Father joins cubs, mom in lion pride at Sacramento Zoo

The entire lion pride is now on exhibit together daily at the Sacramento Zoo: three cubs, mom – and now dad.

The cubs, born Oct. 24, have been under the watchful eye of their mother. The two female cubs and one male have spent several weeks exploring their outside exhibit area where they play before napping.

Zookeepers first introduced the father lion to the cubs off-exhibit to create a solid family unit. Now the entire Sacramento Zoo pride can be seen by the public outside.

Unlike other big cats, lions live in groups. Lionesses pool their cubs into a communal group called a crèche.

Females do about 90 percent of the pride’s hunting, while the males patrol and protect the group.

This story was originally published January 16, 2015 at 8:08 AM with the headline "Father joins cubs, mom in lion pride at Sacramento Zoo."