Tongue

A lion’s tongue is as rough as sandpaper. It is covered in tiny spines, called papillae, which face backwards and are used to scrape meat from bones and dirt from fur. These spines make the tongue so rough that if a lion licked the back of your hand only a few times, you would be left without any skin!

Fur

Lion cubs are born with a greyish woolly coat, with dark spots covering most of the back, legs and face. These spots act as camouflage, helping the cubs to blend into their surroundings to make them almost invisible in bushes or long grass. The spots begin to fade around three months of age, although some keep them longer; even into adulthood. As the cubs get older, their fur gradually begins to turn thicker and more golden in colour.

The Mane

At around 12 to 14 months old, male cubs begin to grow longer hair around their chests and necks. This is the beginning of their mane, which will not have grown properly until they reach the age of two. Usually, the mane continues to gets longer and darker with age. In some lions, it can stretch across their tummies and even onto their back legs. Female lions, called lionesses, do not have manes.

Nobody really knows why a male lion grows a mane, but it is thought that it could be to protect its neck during the fighting. It also can be used to make the male look bigger to scare off other lions and large animals such as rhinos. Another reason is to show off to female lions. Lionesses seem to prefer males with dark manes. It is thought this is because they appear stronger and healthier than those with light coloured manes and so can offer them more protection.

The length and darkness of a lion’s mane are affected by where it lives. Lions living in warmer habitats have shorter, lighter manes than those in cooler areas. It can even change as the temperature gets hotter and colder throughout the year.

Researchers are still studying male lions across Africa to understand why they have manes, but the real answer is that nobody knows for certain. Maybe they never will.