India's lions are particularly vulnerable because they have a limited gene pool. The reason for this is interesting. It's because all of them are descended from a few dozen lions that were saved by a prince who took a particular interest in them. He was very wealthy, and he managed to protect them. Otherwise they'd probably have died out completely. When you see the Asiatic lion in India, what you sense is enormous vitality. The very impressive beasts and you would never guess that they have this vulnerability when you look at them. The Asiatic lions don't have the Gir Sanctuary to themselves, I should add. They actually share it with about two thousand farmers. A significant proportion of the lions' diet is made up of the livestock of these farmers, goats, chickens and so on, as much as a third, in fact. And they've even been known to attack humans, especially in times of drought.