Cooperation and individuality among the man-eating lions of Tsavo

Yeakel and colleagues applied stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis to bone collagen and hair keratin from the two 1898 Tsavo man-eating lions held at the Field Museum. By comparing isotopic signatures of human versus herbivore tissue, they estimated each lion's lifetime and final-months diet. One lion consumed substantially more human prey than the other, implying individual specialisation rather than uniform man-eating, and together they likely killed around 35 people, far fewer than legend claims. The work demonstrates how museum specimens and biogeochemistry can reconstruct historical predator behaviour, informing modern understanding of how individual big cats develop atypical prey preferences during conflict events.