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Barbary lion in a 1898 picture. This image is in the public domain because its copyright has expired. This applies to the European Union, Canada, the United States and those countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 70 years.

Felis leo Linnaeus, 1758; Felis leo barbaricus Meyer 1826; Felis leo barbarus Fischer, 1829; Felis leo nubicus Blainville, 1843 (no type locality specified, but stated as ‘‘Nubia’’ by G. M. Allen, 1939); Felis leo nigra Loche, 1858

However, the North African lion population (Barbary lion) were most likely more related to the Asiatic subspecies than the other African subspecies (sub-Saharan populations). Recent research suggest that a closely related group of lion populations was formerly distributed from North Africa through the Middle East to India. (Barnett et al. 2006; Burger and Hemmer 2006)

Early authors believed that the seemingly fixed external morphology of Barbary lions (male’s huge mane extending behind shoulders and covering belly) would justify their ‘‘distinct’’ subspecific status and be used to identify them. However, it is now known that the colour and size of a lion’s mane are influenced by various extrinsic factors, including the ambient temperature (West and Packer 2002). Therefore, a heavy mane developed in a cooler place (e.g. European or North American zoos) is an inappropriate marker for identifying Barbary lines, which need to be identified by molecular markers (Yamaguchi and Haddane 2002). (Barnett et al. 2006)

Lions in captivity today have been bred and cross-bred from lions captured in Africa long ago, with examples from all of these described 'subspecies'. Mixed together, hybridised, most of today's captive lions have a 'soup' of genes from many different lions. 

Compound that with the many other variables that decide the extent and colour of a lion's mane and you begin to see just how inappropriate the following statement is: "This lion has a long mane and so must be a Barbary". First the DNA fingerprinting had to be produced, otherwise there was no definitive way to identify a lion as Barbary. In 2006, results of mitochondrial DNA research showed a mtDNA haplotype that is unique to the Barbary lion. This can be a good molecular marker for identifying Barbary lions.

The Extinction Website acknowledges that the subspecies is extinct and does not recognize the existence of a genetically pure living specimen of the Barbary lion until genetic testing identifies one.

However, the morphology of the Barbary lion is quite distinct (ignoring the mane) and, more importantly, with details of a lion's parentage and background we can identify those most likely to be descended from the original Barbary lion. These lions are also the ones that people focus on in the Barbary Lion Project.

To judge by historical records, one contiguous lion population may once have been distributed from North Africa through the Middle East to India, and was probably connected to the sub-Saharan population through the present Egypt–Sudan–Ethiopia region. Latest genetic research has confirmed this (Barnett et al. 2006). The lions distributed in the whole of Africa north of the Sahara were called Barbary lions (Panthera leo leo). 

Image: map showing the possible previous range of the Barbary lion (coloured red), the possible previous range of the Asiatic lion (Panthera leo persica) is coloured yellow. Based on distribution maps by Guggisberg (1961) and Barnett et al. (2006). Created by Peter Maas for The Extinction Website. This image has been released under the Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial No Derivatives 3.0 Licence.

However, the eastern part of North Africa (modern Libya and Egypt) may not have supported a dense lion population even well before the time of major human persecution (Harper, 1945; Nowell and Jackson, 1996), possibly because of the aridity of the region. Probably by the early 18th century at the latest, lions had disappeared from that part of the North African Mediterranean littoral. This left an isolated population in the western part of North Africa (now called Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia). (Yamaguchi and Haddane, 2002) Unlike most African lions, the Barbary Lion was a mountain predator, preferring woodlands.

Record in captivity show that their gestation period is approximately 110 days, after which 1-6 cubs are born, with 3-4 being most common. The cubs are generally heavily spotted with very dark rosettes and weigh approximately 3.5 pounds at birth. They gain an average of 3.5 ounces per day, and their eyes open around the 6th day. They begin to walk at 13 days. Female Barbary lions start coming into estrous around 2 years old, but do not generally conceive until 3-4 years. Males show an interest in females between 24-30 months, but do not tend to produce cubs before the age of 3, and more commonly until 4. (Preservation Station, 2005)

Molecular phylogenetic studies suggested that modern lions share a common ancestor in the very recent past, estimated at between 55,000 and 200,000 years ago (O'Brien et al., 1987). Based on genetic distance, the North African-Asiatic lion is estimated to have separated from the African population as recently as 100,000 years ago (O'Brien et al., 1987).

The first humans in the range of the North African or Barbary lion clung to the River Nile for protection against the harshness of the desert. These Egyptians were the first to challenge the Barbary lions with spears and arrows. The Berbers came to found small villages across the mountains of North Africa and eke out a living from small farms, about 3000 years ago. They defended their homes against the lions, but they were no real threat for the Barbary lion population.

It was the Roman Empire that first reduced the Barbary to small numbers. Roman Emperors sought to entertain the people and to reassure them that their civilization had control over nature. The ancient Romans imported lions from North Africa to use in the games of the Coliseum in Rome, and other such arenas. It is known that literally thousands were taken from their homes to other parts of the Roman empire to serve as gladiator's rivals. The Roman carnage ended after six centuries, but the Barbary’s troubles were not over. The Vandals ]and Byzantine Empire briefly held sway over the land until the Arabs came in the 600s. As the Arab presence grew, the lions retreated. They were branded a nuisance and a reward was offered for every lion destroyed. 

With the advent of the European hunter in the last century, remaining Barbary lion numbers plummeted. Local guides in the mountains of Tunisia and Morocco would track lions for European hunting for sport, live animals for zoos or museum collections.

Lions were extirpated from Tripolitania (western-Libya) as early as 1700. The last known Barbary lion in Tunisia was killed in 1891 near Babouch, between Tabarka and Ain-Draham. The last known lion in Algeria was killed in 1893 near Batna, 97 km south of Constantine. although the last Algerian lion may have been shot in an unknown location as recently as 1943. In nowadays Tunisia and Algeria the Turks had encouraged the killing of Lions by paying well for the skins. After the French occupation the price went down: the French paid only 50 francs for a skin. On the other hand, many Frenchmen in North Africa became relentless Lion hunters. In Algeria over 200 Lions were killed between 1873 and 1883. Lions disappeared from the Moroccan coast by the mid-l 800s. In Morocco lions survived well into the 20th century, but finally ceased to exist in the 1940s. The last kill was recorded in 1942 on the northern side of the Tizi-n-Tichka pass in the Atlas Mountains, near the road between Marrakesh and Ouarzazat, two major tourist destinations today. (Harper, 1945; Guggisberg, 1961; Nowell and Jackson, 1996; Van den Hoek, Ostende 1999; Yamaguchi and Haddane, 2002)

Meanwhile it was said that sultans and kings of Morocco had been presented lions as the sign of obedience by the nobles, as well as by indigenous Berber people who had shared the Atlas Mountains with the last Barbary lions. Over the coming half-century the royal lions survived war and insurrection. In 1953, when Sultan Sidi Mohammed Ben Youssef (later King Mohammed V) was forced to abdicate and went into exile, the royal lions ( 21 in total) too lost their home at the palace. Three of them were sent to a zoo in Casablanca and the rest were sent to a zoo in Meknès. After the sultan came back to the palace in 1955, the Meknès lions moved back to Rabat again, but the Casablanca lions never came back. Meanwhile the rest of the world continued to assume the Barbary lion was extinct – a premature belief which nearly became fact when a respiratory disease hit the royal lions hard in the late 1960s. King Hassan II, then the owner, decided to reduce the risk and improve life for the lions. A new enclosure was completed in Temara, near Rabat, to house the royal lions, and in 1973, under the administration of the Ministry of Agriculture, this became Rabat Zoo. (Yamaguchi and Haddane, 2002)  

Some lions in Temara Zoo in Rabat were identified in 1974 by Leyhausen and Hemmer (Leyhausen 1975) as having physical characteristics of the Barbary lion: very clear light iris, rather than brown; mane spreading behind the shoulders and covering the belly right to the groin, high occiput (back of the head), short legs and deep chest (W. York quoted in introduction to Leyhausen 1975) but none appeared absolutely flawless (Leyhausen 1975).

The current royal lions in Rabat Zoo have not only the right Barbary looks, but also, very importantly, the right pedigree supported by circumstantial evidence. Although it may not be very solid, the existence of such evidence clearly separates the royal lions from all the other big-maned lions whose pedigrees are untraceable. (Yamaguchi and Haddane, 2002) These lions and their descendents will now be studies to see if they possess both phenotype and genotype of the Barbary lion. These lions will be part of the Atlas Lion Project, a selective breeding project in order to try to restore the lost Barbary lion. The final phase of the project will see the lions released into a National Park in the Atlas Mountains of Morocco.

The former popularity of the Barbary Lion as a zoo animal provides the only hope to ever see it again in the wild in North Africa. (see more in 'comments' and 'History & Population'.)

Photo: a possible Barbary Lion or a possible descendent in Ljubljana Zoo, Slovenia. Photographed by Wikimedia Commons user 'Lacen' and released under the GNU Free Documentation License.

Even before Rabat Zoo was created, a German naturalist, Wolfgang Frey, who had been intensively searching for information on the Barbary lion, clearly pointed out the importance of the Moroccan royal lions. Realising how precious this bloodline (now numbering 27 lions) was, Yves Raymond, then Director of Rabat Zoo, started to make contact with zoologists worldwide. Among them were the renowned big-cat experts Professors Helmut Hemmer and Paul Leyhausen. After being unable to answer all questions about the genetic purity of these royal lions, the zoologists decided to move forward by assuming that gene contaminations) had happened. A selective breeding programme was proposed. (Yamaguchi and Haddane, 2002)

In association with Oxford University, a UK-based organisation, Wildlink International launched their ambitious Atlas Lion Project. Records suggest around sixty captive lions, although cross-bred with sub-Saharan lions, may have Barbary ancestors. As yet, however, the science does not exist to distinguish true Barbary lions from look-alikes. Barbary expert Dr Yamaguchi is thus attempting to discover the characteristics of the Barbary sub-species using the latest DNA techniques.

Wildlink International aimed to identify the Barbary markers by testing the skeletal remains of known Barbary lions in museums and collections around the world, including Barbary bones from the Coliseum in Rome. Once the Barbary blueprint is established, they will be able to test living lions displaying Barbary traits to determine their degree of hybridisation. Lions closest to the original Barbary will then enter a selective breeding programme that will 'breed back' the Barbary Lion. 

WildLink International disappeared after a while. The Extinction Website was in the dark as to what happened to WildLink International. WildLink International and the University of Oxford had made the deal that WildLink International would raise money for the project and that the university would do the research. With the disappearance of WildLink International no money was raised.

In 2005, Preservation Station Inc. (http://www.barbarylion.com) published new information: With unwavering determination to see this magnificent lion remain on this earth for generations to come, Dr. Noboyuki Yamaguchi, a scientist from the University of Oxford, is at the heart of the scientific efforts for the Barbary Lion genetics. He has used is own funding for as long as he was able to further the scientific research on Barbary Lions, but with limited funding available, research time may be running out. If you would like to help fund this most important conservation effort, please contact Dr. Yamaguchi and help him and Preservation Station Inc. raise the necessary $150.000 US (about €110.000) and allow them to save this awesome royal bloodline. If you know of any wealthy philanthropists, be sure and send them to Dr. Yamaguchi. Dr. Dan York and his colleagues at Hillsdale College in Hillsdale, Michigan (USA), are trying to do some DNA research on their own and hopefully they will be able to find something. (Preservation Station, 2005) Sadly, due completely to lack of funding, the project was on hold until the funds are raised. Those people and institutions with project lions are trying to just maintain the bloodlines allowing only minimal breeding when absolutely necessary. For more information please visit the 

In June 2009, The Extinction Website has been contacted by Wildlink International with new information. This resurrected non-profit organisation from Aldington (Kent, England, United Kingdom) builds directly on the work of the old WildLink International. An urgent scientific population assessment of Panthera leo leo is being conducted by Pete Thompson of Wildlink International in association with Professor Helmut Hemmer (IUCN Cat Specialist Group Member) and Dr Joachim Burger of the University of Mainz (Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany). The priority now is to complete the Urgent Population Assessment without further delay.  

Genetic tests

In 2005, Mitochondrial DNA research revealed that a lion specimen from Neuwied Zoo, who claim to have Barbary Lions, that its mitochondrial lineage is not of sub-Saharan origin and, thus, very likely a descendant of a Barbary lion. (Burger and Hemmer 2006)

In 2006, Mitochondrial DNA research revealed that five tested samples of the lions from the collection of the King of Morocco are not maternally Barbary. Unlike the Cape lion, the results do support the ‘‘distinctness’’ of the Barbary lion. (Barnett et al. 2006)

Zoos and animal parks that claim to have Barbary lions or descendents

Temara Zoo (Rabat, Morocco); Port Lympne Wild Animal Park (Kent, England, UK); Longleat Safari Park (Wiltshire, England, UK); Belfast Zoo (Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK), Zoo de Madrid (Madrid, Spain); Great Cats of Indiana, (Idaville, Indiana, U.S.A.); Big Cat Rescue, (Tampa, Florida, U.S.A.); Tiger Safari (Tuttle, Oklahoma, U.S.A.); G.W. Exotic Animal Memorial Park (Wynnewood, Oklahoma, U.S.A.); Parc de la tête d'Or ( Lyon, France); Zoo Neuwied (Neuwied, Germany), Zion Wildlife Gardens (Kamo, New Zealand). Do you know more zoos or animal parks that claim to have Barbary lions? Please contact us.

Probably because of convergence in adaptation to temperate and Mediterranean habitats, it resembled the also extinct Cape Lion (Panthera leo melanochaitus), but was evolutionarily related to the lions that occupied in antiquity south-eastern Europe, the Middle East and western Asia (Panthera leo persica), now restricted to a relict population in the Gir Forest of India.

Photos: Asiatic Lions (Panthera leo persica). Taken by Adrian Pingstone at Bristol Zoo, England, in January 2005. These images have been released into the public domain by its author. This applies worldwide.

In 1968, a study on the skulls of the Asiatic, Barbary, Cape, and other African lions showed that the same skull characteristics - the very narrow postorbital bar - existed in only the Barbary and the Asiatic lion skulls. This shows that there may have been a close relationship between the lions from Northernmost Africa and Asia. It is also believed that the south-eastern European lion that became extinct at the beginning in A.D. 80-100, could have represented the connecting link between the North African and Asiatic lions. It is believed that Barbary lions possess the same belly fold (hidden under all that mane) that appears in the Asian lions today. (Preservation Station, 2005) There appears to be no record of contiguous populations of the two subspecies in historic times (Nowell, Jackson, 1996).

Preservation Station - BarbaryLion.com

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Last updated: 1^st November 2009.

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