Habitat: The lion inhabits grasslands, savannahs and shrublands.

Current range:1,566,675 km²

Range decline since 2004: 34%

Historical range remaining: 6%

Lion Range States: Lions are extant in 18 African Range States and possibly extant in four 

Lions have experienced the most significant reduction in their geographical range, with approximately 85% of their historical range lost since AD 1500. Once found outside sub-Saharan Africa, lions roamed from North Africa across Southwest Asia, where they vanished from most countries in the last 150 years. They also inhabited parts of Europe, where they became extinct nearly 2,000 years ago, and extended into India. Today, the sole surviving fragment of this formerly widespread northern population resides in a single, isolated subpopulation within the 1,400 km² Gir Forest National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary, along with the surrounding landscape in India. Lions are now extinct in North Africa, with possible survival in the High Atlas Mountains until the 1940s.