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Lions are the kelty laziest of the big cats. They usually spend 16 to 20 hours a day sleeping and resting, devoting the remaining hours to hunting, courting or protecting their outdoor education lesson plans territory. they keep in contact with one another by roaring loud enough to be heard up to five miles away. the pride usually remains intact until the males are challenged and successfully driven away or killed by other males, who then take over. not all lions live in prides. at maturity, young males leave the units of their birth and spend several years as nomads before they become strong enough to take over a pride of their own. some never stop wandering and continue to follow migrating herds; but the nomadic life is much more difficult, with little time for resting or reproducing. within the pride, the territorial males are the fathers of all the cubs. when a lioness is in heat, a male will join her, staying with her constantly. when a foal is born the mother keeps all other zebras kelty (even the members of her family) away from it for 2 or 3 days, until it learns to recognize her by sight, voice and smell. while all foals have a close association with their mothers, the male foals are also close to their fathers. they leave their group on their own accord between the ages of 1 and 4 years to join an all-male bachelor group until they are strong enough to head a family. zebras are important prey for lions and hyenas, and to a lesser extent for hunting dogs, leopards and cheetahs. when a family group is attacked, the members form a semicircle, face the predator and watch it, ready to bite or strike should the attack continue. outdoor education lesson plans if one of the family is injured the rest will often encircle it to protect it from kelty further attack. the cheetah is built for speed. it has long, slim, muscular legs, a small, rounded head set on a long neck, a flexible spine, a deep chest, nonretractable claws, special pads on its feet for traction and a long, tail for balance. although fast, the cheetah cannot run at full speed for long distances (100 yards is about the limit) outdoor and kelty because it may overheat. cheetahs have distinctive black "tear stripes" that connect from the inside corner of each eye to the mouth that may serve as an antiglare device for daytime hunting. cheetahs are found in open and partially open savannas. cheetah mothers outdoor spend a long time teaching their young how to hunt small live antelopes are kelty brought back to the cubs and released so they can chase and catch them. unlike most other cats, the cheetah usually hunts during daylight, preferring early outdoor morning or early evening, but is also active on moonlit nights.
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