tiger. The fight occurred when the tiger put his head through a connecting slide. The lion caught the tiger by the throat, and, dragging it through the opening, killed it before the keepers arrived.[22]

In December 2008, a 110 kg (240 pounds) male lion killed a 90 kg (200 pounds) tigress at the zoo in Jeonju, Korea, by suddenly biting it in the neck when the tigress jumped down to the trench.[23]

At a Circus in Detroit, 1951 a large male African lion called 'Prince' suddenly leaped from a high perch and sank its jaws into the back of a Bengal tigress called 'Sheba', while she was performing, catching her off-guard. A blank gun was then fired, Prince let Sheba go, and Sheba dragged herself away. Sheba then died an hour later, because of the injuries sustained.[24][25]

Competition or coexistence in the Asian wilderness

Currently, India is the only country on Earth confirmed to have both lions and tigers in its wilderness. For now, they do not necessarily share the same territory in India, but they did in the past,[5][26][27][28] and there is a project, mentioned below, that could make their meeting, in the wild, possible in the future, if implemented.[29][30][31] Before the end of the 20th Century, both species also occurred in other Asian or Eurasian nations.[7][26][27][28][32] As such, there is a Farsi word for 'Lion', which can also mean 'Tiger', used in Iran, the Indian Subcontinent and other areas, that is 'Sher' or 'Shir' (Persian: شیر‎‎),[6][7][28][33][34] and its significance is discussed below.

The Indian Subcontinent

In India, or, in the extended modern sense, the Subcontinent,[35] Asiatic lions and Bengal tigers occurred in places such as the Bengali and Punjabi Regions, and co-existed before the end of the 19th Century.[5][6][26][27][28] A few reports of clashes between them have been made, in the 19th Century, though it was not clear which cat regularly beat the other.[5] Kailash Sankhala (1978) said that the habitat and prey of the Indian lion was not like those of an African savannah, but like habitats of Indian tigers, to an extent, including the dry, deciduous Aravali part of Sariska Tiger Reserve, in the State of Rajasthan, and were difficult places for predators to hunt as groups.[21] Today, lions are found in Gir Forest National Park, in the State of Gujarat,[36][37] (which used to have tigers[32]), and tigers are found in other places, like Sariska Tiger Reserve[21] and Ranthambore National Park[30] in Rajasthan, and the Bengali Sunderbans.[38] Either big cat can be called ‘Sher’ (Hindi: शेर) in the Subcontinent.[28][34]

The possibility of conflict, between lions and tigers, has been raised in relation to India's Asiatic Lion Reintroduction Project, which is meant to introduce Gir Forest's lions to another reserve considered to be within the former range of the Indian lion, that is Kuno Wildlife Sanctuary in the State of Madhya Pradesh,[29] which was reported to contain some tigers that came from Ranthambore Park, including one called 'T-38'.[5][30] Concerns were raised that the co-presence of lions and tigers would "trigger frequent clashes".[39] The University of Minnesota's Lion Research Project describes one reason to delay the introduction of lions to Kuno Palpur, is the fear that tigers living there would kill the incoming lions. In a one-on-one encounter, it is believed that a Bengal tiger could beat a Gujarati lion, given its weight advantage (See the Section Comparative size below).[5][31] However, lions are social, and may form fighting groups, unlike tigers, which are usually solitary, and it is believed that a group of lions (2 – 3 males) or lionesses (2 – 4 females) is more than match for a single tiger or tigress (See the Section Temperament below). Therefore, it would appear that in order for Asiatic lions to survive in an area with Bengal tigers, after being translocated there, the lions would have to be translocated there as intact groups, rather than as individuals, according to Doctor Craig Packer.[5]

Reginald Innes Pocock (1939) mentioned that some people had the opinion that the tiger played a role in the near-extinction of the Indian lion, but he dismissed this view as ‘fanciful’. According to him, there was evidence that tigers inhabited the Subcontinent, before lions. The tigers likely entered Northern India from the eastern end of the Himalayas, through Burma, and started spreading throughout the area, before the lions likely entered Northern India from Balochistan or Persia, and spread to places like the Bengal and the Nerbudda River. Because of that, before the presence of man could limit the spread of lions, tigers reached parts of India that lions did not reach, such as the South, beyond the Nerbudda River. However, the presence of tigers, throughout India, did not stop the spread of lions in India, in the first place, so Pocock said that it is unlikely that Bengal tigers played a role, significant or subordinate, in the near-extinction of the Indian lion, rather, that man was responsible for it,[28] as was the case with the decline in tigers’ numbers.[6][26][28] As such, Pocock (1939) thought that it was unlikely that serious competition between them regularly occurred, and that, even if Indian lions and tigers met, the chance that they would fight for survival, was as good as the chance that they would choose to avoid each other, and that their chances of success, if they were to clash, were as good as each other’s.[28]

Outside the Indian Subcontinent

Countries reported to have had Asiatic lions and Caspian tigers were Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Turkey, and former members of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (the latter four areas having parts of Kurdistan[40]).[6][32][41][42][43][44] Persian tigers apparently had a weight advantage over Persian lions, if lions that inhabited places like Afghanistan or the Caucasus in the past, were not significantly bigger than their modern counterparts in India (See the Section Comparative size below),[26][27] but the tigers were likely to have often been solitary, whereas the lions were likely social (which would mean that they could have formed fighting groups).[5] The sources[6][43][44] do not necessarily say if they competed in the same habitats in those countries, or not, but it is likely that they co-existed in areas like Transcaucasia.[6][28] Apart from Asia, they occurred in Europe, in the region of the Black Sea, with tigers occurring in Ciscaucasia, and lions occurring in the Balkans (which includes Greece, or part of it),[45] up to Thrace and Macedonia, and possibly the Danube River, at least.[6][28]

Velikiy Kniaz Vladimir II Monomakh of Kievan Rus',[6][46] in his work, Poucheniya Detyam (1117), said that while he ruled Turov (in what is now Belarus[47]) and Chernigov (in what is now the Ukraine[48]), he was on a hunt when he was attacked by a “lyuti zver” (Old Russian for “fierce animal”). The “lyuti zver” sprang towards his thighs, and hurt him and his horse. Traditionally, the zver was considered to be a wolf or lynx, but, according to Heptner and Sludskii (1972), neither would spring at a rider or injure a horse, so it was more likely to be a big cat, with some people thinking that it could have been a leopard, or that it was more likely to be a tiger than a lion. The occurrence of the lion at the southern Russian Steppes, or at the mouth of the Don River (Russia), or its area, is disputed, whereas tigers likely occurred in the Russian Steppes, or at the estuary of the Don River.[6]

In Afghanistan, it is possible that lions occurred at least in the southwest and southern parts.[6] Tigers bred at the upper reaches of the Hari Rud or Tedzhen Darya at Herat.[6][28] Tigers were found at a tributary of the Amu Darya called the ‘Pyandzh River’, from where they could invade another place (like Persian tigers that invaded what was the Soviet Union), and the Geri, Kunduz and Murghab Rivers.[6] In 1997, a tiger was reportedly killed in the northeastern region.[41]

Iran to Turkey

Before 1950, Panthera leo persica lived in much of its namesake home of Persia, including the regions near the Transcaucasian and Turkestani parts of the Soviet Union, which is why it is likely that they had been in the Turkestani region also. Many years ago, lions had been in the north, including the area of Tehran, and the Persian upland. Around the year 900, they were encountered in the south, although not frequently. However, in the 1870’s, they occurred in western region, in the southwestern part of the Zagros Mountains, near Mesopotamia, and in forested areas which were south and southeast of Shiraz. Tigers also occurred in regions close to the Soviet Union, including the western region, enough for them to invade Transcaucasia and Turkestan from Persia, including those of the Atrek Basin and Gorgan.[6]

The Euphrates and Tigris Rivers flow from Turkey to Iraq, through Syria.[49] Lions were seen along the upper reaches of the Euphrates (Biledzhik, 1877) (Alston and Danford 1880) in the 1870’s, before disappearing there by the end of the 19th Century, though they otherwise survived in that period, in Mesopotamia and the Arabian Peninsula.[6] In the 1850’s, lions also occurred in the upper courses of the Tigris, near Mosul. In the 1860’s there were many lions in Reed marshes, along the banks of the two rives, though mostly in their lower reaches (Blanford, 1876).[6] Tigers occurred in northern Iraq,[50] and in 1887, one was killed near Mosul (Kock, 1990).[41][43]

In what is now Turkey, lions had been in parts of its eastern region, which borders Iraq and Syria, apparently up to the 19th Century, and before that, throughout Asia Minor, excepting the region of the Pontic Mountains in the north.[6] Tigers are also said to have been in the east,[43] occurring in sparse forest habitats and riverine corridors, which stretched from Turkey to Iran, west and south of the Caspian Sea.[44] In February 1970, a tiger was reportedly killed near Uludere in Şırnak Province, in Hakkari Province.[41][43]

The former Soviet Union

In what was to be the Soviet Union in 1922,[51] Asiatic lions occurred in the eastern part of the Transcaucasian region, before their extinction there in the 10th Century, and Heptner and Sludskii (1972) could not deny that they may have occurred in the Turkestani region, as intruders. Turanian tigers (which were closely related to Amur tigers of the Russian Far East) occurred in the Caucasian and Turkestani regions, either as residents or intruders.[6][44][52]

In what was to be the Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic in the Soviet Union in 1922,[51] lions occurred in an area, which extended unevenly from foot-hills and the Araks River near Yerevan (in what is now Armenia[53]) in the east, almost to Tbilisi (in what is now Georgia[54]) in the west, from Absheron Peninsula (in what is now Azerbaijan[55]) in the north (bypassing the eastern part of the Caucasus), to the Samur River (in the area of what is now the border between Azerbaijan and Dagestan Republic in Russia[56]) in the south.[6] They were hunted by local hunters called 'shirvanshakhs'.[6] Hyrcanian tigers were found in the areas of Tbilisi and Baku in Apsheron Peninsula, and were reported to have intruded territories, like those of Baku and Tbilisi, from other places, like that of the Talysh Mountains and Lankaran Lowland, in what is now Azerbaijan.[6][55] Transcaucasia is home to a Tugay type of forest, and lions and tigers would have hunted prey like deer here.[6]

For what used to be the Turkestani region of the Soviet Union, which now comprises the countries Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan,[57][52] Heptner and Sludskii (1972) could not exclude the possibility of lions intruding in the southern part of the area, which is close to Iran, and along the upper Amu Darya (which has a tributary called "Sherabad Darya," which touches a town called "Shirabad").[6] In the southwestern part, Mazandaran tigers occurred in the area of the Kopet Dag, along the Atrek River to the Caspian Sea, and the river's tributaries, the Chandyr and Sumbar Rivers, including the area of Tedzhen, often as intruders from Iran. They also occurred in the regions of the Amu and Syr Daryas, and others.[6]

Physical comparison

Comparative size

Comparative profiles of the lion and tiger[58]

Males

Siberian and Bengal tigers represent the largest subspecies of the genus Panthera.[59] Male Ussurian and Bengal tigers weighed 180–306 kg (397–675 pounds), and 180–258 kg (397–569 pounds), respectively,[26] with reliably measured specimens weighing up to 465 kg (1,025 lb) in captivity and 384 kg (847 lb) in wild,[60] and 388.7 kg (857 lb)[61] respectively. Male Caspian tigers weighed 170–240 kg (370–530 pounds),[26] but some could reach larger sizes.[6]

The largest African lion on record, in the wild, was a Transvaal lion[27] shot in Hectorspruit, South Africa, in 1936, which weighed 313 kg (690 lb).[62] The average weight of males is 175 kilograms (385.8 lb) for the Asiatic lion, 186 kilograms (410 lb) for the African lion,[63][64][65] 196 kilograms (432 lb) for the Bengal tiger and 176.4 kilograms (389 lb) for the Siberian tiger.[66][67] The average weight 221 kilograms (487 lb) measured for the Bengal tiger excluded any stomach content while the average weight 186 kilograms (410 lb) measured for the African lion included stomach contents,[64][68] and a lion may eat up to 30 kg (66 lb) in one sitting.[69]

In contrast, the recorded weights of the smallest subspecies of tigers are less than those of the lions,[27] except for any of these tigers that weighed 150 kg (330 lb) or more. Male Balinese tigers weighed 90–100 kg (200–220 pounds). Male Sumatran tigers weighed 100–140 kg (220–310 pounds). Male Javan tigers weighed 100–141 kg (220–311 pounds). Male South Chinese tigers weighed 130–175 kg (287–386 pounds).[26]

Male Indochinese tigers (150–195 kg (331–430 pounds))[26] are similar in weight to male Asiatic lions (160–190 kg (350–420 pounds)).[27] Male African lions, which are today divided into the Masai, Northeast Congolese, Transvaal, Katangan and West African subspecies (which Pocock (1939) said was similar in size to the Asiatic subspecies[28]), and possibly an Ethiopian subspecies,[70][71] bar the Atlas lion (which was thought by some people to be the largest and most powerful lion and African felid[14]), weigh 150–225 kg (331–496 pounds), with some large lions exceeding 225 kg (496 lb), in the wilderness of Africa, including its southern region, which is home to the Southwest African and Southeast African subspecies.[6][27][62] Apart from the Northern, Southeast and Southwest African subspecies, a huge East African lion near Mount Kenya weighed 272 kg (600 pounds) (Nowell and Jackson, 1996).[27]

Females

African lionesses weigh 120–182 kg (265–401 pounds). Asiatic lionesses weigh 110–120 kg (240–260 pounds).[27]

Ussuri tigresses weigh 100–167 kg (220–368 pounds). Bengal tigresses weigh 100–160 kg (220–350 pounds). Caspian tigresses weighed 85–135 kg (187–298 pounds). Indochinese tigresses weigh 100–130 kg (220–290 pounds). South Chinese tigresses weighed 100–115 kg (220–254 pounds). Javan tigresses weighed 75–115 kg (165–254 pounds). Sumatran tigresses weigh 75–110 kg (165–243 pounds). Balinese tigresses weighed 65–80 kg (143–176 pounds).[26]

Length

Males

Between the pegs, male Amur tigers measured 2.70–3.30 metres (8.9–10.8 feet). Male Bengal tigers measured 2.70–3.10 metres (8.9–10.2 feet). Male Caspian tigers measured 2.70–2.95 metres (8.9–9.7 feet). Male Indochinese tigers measured 2.55–2.85 metres (8.4–9.4 feet). Male South Chinese tigers measured 2.30–2.65 metres (7.5–8.7 feet). Male Sumatran tigers measured 2.20–2.55 metres (7.2–8.4 feet). Male Javan tigers measured about 2.48 m (8.1 ft). Male Balinese tigers measured 2.20–2.30 metres (7.2–7.5 feet).[26] Male African lions measured 1.70–2.50 metres (5.6–8.2 feet).[27]

Females

Between the pegs, Siberian tigresses measured 2.40–2.75 metres (7.9–9.0 feet). Bengal tigresses measured 2.40–2.65 metres (7.9–8.7 feet). Caspian tigresses measured 2.40–2.60 metres (7.9–8.5 feet). Indochinese tigresses measured 2.30–2.55 metres (7.5–8.4 feet). South Chinese tigresses measured 2.20–2.40 metres (7.2–7.9 feet). Sumatran tigresses measured 2.15–2.30 metres (7.1–7.5 feet). Balinese tigresses measured 1.90–2.10 metres (6.2–6.9 feet).[26]

Height at the shoulder

Males

Bengal tigers measure 90 to 110 centimetres (3.0 to 3.6 feet).[72]

Male lions may measure about 123 centimetres (4.04 feet) (Nowak and Paradiso, 1983).[27] Asiatic lions measure about 3.50 feet (107 centimetres).[73]

Females

Lionesses measure 107 centimetres (3.51 feet) on average (Nowak and Paradiso, 1983).[27]

Skulls

Comparative illustration of tiger and lion skulls.
Comparison of tiger and lion skulls

Of the felidae, excluding hybrids like ligers,[74] lion's skulls rival those of tigers in size,[26] with even the largest known skulls of tigers being smaller than the largest known skulls of lions, albeit slightly. Apart from their sizes, the skulls of lions and tigers are generally similar, with there being differences in structural features of the lower jaws, relative lengths of their noses,[6] and the frontal regions.[28] Their skulls were so similar that Heptner and Sludskii (1972) argued that it was the tiger that was the closest relative of the lion, not the leopard or jaguar, unlike what others believed.[6]

Skulls of male lions measured 321.0–401.0 millimetres (12.64–15.79 in) at maximum, 309.0–348.0 millimetres (12.17–13.70 in) in condylobasal length, and 222.0–256.0 millimetres (8.74–10.08 in) in zygomatic width. Skulls of lionesses measured 292.0–333.0 millimetres (11.50–13.11 in), 263.0–291.0 millimetres (10.35–11.46 in) in condylobasal length, and 188.0–212.0 millimetres (7.40–8.35 in) in zygomatic width (Roberts, 1959).[6]

Although Caspian tigers were considered to be generally smaller than their Siberian relatives, a tiger was killed near the Sumbar Darya in the Kopet Dag, on the 10th of January, 1954, with a greatest skull length of about 385.0 millimetres (15.16 in), condylobasal length of about 305.0 millimetres (12.01 in), and zygomatic width of 205.0 millimetres (8.07 in), which were longer than other known measurements of the Caspian subspecies, and slightly more than those of the Ussuri subspecies. Skulls of male Amur tigers measured 331.0–383.0 millimetres (13.03–15.08 in) at maximum, 291.0–342.0 millimetres (11.46–13.46 in) in condylobasal length, and 220.0–268.0 millimetres (8.66–10.55 in) in zygomatic width. Skulls of Amur tigresses measured 279.7–310.2 millimetres (11.01–12.21 in), 252.2–273.4 millimetres (9.93–10.76 in) in condylobasal length, and 190.0–203.6 millimetres (7.48–8.02 in) in zygomatic width. Skulls of male Caspian tigers measured 297.0–365.8 millimetres (11.69–14.40 in) at maximum, 259.0–307.9 millimetres (10.20–12.12 in) in condylobasal length, and 219.0–254.0 millimetres (8.62–10.00 in) in zygomatic width. Skulls of Caspian tigresses measured 195.7–255.5 millimetres (7.70–10.06 in), 225.0–263.2 millimetres (8.86–10.36 in) in condylobasal length, and 183.0–203.2 millimetres (7.20–8.00 in) in zygomatic width.[6]

Temperament

The lion is a highly social animal and the tiger is a solitary animal. It is generally agreed that the tiger is the faster, smarter and more ferocious of the two so keepers of captive tigers must take care to avoid a sudden attack.[75]

Lions may roam in prides of up to 30 individuals headed by a mature male or group of related males. Male lions are typically either killed or pushed away by incoming male leadership. The majority of single roaming lions tend to be males preparing for maturation and assimilation with a new or existing pride. While male lions are generally larger and stronger than female lions, it is the close-knit female pride alliance that typically hunts and provides for the pride. By contrast, tigers are often solitary with the two sexes only interacting for purposes of copulation.[75]

Brain size

A study by Oxford University scientists has shown that tigers have much bigger brains, relative to body size, than lions and other big cats. Although comparisons showed that lion skulls were larger overall, the tiger's cranial volume is the largest — even the small Balinese tigresses' skulls have cranial volumes as large as those of huge male southern African lion skulls.[76][77] Balinese tigresses weight between 65–80 kg (143–176 lb)[78] while southern African male lions (Southeast African or Southwest African lions) have an average weight of 189.6 kilograms (418 lb), representing the largest living lions.[27][64][79]

Bite force

Tigers have been shown to have higher average bite forces (such as at the canine tips) than lions.[80] The bite force adjusted for body mass allometry (BFQ) for tiger is 127 while that for lion is 112.[81] Tigers have a well-developed sagittal crest and coronoid processes, providing muscle attachment for their strong bite.[82] Tigers also have exceptionally stout teeth, and the canines are the longest and biggest among all living felids, measuring from 7.5 to 10 cm (3.0 to 3.9 in) in length, and are larger and longer than those of a similar-sized lion,[82][83] probably because tigers need to bring down larger prey alone than lions, which usually hunt large prey in groups.[83]

Paw swipe

A swipe of a tiger's paw may crush a cow's skull.[84]

However, during an organized fight between a Barbary lion and a Bengal tiger, whereas the tiger's paw-swipes were faster and lighter, the lion's paw-swipes were slower and heavier. The tiger's paw-swipes could outnumber those of the lion three-to-one. Otherwise, the lion's paw-swipes, with their brute forces, hurt the tiger's head, caused deeper cuts to the tiger's hide than those of the tiger to the lion's hide, and pushed the tiger off, causing it to stumble for about twenty feet, or made the tiger retreat from the aggressive lion sometimes. The more agile tiger was able to charge back at the lion one final time, and frantically scratch the lion to death, using both fore and hind paws, but only after resting and thinking. Despite the lion's wounds, before it died, it was able to throw the tiger off again, and the tiger had to recover from its injuries, before it could have a fight with another animal.[14]

Roar

Lions and tigers, like other Pantherid felidae, though not snow leopards, are capable of roaring. In a zoo, if a tiger is near a lion, and roars, then the lion may roar in response, like it would is another lion did, and some people may not be able to distinguish between their roars.[28] However, that does no mean that no differences exist between them.[26][85][86]

Frequency

A male lion's roar can have a fundamental frequency of about 195 Hertz, whereas that of a lioness' roar may exceed 206 Hertz.[85]

Loudness

A lion's roar can reach 114 decibels/meter (McComb et al. 1994; Peters and Wozencraft 1996),[27] and can be heard 8 km (5.0 mi) away, making it the loudest of the cat family.[85][86] A tiger's roar can be heard up to 3 km (1.9 mi) away.[26]

Expert opinions

Favoring the lion

Favoring the tiger

Mythical character comparison

18th-century naturalists and authors compared the species' characters, generally in favor of the lion.[92] Oliver Goldsmith ranked the lion first among carnivorous mammals, followed by the tiger, which in his view "...seems to partake of all the noxious qualities of the lion, without sharing any of his good ones. To pride, courage and strength, the lion joins greatness, clemency and generosity; but the tiger is fierce without provocation, and cruel without necessity."[93] Charles Knight, writing in The English Cyclopaedia, disparages the opinions of naturalists Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon and Thomas Pennant in this context, stating that "...the general herd of authors who eulogise the 'courage, greatness, clemency and generosity' of the lion, contrasting it with the unprovoked ferocity, unnecessary cruelty and poltroonery of the tiger, becomes ridiculous, though led by such names as Buffon and Pennant."[92]

The lion's mane

About the lion's mane, Knight wrote that "The lion has owed a good deal to his mane and his noble and dignified aspect; but appearances are not always to be trusted."[92] In fact, a study was done by scientists Craig Packer and Peyton West that claimed that the mane of the lion is strictly for mating purposes. Darker-maned lions were more often picked by females to breed, while light-maned lions were not so lucky. This may prove that a lion's mane does not always purposely help in a fight, and might even hinder the male lion, slowing it down when it attacks, according to Packer and West.[94]

However, Clyde (1939)[13] and Kailash (1978)[21] believed that the mane could defend part of the lion's body, in a fight against the tiger. Moreover, in an organized fight between a Barbary lion and a Bengal tiger, the tiger tried biting the lion's neck, but it could not, due the mane blocking its teeth, and interfering with its respiratory system.[14]

Arts and literature

Art

The Seringapatam medal shows a lion defeating a tiger

Battles between the two were painted in the 18th and 19th centuries by Eugène Delacroix, George Stubbs and James Ward. Ward's paintings, which portrayed lion victories in accordance with the lion's symbolic value in Great Britain, have been described as less realistic than Stubbs'.[95] The British Seringapatam medal shows a lion defeating a tiger in battle; an Arabic language banner on the medal displays the words "ASAD ALLAH AL-GHALIB" (God's lion conquers).[96] The medal commemorated the British victory at the 1799 Battle of Seringapatam (in the town now known as Srirangapatna) over Tipu Sultan—who used tigers as emblems, as opposed to the British emblematic use of lions.[96]

Literature

English literature compared their battle strengths.[97] The poets Edmund Spenser, Allan Ramsey, and Robert Southey described lion victories.[97] In the view of a 19th-century literary critic, these contests established "sovereignty of the animal world."[97]

Cinema

In Paalai, a Tamil film, there is dialogue about the characteristics of the tiger and lion concludes that the tiger is superior. In the film, the tiger is the symbol and flag of the native Tamil tribal people and the lion is the symbol and flag of non-Tamil Singhal (literally meaning lion) people.[98]

See also

References

  1. ↑ William Bridges (22 August 1959). Lion vs. tiger: who'd win?. The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved 2016-02-28.
  2. ↑ José Ortega y Gasset (2007). Meditations on Hunting. ISBN 978-1-932098-53-2.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Lion against tiger. The Baltimore Sun. 26 January 1899. p. 3.
  4. ↑ Thomas, Isabel (2006). Lion vs. Tiger. Raintree. ISBN 978-1-4109-2398-1.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Frequently asked questions". University of Minnesota Lion Research Project. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Geptner, V. G., Sludskij, A. A. (1972). Mlekopitajuščie Sovetskogo Soiuza. Vysšaia Škola, Moskva. (In Russian; English translation: Heptner, V.G., Sludskii, A. A., Komarov, A., Komorov, N.; Hoffmann, R. S. (1992). Mammals of the Soviet Union. Vol III: Carnivores (Feloidea). Smithsonian Institution and the National Science Foundation, Washington DC).
  7. 1 2 3 Humphreys, P., Kahrom, E. (1999). Lion and Gazelle: The Mammals and Birds of Iran. Images Publishing, Avon.
  8. 1 2 Roland Auguet (1994). Cruelty and civilization: the Roman games. ISBN 978-0-415-10453-1.
  9. 1 2 John Hampden Porter (1894). Wild beasts; a study of the characters and habits of the elephant, lion, leopard, panther, jaguar, tiger, puma, wolf, and grizzly bear. p. 239.
  10. 1 2 3 "Lion and Tiger Fight to Death, Lion is Victor". Logansport Press. 16 November 1934. Retrieved 16 November 2014.
  11. ↑ Hoage, Robert J., Roskell, Anne and Mansour, Jane, "Menageries and Zoos to 1900", in New World, New Animals: From Menagerie to Zoological Park in the Nineteenth Century, Hoage, Robert J. and Deiss, William A. (ed.), Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 1996, pp.8-18. ISBN 0-8018-5110-6
  12. ↑ Anthony King (2002). The natural history of Pompeii. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-80054-9.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Lion against tiger". Gettysburg Compiler. 7 February 1899. Retrieved 2016-02-28.
  14. ↑ "Tiger, lion and bear form unusual friendship". 7 Dec 2009.
  15. ↑ The Medical times and gazette: A Journal of Medical Science. p. 626. Archived from the original on 1850.
  16. ↑ Tales of travellers. Tales of travellers; or, A view of the world. p. 453. Archived from the original on 1838.
  17. ↑ "Tiger Kills Lion In Turkish Zoo". BBC News. 7 March 2011. Retrieved 14 March 2011.
  18. ↑ "Tiger whips Lion". Boston News Access. 7 March 2011. Retrieved 14 March 2011.
  19. ↑ The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex. Charles Darwin
  20. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Kailash, Sankhala (1978). Tiger: The Story Of The Indian Tiger. Collins. p. 119. ISBN 0002161249.
  21. 1 2 "Lion Kills Tiger". Examiner. 30 July 1949. Retrieved 16 November 2014.
  22. ↑ "Lion Kills Tiger in Jeonju Zoo". Retrieved 9 December 2013.
  23. ↑ "Lion Kills Tiger in Savage Battle". Ottawa Citizen. 20 February 1951. Retrieved 2014-01-19.
  24. ↑ "Beatty fights off lion after tiger is killed". The Tuscaloosa News. 20 February 1951. Retrieved 2014-01-19.
  25. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Mazák, V. (1981). "Panthera tigris" (PDF). Mammalian Species 152: 1–8. doi:10.2307/3504004. JSTOR 3504004.
  26. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Haas, S.K.; Hayssen, V.; Krausman, P.R. (2005). "Panthera leo" (PDF). Mammalian Species 762: 1–11. doi:10.1644/1545-1410(2005)762[0001:PL]2.0.CO;2.
  27. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Pocock, R. I. (1939). The Fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma. Mammalia. – Volume 1. Taylor and Francis Ltd., London. Pp. 199–222.
  28. 1 2 Preparations for the reintroduction of Asiatic lion Panthera leo persica into Kuno Wildlife Sanctuary, Madhya Pradesh, India by A.J.T. Johnsingh, S.P. Goyal, Qamar Qureshi; Cambridge Journals Online; Oryx (2007), 41: 93-96 Cambridge University Press; Copyright 2007 Fauna & Flora International; doi:10.1017/S0030605307001512; Published online by Cambridge University Press 05Mar2007
  29. 1 2 3 "Tigers moving from Rajasthan to Madhya Pradesh, officials concerned". Times of India. 19 April 2013. Retrieved 2016-02-07.
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  31. 1 2 3 Luo, S.-J., Kim,J.-H., Johnson, W. E., van der Walt, J., Martenson, J., Yuhki, N., Miquelle, D. G., Uphyrkina, O., Goodrich, J. M., Quigley, H. B., Tilson, R., Brady, G., Martelli, P., Subramaniam, V., McDougal, C., Hean, S., Huang, S.-Q., Pan, W., Karanth, U. K., Sunquist, M., Smith, J. L. D., O'Brien, S. J. (2004). "Phylogeography and genetic ancestry of tigers (Panthera tigris)". PLoS Biology 2 (12): e442. doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.0020442. PMC 534810. PMID 15583716. Retrieved 2016-03-21.
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    Milton Walter Meyer, South Asia: A Short History of the Subcontinent, pages 1, Adams Littlefield, 1976, ISBN 0-8226-0034-X
    Jim Norwine & Alfonso González, The Third World: states of mind and being, pages 209, Taylor & Francis, 1988, ISBN 0-04-910121-8
    Boniface, Brian G.; Christopher P. Cooper (2005). Worldwide destinations: the geography of travel and tourism. Butterworth-Heinemann. ISBN 978-0-7506-5997-0.
    Judith Schott & Alix Henley, Culture, Religion, and Childbearing in a Multiracial Society, pages 274, Elsevier Health Sciences, 1996, ISBN 0-7506-2050-1
    Raj S. Bhopal, Ethnicity, race, and health in multicultural societies, pages 33, Oxford University Press, 2007, ISBN 0-19-856817-7
    Lucian W. Pye & Mary W. Pye, Asian Power and Politics, pages 133, Harvard University Press, 1985, ISBN 0-674-04979-9
    Mark Juergensmeyer, The Oxford handbook of global religions, pages 465, Oxford University Press US, 2006, ISBN 0-19-513798-1
    Sugata Bose & Ayesha Jalal, Modern South Asia, pages 3, Routledge, 2004, ISBN 0-415-30787-2
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  51. 1 2 Britannica, Encyclopædia (1978). "Turkistan". Encyclopædia. Retrieved 2016-02-01.
  52. ↑ Hovasapyan, Zara (1 August 2012). "When in Armenia, Go Where the Armenians Go". Armenian National Committee of America. Retrieved 2016-02-06. Made of local pink tufa stones, it gives Yerevan the nickname of "the Pink City.
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  95. 1 2 Maya Jasanoff (2007). Edge of Empire: Lives, Culture, and Conquest in the East, 1750–1850. Random House. ISBN 978-0-307-42571-3.
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Further reading

External links

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