Lion vs Tiger
The lion is heavier: 157 kg against 150 kg for the tiger, about 5% more.
Photo: Sumit.pamnani at English Wikipedia · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
Photo: Seemaleena · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
What is the difference between a lion and a tiger?
Each point below is worked out from a pair of recorded values.
- The lion is heavier: 157 kg against 150 kg for the tiger, about 5% more.
- Both belong to the genus Panthera, so they are close relatives.
- The lion is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List; the tiger is Endangered.
- They have been recorded in 22 of the same countries (the lion in 63 in total, the tiger in 35). Shared records include zoos, so this does not mean they meet in the wild.
Side by side
| Lion | Tiger | |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific name | Panthera leo | Panthera tigris |
| Family | Felidae | Felidae |
| Order | Carnivora | Carnivora |
| Weight | 126 kg – 188 kg | 120 kg – 180 kg |
| Length | Not recorded | Not recorded |
| Lifespan | Not recorded | Not recorded |
| Main food | ungulate | ungulate, monkey, rabbits and hares, fish |
| Habitat | Not recorded | forest, savanna, shrubland, grassland, wetland, coastal wetland |
| Conservation status | Vulnerable | Endangered |
| Countries recorded | 63 | 35 |
A scale drawing needs a recorded length for both animals; only weights are on record for this pair.