File talk:Lions du Cap.JPG

Cape lions or Barbary lions?

The label in the museum says, they are Cape lions.... why was the description changed?--Altaileopard (talk) 20:40, 4 September 2012 (UTC)[reply]

It was changed because its Wikimedia Commons category said 'Panthera leo leo' and other photos also say 'Panthera leo leo' (see http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Panthera_leo_leo_01_by_Line1.JPG and http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Panthera_leo_leo_01_by_Line1.JPG), which is the scientific name of the Barbary lion. And I know the Paris museum has Barbary lions remains as my website says (I do not say it exhibits these remains or that they are stuffed specimens). But I guess too quickly, without searching the history. However, after your e-mail and seeing that the category was changed by Funkmonk from 'Panthera leo melanochaita' into Panthera leo leo' I was not that sure anymore. So I did a quick online search.

The article Barnett, R., N. Yamaguchi, B. Shapiro and V. Nijman 2007. Using ancient DNA techniques to identify the origin of unprovenanced museum specimens as illustrated by the identification of a 19th century lion from Amsterdam. Contributions to Zoology 76(2):87-94 (http://www.dur.ac.uk/greger.larson/DEADlab/Publications_files/Barnett_ContZooAmsterdam.pdf) mentions a male specimen of the Cape lion from the Paris museum. So I guess the male in your photo is indeed a Cape lion as you said.

I found also a pdf from the museum itself (http://www.mnhn.fr/museum/front/medias/dossEnseignant/14829_FICHE-GGE-niveau2.pdf) and it says the following: "Quelques spécimens prestigieux des collections historiques du Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle : cerf de Schomburgk, hippotrague bleu, lion du Cap et lion de Barbarie, couagga, diverses plantes (Silphium, Franklinia)." Translated in English: "Some prestigious specimens from the historical collections of the National Museum of Natural History: Schomburgk deer, blue antelope antelope, Cape lion and Barbary lion, quagga, various plants (Silphium, Franklinia)." So they have a specimen of both! Is it possible that you missed the label of the female specimen? Is it possible that she is a Barbary lion? Thus a male Cape lion and a female Barbary lion. Maybe that caused the confusion. Peter Maas\^talk 16:07, 22 September 2012 (UTC)[reply]