Lions produce not just one, but TWO distinct types of roar

A lion’s roar is undeniably one of the most fearsome sounds across the entire animal kingdom. 

Now, it turns out these majestic creatures produce not just one, but two distinct types of roar. 

That’s according to researchers from the University of Exeter, who have identified a brand new type of growl in African lions. 

The animals – often referred to as the ‘King of the Jungle’ – are best known for their full–throated roar, an immensely powerful vocalization that can be heard up to five miles away. 

However, using AI, the researchers were able to identify a second type of roar, which they’ve called the ‘intermediary roar’. 

Speaking to the Daily Mail, Jonathan Growcott, lead author of the study, explained: ‘The full–throated roar is loud, complex and arcs in pitch. 

‘The intermediary roar differs by being a flatter sound with less variation. 

‘The intermediary roar will also always follow the full–throated roars.’

While lions are best known for their full–throated roars, they’ve also been recorded moaning and grunting. 

In their new study, the team set out to understand if lions produce are any other distinguishable sounds. 

The researchers headed to Tanzania’s Nyerere National Park, which is estimated to be home to between 1,700 and 6,900 individual lions. 

Across a total of 64 stations, they set up camera traps which recorded bouts of lions roaring. 

Once these bouts had been recorded, they were fed through an AI tool. 

This confirmed their suspicions – beyond the full–throated roars, moans and grunts, lions also produce an intermediary roar. 

‘Both roars are found within the roaring bout so it’s not the case that one roar is used in one situation and the other another,’ Mr Growcott explained to the Daily Mail. 

‘But the bout is an important behaviour. Not only does it act as a signal to other lions within their pride as to where they may be, but, to non–friendly lions, bouts can be used to advertise territorial boundaries.’

As for the communicative differences between the two roars, the researchers remain unclear. 

‘It has long been considered that lion roars may convey information relating to pride size, age or individual,’ Mr Growcott added. 

While previous studies have relied on the human ear, this AI–based approach simplifies the acoustic monitoring process. 

This makes it not only more accessible, but also more reliable compared to traditional methods. 

‘Until now, identifying these roars relied heavily on expert judgment, introducing potential human bias,’ Mr Growcott explained. 

‘Our new approach using AI promises more accurate and less subjective monitoring, which is crucial for conservationists working to protect dwindling lion populations.’

Aside from teaching us more about lion vocalisations, the researchers hope the findings will ‘transform wildlife monitoring and conservation efforts’.  

For example, the AI tool is so accurate that it can distinguish between individual lions – making it easier for conservation scientists to estimate the size of a population. 

‘Lion roars are not just iconic – they are unique signatures that can be used to estimate population sizes and monitor individual animals,’ Mr Growcott concluded.

WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT LIONS?

Modern lions, part of the cat family, first appeared in south and east Africa, before evolving into two groups.  

One now lives in eastern and southern Africa, while the other includes lions in west Africa and India.

Like many other animals, male lions are much larger and heavier than females, with the average weight for a male around 416 lbs (189 kg), while for a female it’s 277 lbs (126 kg)

The heaviest male lion recorded was spotted in Kenya and was 600 lbs (272 kg). 

Much smaller in comparison, the heaviest female, found in South Africa, was 335 lbs (152 kg).

That is heavier than the weight of more than 50 female domestic cats put together.

Lions have three types of teeth: Incisors, used for gripping and tearing meat; Canines used to rip skin and tear away meat; Carnassial teeth act like a pair of scissors to cut meat.

Lions can open their jaws to up to 11 inches (28 cm) wide, giving them one of the animal kingdom’s biggest bites.

A lion’s paws are similar to a pet cat’s, with five toes on the front paws and four on the back.  

Lions have retractable claws, which can grow up to 1.5 inches (38 mm) in length. A fifth toe on the front paw has what is called a deathclaw, which acts like a thumb for holding down prey when eating.

Lion cubs are born with a greyish woolly coat, with dark spots covering most of the back, legs and face which act as camouflage.

At around 12 to 14 months old, male cubs begin to grow longer hair around their chests and necks. 

This is the beginning of their mane, which will not have grown properly until they reach the age of two. 

Lion cubs are born blind and don’t begin to open their eyes until around three to four days old. 

Their eyes are a blue-grey colour at first and begin to change to an orangey brown by the age of two to three months. 

Lions have scent glands around their chin, lips, cheeks, whiskers, tail and in-between their toes. 

These glands produce an oily substance to keep their fur healthy and waterproof. 

If you ever see a picture of a lion curling up its top lip and pulling a funny face, the chances are it’s using something called its

This is a small area in the roof of the mouth that allows a lion to ‘taste’ smells in the air. 

By showing their teeth and sticking out their tongues, lions are able to catch hold of a smell to work out if it’s coming from something worth eating.

Lions also have good sense of hearing, and can turn their ears in different directions to listen to sounds all around them.They are able to hear their prey from a mile (1.6 km) way.