Zookeeper Throws Bored Lion Soccer Ball — Big Cat's Reaction Catches Her Entirely Off Guard

Oct 21, 2021 by apost team

Let’s face it. Some cats have a reputation for being finicky and aloof, but inside every cat is a kitten who can’t wait to play with its favorite toy. At the Johannesburg Zoo, one of the biggest cats of them all, a beautiful male lion named Triton, has an all-time favorite toy — a soccer ball. The ball-playing lion attracted widespread media attention back in 2010, leading up to FIFA's World Cup in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Every time his zoo-keeper, Agnes Maluleke, throws the soccer ball into his enclosure, he transforms into a nimble and playful kitten that is sure to make an animal lover’s day. You can’t help but smile at the mischievous look in his eye as he chases the ball all over the enclosure, batting at it and biting it playfully. He even knocks the ball into the water and plops right in after it with an impressive splash.

Contrary to the behavior he is displaying, Triton was actually a fully grown 11-year-old lion at the time. His keeper says in the video below that although he looks like a normal lion, he was actually born with a color mutation and is called a “white lion” (not to be confused with an albino lion, which is a different mutation). The first of these was only just discovered in 1938. Despite their lighter coat, these lions seem to be just as skilled when it comes to hunting and surviving in the wild. In fact, they have even been successfully reintegrated into the wild.

Playing is an important part of their development and teaches them how to stalk, hunt and fight when necessary. It’s mesmerizing to watch such a powerful beast play so innocently with a soccer ball. While Triton is much bigger than your typical house cat, it’s hard not to be reminded of a kitten playing with a ball of yarn. The behavior is quite similar. This shouldn’t come as a surprise to scientists, given that all cats — from Triton to Garfield — belong to the same family of animals: the Felidae family. 

The Felidae or cat family includes 37 species, all of which researchers trace back to a panther-like animal that lived in Southeast Asia nearly 11 million years ago, according to Stephen O’Brien and Warren Johnson’s piece “The Evolution of Cats" in Scientific America. Put differently, the “Adam and Eve of today’s 37 species” of cat were likely among this group of Southeast Asian Pseudaelurus panthers millions of years ago. As time went on, different lineages began to branch off from their ancestors, leading to eight separate offshoots from the domestic cat to the panthera lineage, which includes lions (like Triton), tigers, jaguars, leopards and snow leopards. Of course, these lineages didn’t all stay in Southeast Asia. Rather, these different groups of cats began to migrate, which was made possible by low sea levels and land bridges between continents.

The first wave of migration around 9 million years ago was likely from Asia to Africa, followed by cats moving from Asia to North America. 

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Much later, but still during this same period of migration, researchers speculate that the precursors to the ocelot lineage moved from North America to South America. The second wave of migration — between 1 million and 4 million years ago — is much more complicated, especially since cats were already spread out across the globe. In short, lower sea levels again allowed movement between the continents.

“Cats migrate because their hardwired behavior demands dispersal every generation,” O’Brien and Johnson explain. “Once they reach adolescence, young males, and occasionally females, are forced to vacate their natal area. So, over time, growing cat populations require greater and greater territory for expansion. This behavior, together with the pressure to follow migrating prey species, probably explains why cats have been motivated to travel far and wide. They are also extremely skillful predators and quickly explore new regions as opportunities arise, so it is not surprising that they can move into unexploited areas successfully.”

And now, thanks to a variety of adventurous cats millions of years ago, we have a whole slew of cat species — all with the same common ancestors. In the case of South Africa, the country is host to African lions like Triton in protected regions like Kruger National Park and private game reserves, according to Wildlife South Africa. They also occur naturally in the country’s north and east, although hunting and poaching have severely diminished South Africa’s lion population. In fact, the majority of lions in the country are bred in captivity — many in inadequate facilities.

“Today only about 3,000 lions truly remain in the wild in South Africa,” attorney Amy Wilson explains in her essay for The Revelator. The majority of the country’s Panthera leo populations are confined in more than 300 captive-breeding facilities that house an estimated 9,000 to 12,000 animals … This intensive confinement, breeding and use are permitted because, as with most countries and other jurisdictions, South African law classifies animals as mere property.”

Luckily, institutions like the Johannesburg Zoo have made an effort to breed endangered and vulnerable lions in better conditions to maintain their genetic diversity. In fact, the Johannesburg Zoo was the first zoo in the world to breed white lions like Triton in order to ensure “that this unique strain remains genetically diverse.”

The Global White Lion Protection Trust also works to protect the animals, breeding them captively in a 4,400-acre protected area.

“Our mission is to ensure the flourishing of the White Lions and their natural ecosystem within UNESCO’s Kruger-to-Canyons Biosphere, and as a Global Heritage of great cultural and conservation importance,” the White Lion Protection Trust explains on their website.

“Through our sensitive scientific reintroduction programmes and inspired cultural initiatives, we are restoring the White Lions to their rightful place, alive and flourishing within the Heartlands of their Sacred Natural Site and within the hearts of humanity.”

While there haven’t been any updates on Triton or his health since his viral video, it’s likely that the playful lion has since passed on since the average lifespan is around 15 years. With that said, Triton’s memory is sure to live on in this memorable video, which has touched millions of animal lovers across the globe.

Does Triton remind you of your own cat? Let us know! And be sure to pass this article on to friends, family members and animal lovers to keep Triton's memory alive.