Lion vs. Tiger
Lion vs. Tiger is always considered as the fascinating encounter, as it captures the attention of all big cat lovers. Lions and Tigers are the two arch rivals within the big cat family. Both are highly territorial and will never tolerate each other in the face off scenario. Luckily; in the wild both are separated by the distance of thousands of kilometers. Lion is crowned as the king of African Savannah while the tiger holds its reign across the dense forests of Asia and Russia. Both animals are known to mankind for thousands of years but today they are fighting for their own survival. Even worse still little is known and discovered about these magnificent big cats.
Lion vs Tiger is the battle of the big cat giants. Both of them are very competitive. Both have their pros and cons.
Even a profound and in depth comparison of lion vs tiger rivalry hasn't been compiled in a meaningful manner for the big cat lovers. Perhaps; it is the right time now to make an in depth comparison and draw some conclusions out of it. Some perspectives about lion vs tiger have already been already vindicated while others may end up on a never ending debate. Therefore; let's bring on the contest of these two cats (Lion vs Tiger) and see which one of them holds an advantage based upon their physical and mental characteristics; plus some examples from the historical perspectives.
In a weighing comparison, a lion only comes as the second best to a tiger. According to the weighing statistics; the biggest lion breed usually weighs around 500 pounds; whereas; the biggest tiger breed (The Siberian Tiger) weighs well over 600 pounds. According to many researchers; it is very rare for lions to even reach a weight of 500 pounds in the wild. The biggest lion ever in the wild was around 690 pounds which was shot in Kruger National Park in 1936.
A lion usually weighs around 500 to 550 pounds while a Siberian tiger usually weighs around 600 to 650 pounds.
On the other hand; the biggest tiger ever recorded in the wild was more than 846 pounds. This tiger was shot at Russian Federation's Sikhote Alin Gory Mountains in 1950. Normally it is very common for the male Siberian Tigers to weigh well over 600 pounds. Even the tigresses sometimes weigh equal to the male lions. This was typically observed at an animal sanctuary in Slovakia; where female Siberian Tigresses looked bigger in size as compared to a male lion. Therefore; weight advantage goes to the Siberian Tiger.
Lions again come as second best in terms of their lengths' comparison with the tigers. According to the researchers; the normal length for a tiger is around 9 to 10 feet long. On the other hand; the normal length for a lion is around 8 to 9 feet long. Therefore; on average the tiger clearly has an advantage of a foot or so over the lion in this regard. The longest recorded length for a tiger is around 13 feet long, whereas; the longest recorded length for a lion is around 11 feet long.
Tigers are ahead of lions in terms of their body lengths. A longer body length possibly gives them more muscle power as compared to the lion.
It is believed that this long length of the tigers allow them to gain more body weight than the lions. It also means more muscle power for the tigers as compared to the lions. Please do keep in mind that these lengths have been measured from the tip of their noses to the tip of their tails. Among the total lengths of lions and tigers; the tail comprises of 20 to 25% of the overall length.
Lions and tigers also have reasonable heights which make them huge and powerful beasts. The height of the big cat can easily be evaluated; if the big cat sits on its hind legs and stands on its front two paws. The height is measured from the paws to the tip of its ears. Some researchers also measure shoulder lengths as well for the heights.
A height comparison in between lions vs tigers reveals that a Siberian Tiger is slightly taller than an African Lion. Siberian tiger is 5.5 feet tall while an Afican lion is 5.2 feet tall.
Tigers definitely have an advantage in this regard; as their heights are taller when compared with the lions. The average height for the male Siberian tiger can be as long as 5.3 to 5.5 feet while an average height of the African lion is usually around 5 feet to 5.2 feet tall. However; at shoulders a Siberian Tiger's height is nearly 4 feet long, while an African lion is marginally smaller than 4 feet.
When it comes to speed, the tigers seem to outrun the lions. In speed measurements; the females (tigresses and lionesses) are faster than the male lions and tigers. The average sprinting speed of a male lion is around 35 miles per hour. On the other; the average sprinting speed of a male tiger is recorded to be around 40 miles per hour. Lionesses are even faster than the male tigers. Their sprinting speed is around 43 to 45 miles per hour. But the fastest ones are the tigresses; who have a sprinting speed of nearly 50 miles per hour.
Tigers are faster than lions. Tigers can sprint as fast as 50 miles per hours while the lions can sprint at maximum around 45 miles per hour.
It should also be noted that the elongated body of the tigers; helps them to gain momentum while speeding. Male lions have a huge mane which restricts them from running at high pace. Male tigers, lionesses and tigresses all have perfect aerodynamics to sprint faster than a male lion. These sprints are measured over short distances i.e., 25 to 50 meters at maximum. And they are measured at Myrtle Beach Safari in South Carolina, USA. National Geographic has mentioned the speed of the tigers to be around 80 kilometers per hour and rated them faster than lions.
So; who has got a bigger skull; lion or a tiger? In this comparison; the lions definitely have advantage over the tigers; as their skull measurement is bigger than the tigers. Bigger skull means bigger impact and in normal cases a bigger bite force as well; especially for the carnivores. Cheetahs have one of the smallest skulls among big cats and because of that it can't challenge any rival big cat.
Lions have a bigger skull size than the tigers. Bigger skull means bigger impact and bigger bite force.
Normally; a lion has an average skull size of 380 millimeters; whereas; a tiger has an average skull size of around 351 millimeters. A lion has a concave skull; whereas; a tiger has a convex skull. Additionally; lion does have a mane near his skull and neck; which further makes his head look bigger in size. So definitely; the edge goes to the lions in this regard.
A bigger skull for a lion may also mean a bigger bite force; but this may not be the case. A bigger skull may not always mean an ultimate advantage of bite force. Let's take an example of a Hyena; it has a smaller skull than a lion but its bite force is 3 times stronger than either a lion or a tiger. Basically; it is the jaw muscles that generate the bite force for the big cats.
A tiger has a powerful bite force as compared to a lion. Tiger's bite force is around 392 pounds while a lion's bite force is around 357 pounds.
According to one of the documentaries on National Geographic; a lion and a tiger can both generate a bite force of well over 400 pounds on average. But in a lion vs tiger contest which animal has a bigger bite force? According to Christiansen and Wroe, a tiger has a bigger bite force than a lion. Their research found that; a lion has a bite force of 357 pounds while a Siberian Tiger has a bite force of about 392 pounds. Therefore; a tiger has a stronger bite force as compared to a lion.
All big cats have canine teeth. Bigger canine teeth also mean bigger impact on the prey. Among the big cats the clouded leopards have longest canine teeth. However; in a comparison between a tiger and a lion; a tiger has the longer canine teeth. The lengths of canine teeth of the tigers are about 78 millimeters while the lions have canine teeth of about 70 millimeters.
Tigers have marginally longer canines as compared to the lions. Tigers' canine are 78 Millimeters Long while the Lions' canines are 70 Millimeters in length.
This means that any canine related impact and damage from the tigers will be marginally bigger than the lions. The tiger has a double advantage in this regard as it not only has powerful bite force but also the longer canine teeth.
When it comes to intelligence, a tiger again topples a lion. Intelligence level among species is measured on the basis of cranial volume. Therefore; in a comparison of the lion vs. tiger, a tiger is definitely the winner as it has an ability to outwit a lion. Scientific data collection have concluded that the cranial volume for a tiger is around 0.92 cubic centimeters, whereas; the cranial volume for a lion is around 0.75 cubic centimeters. Moreover; among all the big cats, the tigers most probably have the biggest cranial volume.
The bigger cranial volume of the tigers suggests that the tigers are more intelligent than the lions.
This further means that tigers should be considered as intelligent of all the other big cats as well. Therefore; in lion vs tiger comparison; the advantage goes to tiger when it comes to the sheered intelligence. This is the key reason that tigers throughout the world has adapted to so many climates, prey options and living condition and that too as a solitary hunter.
A lion has a massive roar and the loudest among all the big cats. Even a tiger, who is bigger than a lion can't roar as loud as a lion. According to the statistics, a lion's roar can be heard 5 miles away, whereas; a tiger's roar can only be heard at just 2 to 3 miles away. Lions definitely have a huge edge over the tigers in terms of their roars.
A lion has a louder roar than a tiger. A lion's can be heard 5 miles away while a a tiger's roar can be heard 3 miles away.
According to National Geographic; hearing a roar of a lion is just like having a passenger jet at just an altitude of 150 feet above your head. Tigers just simply lag behind lions, when it comes to the roaring power. A roar helps a lion to secure its territory and scare off any rival males away. Therefore; there is a possibility that a lion may scare off a tiger because of its loud roar.
Tigers are expert swimmers. Lions do not like water and try to avoid any swimming adventures. Even though the lions can swim but they only do it under extreme conditions. Otherwise; lions don't prefer to swim or enter the water at all. Lions also avoid hunting within water as well. Only Swamp Lion pride in Africa is known to have adaptability with waters. Tigers on the other hand; love to swim in deep waters and they are tactful swimmers.
Tigers are excellent swimmers and they are capable of doing hunting in water while swimming. Lions can swim as well but they avoid swimming most of the time.
Tigers are even known to swim couple of miles in rivers for their hunting. Moreover; they are also known to attack fishermen by a surprise pouncing into the boat. Therefore; the advantage goes to tiger when it comes to swimming and any water related encounters.
When it comes to hunting; the lions hunt in groups. Usually; the lionesses hunt for the whole pride and the male lions only make a rare contribution. However; the nomadic male lions are specialized hunters and they grow up young while hunting on their own. But still during their nomadic period; they form a coalition of 2 to 3 male lions for the hunting. Tigers on the other hand are always solitary hunters and they hunt alone throughout their lives after leaving their mothers.
Lions are group hunters, therefore; they are dependent on one another for the hunting. Tigers on the other hand are skillful solitary hunters.
Tigers are known to single handedly kill gaurs and rhinos on their own; while a lion takes help of the group to bring down the large preys. Therefore; lions take advantage of hunting by forming coalitions and groups while tigers are skillful solitary hunters.
Both lions and tigers have powerful paws and claws. Paws are considered as the main armor in hunting for both of these cats. But whose paws are stronger in between these two big cats? The biggest the paws the worst the impact on the rivals. Tigers certainly have edge over lions regarding their paw sizes.
A tiger has a bigger claws and paws as compared to a lion. This also means that a tiger is capable of inserting powerful blows to a lion in a fight.
According to one observation; a lion's claws were about 12.9 cm wide while a tiger's claws were 16.5 cm wider. This also means that the tiger paws will be heavier and will carry more power than that of a lion. Therefore; in the comparison of claws; a tiger is victorious as compared to a lion.
Tigers again have an advantage over the lions, when it comes to paw and claw striking. Not only the tigers use their paws and claws more often in their fights but do it briskly and promptly. Tigers are known to standing on their back feet and start striking multiple times like a boxer in a ring.
When it comes to paw and claw striking; a tiger acts like a boxer. Lions use their claws but they are not as quick paw and claw strikers as the tigers.
Lions on the other hand; also use paws in the fighting, but they are not as quick strikers as the lions. Usually; a lion uses only one of its paws in a fight. Therefore; the tiger leads the lion in a claw striking by the margin of 3 to 1. In other words; a lion will only manage to trigger a single claw strike while a tiger will strike three claws in a single instance. Faster claw striking also means more damage to the opponent and less strikes back on to the face. Therefore; tiger own lions in terms of its paw and claw striking ability.
Protection gear holds the key worth for the fighters in any encounter and it does create a big difference in between the lion vs tiger fight. In the big cat family, the lions have a huge mane around their neck and head which not only makes them look bigger but it also protects their neck as well. Tigers do not have such possession of protection gear around their necks. Some male tigers do have a puff of hair around their neck but that will be too small when compared with the lions' manes. Therefore; in a lion vs tiger encounter a lion holds a key advantage of protection gear of the mane around its neck as compared to the tiger.
A lion has a protection gear in the form of mane around its neck, whereas; a tiger doesn't possess such covering. Therefore; a big advantage definitely goes to lion in an encounter.
The presence of mane makes the male lions a bit slower as well. In another instance in Turkey, a tiger killed a male lion when its claw stuck into the mane of the lion. Therefore; manes can serve as a drawback for the lions but they still offer some sort of protection to the lions as compared to the tigers.
In any fight, agility holds a key for the success and agility can be a decisive factor within the lion vs. tiger encounter. So; who is more agile? A lion or a tiger? When it comes to agility; the experts usually favor a tiger; because it is more agile and acrobatic as compared to a lion. Moreover; the tigers have much better reflexes as compared to the lions in general.
In the lion vs tiger encounter; a tiger is more agile and more acrobatic as compared to a lion. The agility of a tiger can prove out to be a decisive factor for its win against a lion in a fight.
Paws and claws striking capability of tiger is also very agile as well. Maneuverability of a tiger is also much better than a lion. Lions are generally not that much agile as compared to the tigers. Some experts believe that their big mane hinders their agility level during fighting while other experts typically regard lions as laziest big cat.
When it comes to attack on humans; or the man-eaters, the tigers have furious record in this regard. Man-eater is not a skill but it does carry a certain degree of psychological impact on the humans. According to the estimates from India, a Bengal Tiger named as, Champawat killed 436 people in India. However; according to National Geographic Wild Siberian Tigers have never been known to attack humans. On the other hand; there has been record of a lion pride eating 2 people per week for 15 years. The famous Tsavo lions; have also killed 40 people, during the 20th century as well.
The Tigers hold a more furious reputation of man-eaters as compared to the lions. Apart from Siberian Tigers; both African Lions and Bengal Tigers are known to attack and even feed on humans.
Similarly; a single lion has also killed 40 local individuals in 1943. So in terms of man-eaters big cats, a tiger turns out to be more furious than the lions. Since tiger live in dense jungles; therefore, identifying and tackling the man-eater tiger is more difficult than a lion, which live on the plain lands.
Lions do have a population advantage over the tigers. There are around 20,000 lions in the wild today, whereas; there are only 3500 to 4000 tigers in the wild as of 2019. It is believed that during British colonial era of sub-continent (India and Pakistan), tiger hunting was on the rise which resulted in significant loss within tiger population. Tiger population declined from hundreds of thousands to just few thousand in that period.
There are 20,000 lions in the wild as compared to 3,500 to 4000 tigers in the wild.
Lions live in groups; this group living helps them to protect their cubs in a much better way than the tigers. This is the key reason that population of the lions are striving in Africa; while the tigers are on endangered list all around the world. Therefore; the population advantage definitely goes to the lions in this regard.
According to the circus experts; the lions are at their best when it comes to bluffing. Therefore; the lions play their card of scaring off their opponents before making a fight. National Geographic showed in one of their documentary that a lion named as Maran from the Glade region successfully defended its territory against 4 nomadic lions by just roaring and scaring them off.
Lions play a big bluff by scaring off their opponents. They can definitely use this bluff to their advantage against tigers too.
Circus experts believe that even if a lion fights, it fights halfheartedly. Even in captivity when the male lions and the tigers are kept together; lions tend to prove their dominance over the tigers. Tigers do seem to be submissive to lions in captivity.
Therefore; in any of the Lion vs Tiger encounter, a lion has an advantage by playing the bluff to scare off a tiger. But the question is; what role and advantage bluffing can play for lion if its opponent is totally willing to fight till the end? However; we still give a bluffing advantage to a lion in within the lion vs tiger encounter.
Today there are more lions and tigers in captivity than in the wild. About more than 50% of these captive lions and tigers are in USA. Some of these lions and tigers are part of the circus groups as well in USA. Since, the circus individuals work both with lions and tigers, they can definitely share their thoughts about the lion vs tiger encounter.
According to Edmund Sherwood tigers are more skillful in fighting as compared to the lions. He even believed that a single tiger will be enough to fight against the three male lions.
According to one circus expert, named as Robert Edmund Sherwood, if you put three lions and one tiger in a cage, the tiger will come out battered and disfigured but still the victorious one. On the other hand; the three lions will stay behind the bars as dead. Sherwood; believed that lions mostly play bluff during the fight and they are mostly cowards when it comes to the fight. On the other hand; tigers are skillful fighters within the big cat family.
The lion vs tiger encounters were also held during the Mughal era at the sub-continent (The present day India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Burma). In order to entertain the royal guests the Mughals famously used to arrange the famous lion vs tiger encounter.
According to the historians; tigers used to win the lion vs tiger encounter during the Mughal era at the sub-continent
Evenly matched lion and tiger were picked for the fight and according to Roberts and Rand, tigers were always victorious. This account truly shows that lion was a no match for a tiger during those encounters. Tiger at Mughal's era was considered as the true king of the beasts. Therefore; the Mughal era's accounts favor the tigers within the lion vs tiger encounter.
Lion and tiger fights were also popular during the period of the Roman Empire. The lion vs tiger encounter was part of the entertainment for the people of the whole Roman Empire. The fight used to take place at the famous Colosseum of Rome. Even hungry tigers and lions were used to unleash over the gladiators fighting in the arena.
Tigers are also declared as the winners by the historians describing the Lion vs. Tiger encounter from the days of the Roman Empire.
According to the writers and historians; the tigers always used to defeat the lions in the Colosseum arena. Moreover; it was very rare for a lion to kill a tiger during those fights. Therefore; the Roman Empire's account also gives the key advantage to the tiger in its fight with a lion.
The lion vs tiger fights were also popular among the English Kings as well. In order to entertain their guests; an evenly matched pair of the male lion and the male tiger was selected for the encounter. People used to call it an ultimate result to crown the king of the beasts. This event was also used to settle the king of the beasts' disputes as well.
Even the English literature concludes that in a battle of beasts (Lions vs Tigers), tigers were the ultimate winners.
Yet again the tigers always used to win the crown within those fights against the lions. Therefore; from all ancient fighting accounts from Mughal Empire, Roman Empire and English Kings, tigers always had an upper hand over the lions in most of the encounters.
Most recently a rare lion vs tiger fight took place at one of the zoos in Turkey. The fight was accidental and short-termed but very decisive. In that fight the tiger's paw got stuck into the lion's mane, and when the tiger further thrust his claw inside lion's mane, the tiger cut off his jugular vein. This incident specifically proved that lion can be at a disadvantage with the presence of its mane. But the question is "Were these two big cats evenly matched at the zoo?
Recently; a few years ago a tiger in a Turkish Zoo killed a male lion by swiping a few claws around the throat of the lion. "
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