A lion is a carnivore.
An apex predator , also known as an alpha predator or apical predator , is a predator residing at the top of a food chain upon which no other creatures prey.Zoologists generally define predation as the non-parasitical or non-bacterial killing and consumption of organisms . Apex predators do not need to be hypercarnivores . The lion ( Panthera leo ) is one of the big cats in the genus Panthera and a member of the family Felidae . Lions are apex and keystone predators , although they are also expert scavengers obtaining over 50 percent of their food by scavenging as opportunity allows .