Lions are the only felids that present sexual dimorphism, which means that they are the only species of felines that can be differentiated between males and females thanks to their appearance. The males develop an ostentatious mane that differentiates them from the females. However, nature always leaves room for exceptions and a lioness at the Topeka Zoo and Conservation Center in Kansas has grown an adolescent male’s mane, leaving her caretakers amazed.
Zuri is an 18-year-old lioness who lives at the Topeka Zoo and Conservation Center, located in Kansas, United States. She is the largest lioness in a pride of three cats that lost her male Avus a few months ago. After the loss of Avus, who served as the alpha in the pack, the keepers observed a change in Zuri’s coat.
Now the lioness is the largest cat among the two remaining females in the pride and since then she has had changes in her appearance. A fluffy mane began to grow around his neck and although it is shorter and sparser than the mane of an adult male, it resembles the fur of a lion in adolescence.
Although it could be thought that Zuri developed his mane as a way to position himself in the place that Avus vacated, that of the alpha male, conservation scientists believe that this is only a coincidental timeline and that the causes of the mane are rather related. with other reasons.
“I don’t think there’s any kind of evolutionary reason for this, whether it’s a lack of males or too much competition with other females or something like that. I think it’s just a random event,” said Kris Everatt of the Panthera organization.
Other cases of females with manes
For now, the reasons that led Zuri to develop adolescent male mane are unknown, but this is not the only time that an event of this nature has occurred. In a 2016 report, five female lions in Botswana were said to have developed male manes. In 2017, a similar case occurred where an 18-year-old female named Bridget who lives at the Oklahoma Zoo also had fur growing like a male’s mane.
In this last case, it was discovered that Bridget’s strange physiological behavior was due to the presence of a tumor in the adrenal gland, which caused elevated levels of cortisol and androstenedione, which are the most likely causes of the lioness having a mane. bushy
It is because of this last case that veterinarians suspect that Zuri’s advanced age has something to do with the growth of her fur. Perhaps her hormone levels have changed, creating an effect similar to Bridget’s case.
Although the causes are unknown, Zuri’s mane shows us that nature always acts in mysterious ways that we do not always understand. For now, the lioness shows off her fur that gives her a certain dominant air.