If the quarry cannot be caught in 50-100 meters it usually tires and gives up. Small prey may be dispatched by a swipe of the paw. Large animals are seized by the throat and strangles or it suffocates them by clamping its jaws over the mouth and nostrils. Two or more lions may hunt a single prey in concert. An entire pride may fan out and close in on the prey from all sides.
Most hunts fail.
Lions eat any thing it can catch and kill, but it depends mostly on animals weighing 50-300 kg. Important prey are wildebeest, impala, other antelope, giraffe, buffalo, wild hogs and zebra. Carrion is readily taken. Up to 40 kg of meat can be consumed by an adult male at one meal. After making a kill, a lion may rest in the vicinity of the carcass for several days.