Difference Between Tiger vs Lion

In the food chain echelon, many adult cats are considered the top predators. Oftentimes, the adults have a height of 1.5 m and above. Top contenders in this category are tigers, lions, jaguars, and leopards. In this guide, you will learn the difference between tiger and lion because they tend to confuse people many times.

Admittedly, they share many similarities, which explains why many people have a challenge with spotting the disparity between them. In effort to unravel the disparity, this piece will pay attention to the features, facts, and behaviors. Without much ado, we will start this guide with their definitions.

Definition of Tiger

Tigers are renowned for being the world’s biggest cat. There are certain physical attributes that make them stand out. For instance, they have thick and sturdy legs. They also have muscular bodies that enable them to survive in their natural homes. With a height of 4-5m, it can jump over a 9-meter barrier.

Other unique features are the long tail, orange coat, and black stripes. Despite that, there are others that have bright white colors around their beautiful furs. This cat has six different species that have some striking semblance.

Being naturally solitary, they enjoy their own company. Coming to areas one can easily see them, the best bet is to focus on east and southern Asia as they are considered native to those places.

By design, they are natural hunters because they are capable of running, jumping, climbing trees, and swimming. Those abilities even make them more dangerous to lower animals because they feed on those creatures.

Hence, they are carnivorous animals. While many experts consider them big threats, the tiger is seen as an endangered species. Before delving into the difference between lion and tiger, it is crucial to explain the latter in detail.

Definition of Lion

A lion is a big cat that belongs to the Felidae family. While the males weigh between 331 to 550 lbs., the females weigh about 243 to 401 lbs. Given their heights and width, they are the second largest cats in the large cat family. Most times, it is pretty easy to see in India and sub-Saharan Africa as those continents are regarded as their natural homes.

It is important to point out that lions have 12 known subspecies. To spot the disparity among the subspecies, one has to look at the mane, size, and distribution. With a skull that has a frontal region, it is not uncommon to come across depressed and flattened skulls. With respect to the two sexes (males and females), there is a clear-cut distinction between them.

The obvious discrepancy is that the females tend to have much more visible mane than the males. They often have cubs that have brown rosettes. They also enjoy lounging on grassland. However, they feed on other animals, making them carnivorous.

Main Differences Between Tiger vs Lion

Go through the table below to understand lion vs tiger better.

Basis of Comparison	Lion	Tiger
Botanical name	Panthera leo	Panthera tigris
Weight	Males weigh 331 to 550 lbs. while the females weigh 243 to 401 lbs.	Males weigh 200 to 670 lbs. while the females weigh 140 to 370 lbs.
Locations	Found in Africa and India	Southeast Asia and Eastern Asia
Brain size	Has an extremely large brain	Has the largest brain in its family
Lifespan	Males live on the average of 12 years while the females stay for 15-16 years	The males stay for 15 to 20 years while the females enjoy 20 to 26 years
Survival status	Not really endangered but vulnerable	Critically endangered
Major preys	Giraffe, hartebeest, waterbuck, and cape giraffe	Deer, buffalo, wild pigs, monkey, birds, reptiles, baby elephants, etc.

Difference Between Tiger and Lion: Conclusion

In conclusion, one can summarize this guide on tiger vs lion using their complexion disparities. While the former could be yellowish, reddish, or dark brown, the latter comes in many different colors like orange, brown, and white.

Without mincing words, they share lots of similarities (such as the same family, genus, class, and order), but not without huge differences, as shown in the table above. Finally, you now know the contrasts between them.