African Folklore
Why the Leopard is the True King of the Jungle
Just because your roar is louder it doesn’t make you king
Look at any photo of African chiefs or kings dressed in animal skin. More likely than not, the animal skin will be that of a leopard. It is rare that you will see a chief in lion skin.
From South Africa to Nigeria, the leopard is more highly regarded than the lion. In Nigeria, in the Igbo tradition, a strong man is called agu(leopard) and not odum( lion).
How did the lion become the king of the jungle?
It is a strange event since lions don’t live in the jungle or rainforests. They live in savannah grasslands. In my opinion, it is colonial influence that made lions the king. The British coat of arms has a lion on it so clearly it is an animal they respect.
In Biblical references, Jesus Christ is called the Lion of the tribe of Judah.
Movies and books like The Lion King and The Chronicles of Narnia have lions featured prominently.
Lions are definitely animals to be revered but for some reason, African peoples, in general, consider the leopard the animal to show royalty and strength. Let’s contrast the two animals and see if you would come to the same conclusion.
- Lions are bigger and stronger than leopards. As a result, leopards sometimes fall prey to lions. This is not a good start for the leopard, is it?
- Lions hunt in packs while leopards are solitary hunters. For this reason, leopards are more stealthy and cunning when they hunt and have been seen to get close to their prey and pounce quickly and savagely.
- While lions are faster- about 80km/h- than leopards- about 60km/h-, they can only run for short bursts at a time. Leopards can run fast for longer stretches.
- Leopards can carry their kill up a tree and keep it away from other predators. Lions can’t climb trees so their kill can be shared with other carnivores like hyenas and wild dogs.
- Incredibly versatile, leopard hunts on land, in trees, and in water. In trees, it can out-manoeuvre specialised climbers and jumpers, including monkeys and baboons. It goes into rivers and streams where it overpowers creatures like crocodiles and hauls them out of the water, and up a tree. While lions are decent swimmers, they’ll go into water to chase prey or to herd it out of the water. They cannot climb trees for lunch.
- Leopards hunt about 90 different species of animals, and their diet consists of mostly monkeys, rodents, reptiles, amphibians, birds, fish, wild pigs, and ungulates to name a few. Because lions hunt in packs they go mainly after big game like wildebeests, zebra, and buffalo.
- Leopards are more elusive while lions are easy to scare away. Rural tribes come out of hiding to take a lion's kill. Leopards run their kill up a tree making it difficult to take.
Well, what do you think? Would these reasons make you revere a leopard more than a lion? Let me know your responses. I’m curious.
