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Study

Roaring and numerical assessment in contests between groups of female lions, Panthera leo

McComb, Karen; Packer, Craig; Pusey, Anne

Animal Behaviour, 1994

Peer-reviewedfield experimentwild

What they did

Recorded roars of unfamiliar females were played to wild prides from a concealed speaker, varying the number of roaring individuals — one voice or three — while the number of defending lionesses present was known. Approach and defensive behaviour were scored.

Studied in
Panthera leo
Sample size
playback trials to wild prides of known composition

What they found

Lionesses approached the speaker when they outnumbered the simulated intruders and were much more cautious when they did not. The decision tracked the ratio between defenders present and voices heard, rather than the absolute number of either. Reinforcement by nearby pride members changed the response.

What it means

The authors' reading, and ours. Where they differ, that difference is the point.

How the authors put it

Female lions assess the number of opponents from roars and compare it against their own numbers before deciding whether to engage.

How NatureHQ reads it

One of the cleanest numerical-assessment experiments in any wild animal, and it works because the speaker cannot bluff. The lionesses are not responding to how loud the sound is — three voices at a distance can be quieter than one nearby — but to how many distinct animals they hear, weighed against how many they have. It also explains what roaring is for, which is not intimidation in the general sense but advertisement of numbers between groups that mostly avoid fighting.

Limitations

  • Playback presents an intruder that never materialises, so escalation beyond approach cannot be observed.
  • Contests between males were not tested by this design.
  • One population, and pride composition varies elsewhere.

The experiment, explained

  • Playing lions the sound of intruders who are not there

    Can a lioness tell how many strangers she is hearing, and does she compare it with her own numbers?

What this study is used for on NatureHQ

One study can inform several subjects. Here is everywhere this one is cited.

Finding the paper

Published by: Elsevier journalsPublished in an Elsevier journal.

doi.org/10.1006/anbe.1994.1052

This reference was resolved automatically against Crossref on 2026-08-11.

NatureHQ summarises research in its own words and does not reproduce published text. Reviewed 2026-08-11.