Cosmos
Cosmos is a quarterly science magazine. We aim to inspire curiosity in ‘The Science of Everything’ and make the world of science accessible to everyone.
By Cosmos
We were absolutely entranced by the midnight sprint of a 3-legged lion through croc-infested waters, filmed by ecologists earlier this year.
But that’s not all we learned about the majestic Panthera leo in 2024. Here’s 6 of our favourite lion stories of the year.
Watch brave lion brothers cross croc-infested waters in search of love
A pair of lions – one with 3 legs – has been documented swimming 1.5 kilometres across the predator-infested waters of Kazinga Channel in Uganda in the pitch-dark night.
“I’d bet all my belongings that we are looking at Africa’s most resilient lion,” says Dr Alexander Braczkowski, who witnessed the feat.
Aerial heat detection of Jacob and his brother Tibu in their 2nd, successful attempt at crossing the river. Credit: Alexander Braczkowski
Kenya’s “man-eater” lions of the 19th century confirmed using DNA
A pair of male lions, dubbed the “Tsavo Man-Eaters”, are thought to have eaten dozens of people, including workers on the Kenya-Uganda railway in the late 19th century. Some estimates suggest they killed more than a hundred people.
This year, DNA extracted from their teeth shows they ate humans.
Calls to shut down South Africa’s captive lion industry
It’s estimated that between 8,000–12,000 lions and other big cats, including tigers, are bred and kept in captivity in more than 350 private, commercial facilities across South Africa.
Scientists urged the South African government to shut down this controversial industry.
Local rangers provide huge boost to lion monitoring
Wildlife tourism rangers could be a “powerful” force in conservation monitoring, according to the results of a research project in Uganda.
Surveying wildlife is a costly and difficult part of conservation. But this project, done with African lions in Uganda, found that local rangers were well-equipped to dramatically improve the data.
When the ants invade, lions stop killing zebras
Invasive ants are a big problem all over the world – and the big-headed ant is a particularly vexatious species.
Research from January showed how these little ants are upending a Kenyan ecosystem, causing lions to kill fewer zebras.
Colossal count shows dire lion numbers in Uganda
There’s been a thorough audit of large carnivores in Uganda – and while the result isn’t uniformly bad, there is a lot that’s troubling.
