A STUNNING photo of a lion cub bellowing “its first roar” has been revealed by a wildlife photographer.
The moment will be familiar to fans of Disney’s ‘The Lion King’ movie, where baby Simba practices roaring.
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Local guide Paul Mahagi captured the image while hiding in a bush at the Serengeti National Park.
“The cub is just a few days old,” Mahagi told news agency SWNS.
“It was his first big roar.
“I posted the picture online and everyone said it looks like Simba from the Lion King.
“I was in the bushes when I took it. I’m always hunting for the best photos.”
Mahagi, 38, was around 300 feet (100 metres) away when he took the photo.
He managed to capture the cub with his mother who was nearby too.
“I work as a driver and guide so photography is part of my job,” Mahagi explained.
Mahagi said he first learned photography in 2006.
Lions – the key facts
Here’s what you need to know about lions…
- Lions are muscular, deep-chested cats that make up a species in the Felidae family
- Male lions have prominent manes, which differentiate them from females of the species
- A male lion typically has a head-to-body length of 72-82 inches (184-208cm)
- Female lions are smaller, with an average head-to-body length of 63-72 inches (160-184cm)
- Lions are a social species and form groups known as “prides”
- This will usually consist of a few adult males, several related females and their cubs
- Female lions will typically hunt together, typically preying on large mammals with hooves
- Lions are an apex predator, which means they’re at the top of the food chain with no natural predators
- The species has been listed as “vulnerable” since 1996, because African populations have declined by around 43% since the early nineties
The Serengeti National Park is a national park in the north of Tanzania.
It covers 5,700 square miles of grassland plains, woodlands, savanna and forest.
The park is famous for its wildebeest population, with population estimates running north of 1.5million.
But it’s also home to large numbers of zebra, gazella, giraffe, warthog and hippo.
Tourists also visit the park to see leopards, African bush elephants, rhinoceros, African buffalo and cheetah.
More than 3,000 lions are believed to live in the park, and thrive due to the large availability of prey.
Disney releases trailer for live-action remake of ‘The Lion King’
In other news, rare lion cub mummies were found at Egypt’s ‘City of the Dead’.
Perfectly preserved lion cubs that died 44,000 years ago “after being abandoned by their mum” were found frozen in Siberia.
And a Siberian puppy frozen 14,300 years was found “perfectly preserved” and may have been a pet.
What’s your favourite Lion King animal? Let us know in the comments!
