Lion (Adult male)
1.2 m (3.937 ft)
Shoulder height
Today's big-cat benchmark, measured at the shoulder. Average adult male: 1.2 m at the shoulder.
Published
How big is that?
1.2 m is 4 times an A4 sheet and 69% of an adult man.
Lion is the 4th smallest of the 31 Prehistoric Giants objects, and the 24th smallest of the 109 objects across all three SizeItUp games.
Closest in size from the other games: Bowling pin (Ten-pin) (Classic), 38.1 cm tall and Perseverance (Mars rover) (Cosmic Scale), 3 m long.
Size comparison
To scale, smallest to largest: Lion in orange beside the Prehistoric Giants objects nearest in size, in teal.
| Object | Size | vs Lion |
|---|---|---|
| DodoThe flightless bird of Mauritius, extinct since the late 1600s. | 70 cm tall | 58% of the size |
| Saber-toothed cat (Smilodon fatalis)The Ice Age cat of the La Brea tar pits. Measured at the shoulder. | 1 m tall | 83% of the size |
| Lion (Adult male) | 1.2 m tall | – |
| Polar bear (Adult male)The largest land carnivore alive today, measured at the shoulder. | 1.52 m tall | 1.3× bigger |
| Hippopotamus (Large adult)Africa's river giant, measured at the shoulder. | 1.6 m tall | 1.3× bigger |
In other units
| Centimetres | 120 |
|---|---|
| Metres | 1.2 |
| Inches | 47.24 |
| Feet | 3.937 |
| Yards | 1.312 |
How it's measured
Shoulder height. Average adult male.
Four-legged animals are measured at the shoulder, which stays put while the head moves.
Sources
- animaldiversity.org: Animal Diversity Web: the average male height is 1.2 m.
- nationalzoo.si.edu (supporting): Smithsonian's National Zoo: 1 to 1.2 m at the shoulder.
Checked against the source on .
Could you have guessed it by eye?
Lion is one of the objects in Prehistoric Giants, a daily size comparison game: you stretch a shape to the size you think is right beside one you know.