The wild felid species are phenomenal athletes. Not only are they renowned for power, jumping and sprinting capabilities, but also are masters of stealth and stalking.
Lions, the world's second largest and only social felid, are primarily known for their brute strength. The average weight of an adult male can range between 180 and 225 kg (mean 190 kg), whereas the females average approximately 128 kg (Skinner and Chimimba, 2005). Although not the fastest land animal (reaching speeds of up to 70 km/h during short sprints), lions are known as fierce killers and can easily take down animals their own size. The female lions are the primary hunters whereas the males rarely aid in killing prey, but conserve themselves to defend the pride against other male lions. Lion physiology is designed to allow stalking prey for long periods of time, whereafter a short chase ensues. When hunting as a pride, female lions can take down zebra (± 300 kg), buffalo (± 600 kg), eland (± 1000 kg) and female elephants (± 4000 kg). This characteristic is largely a result of their ability to work together as a group rather than that of individual muscle strength. However, being physically fit is a requirement to stay part of the pride