Cave Lion
Panthera leo spelaea
🦁
Chordata
Mammalia
Carnivora
Feloidea
Felidae
Panthera
Panthera leo spelaea
The Lion of the Ice Age — Panthera leo spelaea, commonly known as the Eurasian Cave Lion, was one of the largest and most formidable big cats ever to exist. This Ice Age predator ruled the mammoth steppe, preying on reindeer, horses, and bison while sharing the landscape with early humans and Neanderthals.
Description
Eurasian Cave Lion (Panthera leo spelaea) — The Cave Lion was a subspecies of lion that lived across Europe, northern Asia, and Beringia during the Pleistocene Epoch (~370,000 to 10,000 years ago). Closely related to the modern African lion (Panthera leo), it was larger, more robust, and adapted to cold, open environments. Males likely lacked a full mane, or had a shorter one, based on prehistoric cave art and mummified remains found in Siberian permafrost.
Cave Lions hunted large herbivores such as reindeer, bison, and even young mammoths. They also appear frequently in Paleolithic art, such as the wall paintings of France’s Chauvet Cave, where they are shown in dynamic group hunts — evidence of both their ecological dominance and symbolic importance to early humans.
Quick Facts
Max Mass
Shoulder Height
Standing Height
Length
Diet
Trophic Level
380
1.2
1.8
2.5
kg
m
m
m
Hypercarnivore
Obligate Proteivore
Hunt History
There is evidence that both Neanderthals and early Homo sapiens hunted or competed with Cave Lions. Lion bones from European archaeological sites show cut marks, suggesting skinning for pelts — possibly for clothing or ritual use. Cave art further reveals a spiritual or mythic dimension to their relationship with humans, as in the case of the Lion Man figurine from Hohlenstein-Stadel, depicting a human-lion hybrid form.
Earliest Archaeological Evidence of Human Interaction:
Chauvet Cave, France (~32,000 years ago): Detailed depictions of lion groups hunting, suggesting close observation and symbolic significance.
Hohle Fels & Hohlenstein-Stadel, Germany (~40,000 years ago): Mammoth-ivory figurines combining human and lion traits.
Predmostí, Czech Republic (~26,000 years ago): Lion bones found with tool marks, indicating pelt removal.
Time & Range
Extinction Status
Globally Extinct
Extinction Date
Temporal Range
Region
14000
BP
Late Pleistocene
Europe
Wiki Link
Fat Analysis
Fatness Profile:
Low
Fat %
3
Est. Renderable Fat
11.4
kg
Targeted Organs
Marrow, brain (low overall fat)
Adipose Depots
Minimal subcutaneous; marrow/brain
Preferred Cuts
Marrow
Hunt Difficulty (x/5)
4