“A lion walks alone in the desert.

This is a 1925 photo of possibly the last Barbary lion in the wild before its extinction. It was taken by French photographer Marcelin Flandrin while he was onboard a flight on the Casablanca-Dakar air route.

Barbary lions once roamed the vast deserts and mountains of the Barbary coast in North Africa from present day Morocco to Egypt. They were thought to have been one of the largest lion species to have ever existed and were noted for having distinctly dark manes. These were the same lions that were regularly captured by hunters for their games in the Roman colosseum. Damnatio ad bestias (Latin for “condemnation to beasts”) was a form of capital punishment practiced by the Romans in which the condemned prisoner was executed by Barbary lions or other big cats.

The population of Barbary lions continued to decline with the expansion of the Arab empire from 632 to 1258—when the Islamic Golden Age came to an end after the Siege of Baghdad by the Mongols. Survivors claimed that “the waters of the Tigris ran black with ink from the enormous quantities of books flung into the river and red from the blood of the scientists and philosophers killed.” Amidst the turmoil in the region and as empires crumbled and fell, the Barbary lions continued to survive until the arrival of European colonists in the 19th century. Big-game hunting rose in popularity during this time and effectively killed off the few that were left. Not a single Barbary lion was seen from 1901 to 1910, and by the 1920s, most scientists believed that they had become extinct.

There was a reported sighting in Morrocco in 1948 and in a heavily forested area in Algeria (near the city of Sétif) as late as 1958. The forest, however, was destroyed during the Algerian War in the same year.

Today, there are approximately 100 captive lions that possess the genes of the Barbary lions, however, none of them are pure.”

Source details and larger version.

Here are collected the best lions I’ve encountered in my research to date.

what extinct animal would you guys bring back to life if you were guaranteed that they wouldn't face extinction again and they wouldn't pose a threat to modern species

As far as I can tell the one great distinguishing feature of the Barbary lion was Much Fluff.

This is a rabbit I recently killed. He's beautiful and I feel kinda bad. Before I skin an animal I like to take in it's full anatomy and appreciate it up close. It's an invaluable resource when it comes to drawing. Sad, but definitely beautiful.

More hairless meow! <3

He got UVs and textures. I chose the color with black paw pads - I had several photo refs like this and they are lovely. But I will probably add more different colors. I also need to add some fur and whiskers ~

Made in Blender. Sofa model from Poly Haven.

One of the things I love most about your work is the lighting! Lighting is one of my favorite parts when I'm working in 3d ... when it comes together. But sometimes it's just a muddle. Do you have a particular setup or approach that you use? It seems like you use HDRIs, do you take them yourself? I love your use of rim lighting, it makes the fur look so real and beautiful!

Thank you! I mostly use HDRIs from Poly Haven. I can search for a long time for the one that suits best, render the same scene with different HDRIs, also trying different portions and adding volumetrics, etc.

I also do post processing, adding filters and color editing like in my photos. Here are my renders before (left) and after (right) editing.

Do you think Sinosauropteryx and Microraptor would have been cottage core and Goth girlfriends? The fact that scientists know almost exactly what they looked like means Microraptor is a confirmed goth, and Sinosauropteryx is a confirmed cottage-core lady.

So the question is, will you be the Microraptor to my Sinosauropteryx? 🥰

Skinned a squirrel yesterday. It was a nice experience.

Winter Goliaths ~ ❄️

These are fantasy creatures from my world that look mostly like a mix of a hyena and a bear, and are based on the creatures I once saw in a dream.

Made in Blender ~

I tried drawing a human using only my knowledge on anatomy that I learned from drawing animals and the results make for an uncomfortable sight

Big fellas always rise at dawn

Picture doesn't look good horizontal. So just turn your phone instead 😉

i love how hyenas still have the winter coat gene

Had the pleasure of harvesting turkey and poultry today and look at these absolute DINOSAUR feet.

Anyone else love religious animal symbolism? Satan as a goat? Amazing. Jesus as a lamb? Fire. God as a Lion? Spectacular. Keep em coming

I don't care how much there is to criticize about the new documentary, finally seeing a realistically animated gorgonopsid since walking with the beasts was worth it 🥹🤧

LIFE ON OUR PLANET (2023)