The
'noble' adult, black-maned Lion stood his ground
and
stared at us without blinking.
Each
time I hear about 'the noble Lion', I get a bit angry.
Let
me compare the 'Nobility' of the Hyena, or of the Painted Dog, for
instance, with that of the Lion:
When
the Hyena has hunted successfully, it is the babies who eat first. If
there are young ones still in the cave or the hide, the Hyena will
gorge him or herself, rush 'home' and regurgitate for those, too
small to have participated in the hunt.
So
does the Painted Dog. At a kill, even the Alpha Pair will let the
kids eat first.
Now
let us compare this family behavior to that of the Lion:
First,
the Female usually does the hunting. At the kill, it is the Male who
eats first, then the Female and, if there is something left of the
carcass, the young ones get their share. They are usually 'last' at
the dinner table.
So
now, talk to me again about the Nobility of the Lion.
****************
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1 comment:
Nobility takes many forms. The male lion who fights off all comers (all competing males) attempting to invade his Pride, has evolutionarily resulted in the natural preservation and strengthening of the species. Applying your human view of what constitutes “nobility” to lions is a no-win game, because while you’re lecturing the male lion on his absolute lack of nobility, one of the females in his pride will take you down and eat you.
Male lion: “What are you doing?”
Female lion: “Sneaking up behind this dopey human.”
Male lion: “What’d he do?”
Female lion: “He won’t shut up about this nobility thing. He just compared us to a bunch of hyenas!”
Male lion: “Ya. Very annoying. Take him down. By the way, what’s for lunch?”
Female lion: “Bratwurst!”
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