From how far can you hear a lion roar?

“To the human ear a lion roar is audible from five miles but lions can probably hear another lion roaring from further than that.”

So it is probably more than 5 miles if you are a lion, say perhaps 6 miles depending on conditions.

References for the above statement quoted verbatime: Mel and Fiona Sunquist authors of Wild Cats Of The World at page 294, in reference to (1) Guggisberg CAW 1963 Simba The life of a lion New York Clinton Books and (2) Schaller GB 1972 The Serengeti lion Chicago University Press and (3) Stander PE & Stander J 1988 Characteristics of lion roars in Etosha National Park Madoqua 15: 315-318.

Male lion

Male lion: Image by Bruno Glätsch from Pixabay

Group roaring

When lions are together they can synchronise their roars so that they follow one another. This lengthens and extends the sound and increases the effect on neighbouring lions. They may roar in response (references: as above).

When standing

Lions usually roar when standing and when one starts the others are often stimulated to join in (references: as above).

Useful links
Anxiety - reduce it
FULL Maine Coon guide - lots of pages
Children and cats - important

Male and female

Males and females roar but the roar is deeper and louder (references: as above).

Purpose

Depending on circumstances, the lion roar is believed to be (1) a territorial display and/or (2) a spacing mechanism and/or (3) ‘a device to ensure group cohesion and facilitate contact’ and/or (4) all of these.

References to this section: Wild Cats Of The World at page 294 in reference to (a) 1 and 3 above plus (b) Schenkel R 1966 Play, exploration and territoriality in the wild lion Symp Zool Soc Lond 18: 11-12 and (c) Ulmer F 1966 Voices of the felidae Int Zoo Yrbk 6: 259-262 and (d) Smuts GL 1982 Lion Johannesburg Macmillan.

SOME MORE ON THE LION (THERE ARE MORE IF YOU USE THE SEARCH FACILITY AT THE TOP OF THE PAGE):

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Useful tag. Click to see the articles: Cat behavior

Note: sources for news articles are carefully selected but the news is often not independently verified.

Michael Broad

Hi, I'm a 74-year-old retired solicitor (attorney in the US). Before qualifying I worked in many jobs including professional photography. I love nature, cats and all animals. I am concerned about their welfare. If you want to read more click here.

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