The Lion (Panthera leo) is officially assessed globally as Vulnerable (VU) under the IUCN Red List criterion A2c, reflecting an estimated 34% decline in the species’ range over the past three generations (approximately 21 years), leading to the suspicion of a similar population reduction. This range decline is significant, as the extant lion range in 2025 is estimated to be only 6% of its historical extent. This suspected decline is primarily driven by mounting and intensifying threats, chief among them being continued habitat loss and conversion, human–lion conflict resulting in the indiscriminate killing of lions to protect livestock, and prey base depletion linked largely to poaching and the bushmeat trade. Additionally, the global population is considered highly fragmented, and the trade in bones and other body parts for traditional medicine is an emerging threat.

While the species holds a global Vulnerable status, specific regional risks mean the two recognized subspecies are differentiated in conservation terms: the Northern lion (Panthera leo leo) is classified as Endangered, while the Southern lion (Panthera leo melanochaita) is classified as Vulnerable.

The current taxonomic delineation, adopted by the IUCN SSC Cat Specialist Group and supported by recent genetic studies, recognizes two lion subspecies: Panthera leo leo and Panthera leo melanochaita. Previously, the delineation was based on the African Lion (P. l. leo) and the Asiatic Lion (P. l. persica); however, genetic evidence now indicates that lions in Western and Central Africa are more closely related to the lions found in India than to those in Southern and East Africa. This evolutionary split is believed to be the result of populations being isolated in local refugia during the later Pleistocene climatic cycles, leading to the divergence observed today. The Northern lion, Panthera leo leo, is delineated as encompassing Central Africa, West Africa, and Asia, specifically including populations in India’s isolated Greater Gir Landscape.

The Southern lion, Panthera leo melanochaita, is geographically delineated across Southern and East Africa. Notably, recent genetic studies identify Ethiopia as a suture zone for lion populations, indicating a natural area of significant genetic overlap between P. l. leo and P. l. melanochaita; this zone also includes populations in Dinder National Park (Sudan), Boma and Badingilo National Parks and Kidepo Game Reserve (South Sudan), and Kidepo Valley National Park (Uganda).

Northern lion (Panthera leo leo)

Southern Lion, Panthera leo melanochaita

The Northern lion (Panthera leo leo) is currently assessed on the IUCN Red List as Endangered (EN), based on criterion A2c. This designation stems from the severe range contraction observed over three generations (approximately 21 years, from 2004 to 2025), which is used to suspect a proportional population reduction. Specifically, the extant range of the Northern lion, excluding the natural suture zone, is estimated to have declined by 66%, meeting the threshold for suspected population reduction of . The subspecies’ African populations are considered highly fragmented, especially in West and Central Africa, and the current population trend is decreasing. Major, intensifying threats driving this decline include habitat loss and conversion, human-lion conflict, prey base depletion linked to poaching, and targeted poaching for body parts (such as bones and skins) for use in traditional medicine. Furthermore, civil unrest and armed conflict in regions like West and Central Africa severely hinder conservation efforts, leading to a reduction in effective protected area management and local extinctions. Geographically, the subspecies is found across eleven African range states and in a single isolated subpopulation in India’s Gujarat state, which holds the largest population of adult and subadult Northern lions.

The Southern Lion, Panthera leo melanochaita, is assessed on the IUCN Red List as Vulnerable (VU), based on criterion A2c. This assessment, which is the first subspecies-specific assessment for the Southern Lion, is guided by the best available data and methods, despite acknowledging significant uncertainty and a lack of data across parts of its range. The Vulnerable classification is based on a suspected population size reduction of over three generations (approximately 21 years, from 2004 to 2025), which is inferred from a significant decline in the subspecies’ geographic range. Excluding the natural suture zone (a region of genetic overlap with P. l. leo), the total range of P. l. melanochaita has decreased by 33% over the past three generations, contracting from approximately 1,802,849 km² in 2004 to 1,206,538 km² in 2025. The current population trend is decreasing, and the subspecies’ range is considered highly fragmented. The Southern Lion, which is extant in 13 African range states across East, Central, and Southern Africa, faces multiple, intensifying threats. The most important drivers of decline include habitat loss (through degradation and transformation), human–lion conflict (resulting in indiscriminate killing), and prey base depletion (linked to poaching and the bushmeat trade). Additionally, targeted poaching for body parts (for traditional medicine and cultural use in Africa and Asia) is an emerging significant threat, notably contributing to declines in Mozambique. Despite these pressures leading to local extinctions in several subpopulations, considerable conservation efforts, including reintroductions and improved management, have led to stable or recovering populations in specific areas like Akagera (Rwanda) and the Zambezi Delta (Mozambique).