It would hardly be a gallery of big cat photos without a majestic lion.

Lions, I think, represent one of the most interesting of the big cat species, as they are the only living today that work in cooperative groups. By what we understand of the long past, only the greatest of all cats - Smiledon - were this way. Of course, cheetah bachelors also hunt and play together.

This is Mufasa, as he came to the compound at about the time "The Lion King" movie was released, so it's a perfect name, I think. (The name and movie title are, of course, copyright Disney Corporation).

I've always liked this picture of Moof. He's a very good-natured lion, and I think this picture captures that beautifully. In this case, I have to laugh as I look at the expression. It's like something has totally taken him by surprise. Kinda that: "Huh? What?" expression, including the jaw-drop to add all the more to it.

We always joke during tours that we wash and blow-dry his mane every day. He has a very luxurious mane, and truth be told, he takes care of it all by himself.

So this is Mufasa, the proud lion Emperor, who rules with both grace and compassion, and occasionally, humor.

This picture was taken 21-May-03. The image was taken with a Canon EOS 10D and the EF 28-200mm f/3.5-5.6 USM lens. The original was taken at full frame of 3072x2048x24b, ISO eqv 400, 1/750 shutter, f/4.5. This image was rotated and then cropped slightly and shrunken down for space conservation.

Disclaimer: I hate to have to put this on here, but the pic is copyright me. Please do not distribute, copy, alter, etc, without my permission. Having said all that, feel free to download and use it for your own inspiration.