I don't remember the part of The Lion King when Simba was kicked out of the house. But that seems to be what's soon to happen to the National Zoo's three year-and-a-half-old male lion cubs, who have started exhibiting some behavior that's a little too, well, frisky for the family home. more ›

Seven young lions at the National Zoo celebrated their first birthdays today the only way they knew how -- by chewing through a 50-pound birthday cake made of ice, two cow femurs, five pounds of shaved beef, and a half-gallon of cow blood. more ›

A newly-single mother is forced out of her home, as a rival family brutally beats her, and murders her husband. Displaced, she flees to unfamiliar territory, homeless and barely able to watch over her three young children. Her efforts to put food on the table for her family are blocked at every turn by the hulking, scarfaced leader of a band of thugs who like to hang out near the area where she's tried to stake out a hideaway. Meanwhile, that rival family, led by a half-blind silver-eyed matriarch, continues to stalk her and her children, intent on wiping them out entirely. The mother must somehow run all of these gauntlets and either learn to survive on her own or manage to get accepted into that rival family if she has any hope of raising her children.

That may sound like the pitch for a pretty intense crime thriller, or an intimate gangster piece about warring mob families. Believe it or not, it's actually the basic outline of the conservation-minded nature documentary, The Last Lions. more ›

It's been a long, hard day of political analysis, fallout and bickering. As a result, I'm pretty sure that nearly everyone in D.C. would be incredibly well-served by watching this video right now and repeating, as necessary. more ›

We can't get enough of all the new lion cubs at the National Zoo. As you know, lioness Shera had four adorable cubs in August, followed by Nababiep's three babies last month. Nababiep's African lion cubs took their first visit to the vet's office this morning, so enjoy the cute overload above. The Zoo reports on the checkup:

"We're happy to see that the cubs are growing and that each appears to be in good health," said Jessica Siegal-Willott, supervisory veterinarian at the Zoo. "Naba has done a great job nursing them and we'll continue to monitor their development." more ›

Uh, guys: there's more lion cubs at the National Zoo. The Zoo added three more cubs -- seen above in all of their CCTV glory -- to its already impressive haul of four. (Come on, you know you can't resist clicking through that gallery again.) Mama Nababiep -- whose first cub born at the zoo unfortunately died in May -- went into labor early this morning and gave birth to the three new additions between 8 and 10:30. Happy days, people. Fingers crossed that all seven make it through. more ›

We've got ourselves some new lion cubs! The National Zoo reports that at some point last night between 10:30 p.m. and 2:30 a.m., proud parents Shera and Luke welcomed four lion cubs to their pride. Oh, and get this: "Because it is not uncommon for intervals between births to be several hours long, we will continue to monitor Shera for additional cubs." The Zoo's other lioness, Nababiep, also bred with Luke earlier this summer, and is expected to deliver at some point in September. All this happy news is much appreciated, considering that the Zoo's last lion cub died in May after a freak accident in which a straw awn became lodged in its lung. more ›

Awful news for baby animal lovers. Officials at the Smithsonian's National Zoo confirm that the lion cub born Tuesday has died. more ›

For the first time in more than 20 years, a lion pride has successfully reproduced at the Smithsonian's National Zoo. Zoo officials say a cub was born to 6-year-old lion Nababiep early this morning. more ›

Two of the National Zoo's lions, 4-year-old male Luke and 6-year-old female Naba, recently successfully mated, zoo officials said Tuesday, though the Zoo will not be able to determine whether Naba is pregnant until the beginning of April. more ›

One of the National Zoo's female lions, Lusaka, died Thursday evening, zoo officials said Friday. In a statement, the Zoo described Lusaka as "elderly," and noted that her health had been in decline for several months while she recovered from having a large, cancerous tumor removed from her back. more ›

Many of you have likely already seen this YouTube video shot by Ephraim and Christy Smethers (and fair warning, it's graphic in the same way that many nature shows are) of a deer being attacked by a lion at the National Zoo yesterday. The deer, which had presumably wandered in to the Zoo from neighboring Rock Creek Park, managed to run inside the lion habitat, and the lions, being lions, went after the young animal like it was a tasty snack. more ›

The Detroit Lions have lost 19 straight games. Rookie quarterback Matthew Stafford, the first overall pick in last year's NFL draft, is on pace to throw 40 interceptions this season. They are the worst overall defense in the league after two games, allowing an average of 36 points per contest and nearly 400 yards. Yet, I believe they will very nearly end these dismal streaks before succumbing to a last second field goal: Washington Redskins 23, Detroit Lions 21. more ›

Written by DCist contributor Rob Birgfeld more ›