THE BODY OF A LION
The lions and tigers are the largest members of the cat family. Lions are built for strength, not for speed. A male usually weighs 350 to 400 pounds, but some weigh up to 500 pounds. Most males are up to a foot long from the nose to the end of the tail. They are bout 3-1/2 feet tall at the shoulders. Females are smaller than males, They weight only 250 to 300 pounds and they are about 1 foot shorter than males.
THE BODY OF A TIGER
The adult male tiger weighs about 4020 pounds. and are 9 feet long, including a 3 foot tail. Tigresses weigh about 300 pounds, and are 8 foot long. The tiger's coat ranges from brownish-yellow to orange-red and is masked by black stripes. The stripes very greatly in length, width and spacing. The fur on the throat, belly and insides of the legs is whitish. Many tigers have a ruff of hair around the sides of the head, but the hair is not as long as the mane of a lion. The winters are bitter cold and so they have long shaggy winter coats.
The tigers look different from the lion because of its stripes and more colorful coats. But the two animals have similar bodies. IN fact, tigers and lions have mated in zoos.