Reading the Signals: teacher key

Lions, grade 9 edition, written for 9th grade. Lions send messages with manes, roars and scent, and they can tell each other apart. Read what the signals say and who sends them.

Read the book. Print this page for the key.

Questions and answers

1. What is a lion's mane thought to signal?
   • How healthy and strong a male is (answer)
   • How old a female is
   • How far a roar travels
2. A male lion cub is 8 months old. Is he likely to be roaring yet?
   • Yes, all cubs roar at birth
   • Probably not yet (answer)
   • Only females roar
3. What did a 2025 census count in Gujarat, India?
   • 22,000 lions
   • 40 prides
   • 891 Asiatic lions (answer)
4. What does census mean in this sentence: a census in 2025 counted 891 Asiatic lions?
   • A count (answer)
   • A hunt
   • A roar
5. How long has the Serengeti study gone on without a break, from when?
   • Since 1925
   • Since 1966 (answer)
   • Since 2025

Words

• mane: shaggy neck fur
• coalitions: teams of males
• territory: a pride's land
• census: a count
• scavenge: eat others' kills