Male lions: New study shows how they hunt
A new study shows that male lions use dense vegetation to hunt their prey, while females cooperate together to hunt.
Male lions are proving to be successful hunters despite beliefs that females do all the work.
Researchers at the Carnegie Institute of Science found that male lions use vegetation on the savanna to ambush their prey, reported ANI.
Male lions also tend to hunt alone, making their surprise strategy necessary.
This differs from female lions which tend to hunt cooperatively, reported Science World Report.
Both tend to hunt at night, said Nature World News.
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The researchers studied a pride of seven lions in South Africa's Kruger National Park.
While female lions hunt in the open savanna, males tend to hunt in a place with more brush and other vegetation.
Researchers say that the study shows that vegetation can affect animal life on the savanna.
"By strongly linking male lion hunting behavior to dense vegetation, this study suggests that changes to vegetation structure, such as through fire management, could greatly alter the balance of predators and prey," study author Scott Loarie said, reported UPI.
"With large mammals increasingly confined to protected areas, understanding how to maintain their habitat to best support their natural behavior is a critical conservation priority," he said.