What is Asiatic lion?
[[Image:Panthera leo persica male.jpg|thumb]] The '''Asiatic lion''' (''Panthera leo persica'') is a [[subspecies]] of the [[lion]]. It survives in the wild today only in [[India]], but has also been sighted in a few areas of [[Pakistan]], especially in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Naqash|first=Tariq|date=2014-02-05|title=‘Asiatic lion spotted in AJK national park’|url=http://www.dawn.com/news/1085010|access-date=2024-02-24|website=DAWN.COM|language=en}}</ref>They once ranged from [[Southeast Europe]] to India, covering most of [[Southwest Asia]], and hence it is also known as the Persian lion. It was the symbol of the [[Junagadh State]]. Under the 10th [[Nawab]] of [[Junagarh]] (r. 1911-1948), the Junagadh State developed a conservation effort in what is now the Gir National Park. This saved the Asiatic lion from almost certain [[extinction]].<ref name=Kinnear1920>{{cite journal |author=Kinnear, N. B. |year=1920 |title=The past and present distribution of the lion in south eastern Asia |journal=Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society |volume=27 |pages=34–39 |url=https://archive.org/stream/journalofbombayn27192022bomb#page/32/mode/2up}}</ref> Since the turn of the 20th century, the range of the Asiatic lion has included the Gir National Park and the surrounding areas in the Indian state of [[Gujarat]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.girlion.in/|title=Gir National Park Website|website=www.girlion.in|access-date=2020-02-15}}</ref> The population has steadily increased since 2010.<ref name=Singh2011>{{cite journal |author1=Singh, H. S. |author2=Gibson, L. |name-list-style=amp |title=A conservation success story in the otherwise dire megafauna extinction crisis: The Asiatic lion (''Panthera leo persica'') of Gir forest |url=https://archive.org/details/sim_biological-conservation_2011-05_144_5/page/1753 |year=2011 |journal=Biological Conservation |volume=144 |issue=5 |pages=1753–1757 |doi=10.1016/j.biocon.2011.02.009|citeseerx=10.1.1.707.1382 }}</ref> In May 2015, the 14th Asiatic Lion Census w