CATS . . . 
Photo by Miss Anne Jackson, F.R.P.S. 
BLACK-MANED LION “ SULTAN ” 
U NDER this very 
general classification, 
we must include such 
magnificent beasts as the 
lion, tiger and many other 
attractive felines. There 
are approximately seventy- 
five species widely dis¬ 
tributed over the greater 
part of the world, although 
they are conspicuously 
absent from Australasia. 
LIONS. —The lion ranges 
over the greater part of 
Africa, and a few are still 
to be found in certain 
areas in North-west India 
and Persia. A fine heavily- 
maned lion is an attractive 
looking animal, but speci¬ 
mens vary considerably 
and all do not attain this 
nobility of appearance. 
The growth of the mane 
commences before the 
young lion reaches the age 
of eighteen months, and 
continues until full 
maturity is attained at six 
years. The lionesses are 
maneless. 
Lions live well in captivity and breed so readily that, prior to World War II, there was 
almost a glut of them in European Zoos, and prices dropped to a very low level. Usually 
three cubs are born, but litters have been recorded in which the numbers range from one 
to six. Unlike most of the cats, lion cubs 
usually have their eyes open at birth and their 
coats are often heavily spotted, the spots 
normally disappearing long before the animal 
reaches maturity, although a few individuals 
may carry them all their lives. 
TIGERS. —The tiger is now found in Persia, 
India, Malaya, Sumatra and Java as well as 
large areas of Siberia, Manchuria and Korea. 
Several distinct races are recognized which 
vary considerably in size, colour and density 
of coat. While usually associated with the 
jungle the tigers of Northern Asia live in 
areas where few trees exist and they naturally 
meet with intense cold and snow in the winter 
months. 
Tigers take kindly to life in zoological gardens 
and frequently breed—several litters of cubs 
(varying in number from five to two) having 
been bred and reared in the Gardens. 
HYBRIDS. —Occasionally hybrids 
between lions and tigers are bred in zoo¬ 
logical gardens. When the lion is the sire the 
resulting cubs are known as “ ligers ”— and 
when the tiger is the sire the cubs are 
then called “itigons.” Belle Vue purchased a pair 
Photo by G. H. Ashworth, A.R.P.S. 
LION CUB 
Eight 
of tigons in 1936 from the 
famous Hagenbeck Menagerie 
at Hamburg. The male lived 
until 1942, and his sister, the 
famous and beautiful 
“ Maude,” until December, 
1949. Maude was responsible 
for a greater number of 
enquiries from all over the 
world than any other animal 
that has lived in these 
Gardens. So many people 
had heard of this rare and 
unusual animal and yet 
doubted her existence. While 
she is now no longer with us, 
there exists a most compre¬ 
hensive pictorial record of her 
life in these Gardens, since 
she must have been one of the 
most photographed animals 
ever to have lived. 
JAGUAR. —The largest of 
all the American cats, the 
jaguar is called “El Tigre ” 
in Spanish America. It is 
widely distributed through¬ 
out South and Central 
America, but becomes in¬ 
creasingly scarce as it ranges 
northwards to Texas, New 
Mexico and Arizona in the 
United States. 
Photo by B. Garth, F.R.P.S. 
LIONESS “JUDITH ” 
Although the jaguar may 
superficially resemble the 
leopard there are many points 
on which the two animals differ from each other. The jaguar is larger and altogether heavier 
in build than the leopard—the skull in particular is more massive. The arrangement of 
the spots is dissimilar in the two animals and the jaguar has a shorter tail. 
When it comes to a question of food the jaguar is apparently easy to please for large and 
small mammals, birds and their eggs, reptiles and even fish are caught and eaten with 
relish. Man, too, is hunted by these powerful cats and many of the American Indian 
tribes regard “ El Tigre ” with dread. 
Jaguars are represented here by a young female “ Giselle,” and an older male “ Loys.” 
The call of the male is a series of rapid grunting sounds which sympathetic visitors 
mistakenly interpret as a troublesome cough. 
LEOPARDS.— The leopard has by far the greatest range of all the large cats occurring 
in Europe east of the Black Sea and then ranging through the whole of southern Asia. 
The northern limits appear to be the Mongolian Plateau and the Amur River. Southwards 
it is found in Ceylon and Java. In Africa, the leopard occurs throughout most of the 
continent but is absent from the Sahara. 
As with the tiger the leopard varies in size, colour, arrangement of the “ spots ” or 
rosettes and in the length and density of the coat according to its habitat. The Manchurian 
leopard, for instance, has much thicker fur than the Ceylon race while the Persian leopard 
is noted for its pale coat. 
Black (melanistic) leopards are quite common in certain areas and particularly in Malaya 
and East Africa. This black phase is often called the Black Panther and is generally 
considered to have a particularly evil temper, but after examining a large number of both 
black and spotted leopards the writer has formed the opinion that the colour has no 
influence on the disposition of the animal. A litter of cubs from a pair of spotted leopards 
may contain one or more black specimens, but it is fairly certain that when a pair of black 
leopards mate the resulting litter will contain all-black cubs. 
Nine 
