Rarely. Lions kill other lions fairly often, but they seldom eat them. Most killings happen when new males take over a pride and kill cubs too young to run away, says the Smithsonian’s National Zoo. A lion may sometimes eat part of a dead lion, but lions are not normal food, and nobody has counted how often it happens.
Will a lion eat another lion? The short answer explained
Lions eat meat, and their usual food is large grazing animals such as zebra, wildebeest and buffalo. When a lion kills another lion, the reason is almost never food. It is about who gets to live in a territory and who fathers the cubs. Scientists who have studied lions for decades, such as Craig Packer and Anne Pusey, describe these killings as part of the competition between groups of males.
The old version of this page said a winning lion may eat the loser “to show dominance”. There is no evidence for that. Eating a rival is rare, and when it happens there is no sign it sends any message to other lions. A dead lion is simply meat, and a hungry lion may take a few bites.
| Situation | Who dies | How common | Eaten? | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New males take over a pride | Cubs too young to run, usually under 1 year | Common at takeovers | Sometimes partly; not counted | Smithsonian; San Diego Zoo; Packer and Pusey 1983 |
| Fights over a pride or territory | Mostly adult males | Regular part of male life | Rarely; field reports only | San Diego Zoo |
| A cub dies of hunger or injury | Cubs | Up to 80% of cubs die by age 2, from all causes | Occasionally; field reports only | Smithsonian |
| Gir forest, India | Cubs of females that did not mate with the new males | Lower when mothers mate with several groups of males | Not reported | Chakrabarti and others, 2019, via National Geographic |
Why do male lions kill cubs?
Males entering a new pride kill all the cubs that cannot run from them, the Smithsonian says. San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance adds that these are usually cubs under a year old, and that the male does it so he can father his own cubs. Scientists call this behaviour infanticide.
The reason is time. A lioness who is feeding cubs does not breed again for many months. If her cubs die, she is ready to mate much sooner. Male lions only hold a pride for a few years before younger rivals push them out, so a male who waits may never father any cubs at all. It sounds harsh, but it is a pattern found in many animals, not a sign that lions are cruel.
This is one reason so few cubs grow up. Up to 80% of lion cubs die within their first two years, mostly from hunger and from attacks by newly arrived males, according to the Smithsonian.
How do lionesses protect their cubs?
Lionesses fight back. In a classic study, Packer and Pusey (1983) found that mothers defend their cubs against new males or keep away from them. Females who stay in a pride after a takeover breed less well for the first few months. Their findings suggest a mother needs protection from outside males for more than two years to raise her cubs, and only large groups of males tend to hold a pride that long.
Teamwork helps too. Cubs born in a pride are twice as likely to survive as cubs raised by a lioness on her own, San Diego Zoo says. Several lionesses together can drive off a male that one mother could not.
Asiatic lions in India have another trick. A study in the Gir forest by Stotra Chakrabarti and colleagues, published in 2019 and reported by National Geographic, followed nine prides and 11 groups of males for four years. Lionesses mated with males from several groups, so no male could be sure which cubs were his. No lioness lost cubs to a group of males she had mated with. The trick does not work against complete strangers, though.
Do lions eat dead lions?
Sometimes, but it is uncommon. Safari guides and park staff have described lions feeding on lions killed in fights, and a lioness eating a cub that has died. These accounts come from sightings rather than long-term studies, so we cannot say how often it happens. What is clear is that lions usually leave a dead rival where it falls.
A lion that kills a cub may also eat part of it, but many killed cubs are left uneaten. The main point of the killing is to clear the way for the new male’s own cubs, not to get a meal. Food is not the goal, so these cases do not count as hunting.
Do lions kill each other over territory?
Yes. When a new male or group of males challenges the males of a pride, the newcomers are either driven off or push the old males out, San Diego Zoo explains. These fights can leave lions badly hurt or dead. That is why wild male lions tend to live shorter lives than lionesses.
Other lions and people are the main killers of adult lions, as our page on what eats lions explains. To understand the teeth, claws and muscle behind these fights, read how strong a lion is. And for how lions keep track of rivals before a fight begins, see how far a lion can smell.
Frequently asked questions
Do male lions ever kill their own cubs?
Male lions normally aim at cubs fathered by other males, not their own. In India's Gir forest, no lioness lost cubs to a group of males she had mated with, according to a 2019 study reported by National Geographic. Mothers seem to use this, by mating with several groups of males.
How many lion cubs survive to adulthood?
Not many. Up to 80% of lion cubs die within their first two years, mostly from hunger and from attacks by new males, according to the Smithsonian's National Zoo. Cubs raised in a pride are twice as likely to survive as those raised by a lone lioness, San Diego Zoo says.
How long do male lions stay with a pride?
It varies, but usually only a few years before a stronger group of males takes over. Packer and Pusey found that a lioness needs more than two years of protection to raise her cubs, and that mainly large groups of males hold a pride for that long.
Do lions eat other predators?
Lions kill leopards, cheetahs and hyenas when they get the chance, mostly to remove rivals for food. They often do not eat them. Lions also steal kills from hyenas and other hunters. For them, other predators are competitors, not prey.
Sources
- Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute. Lion.
- San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. Lion.
- Duke University Scholars (abstract) (1983). Adaptations of female lions to infanticide by incoming males (Packer and Pusey, American Naturalist 121: 716-728, doi:10.1086/284097).
- National Geographic (2019). How Asiatic lionesses shield their cubs from killer males (reporting Chakrabarti et al. 2019, Behavioral Ecology).
Sources checked 15 September 2026.
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