I'd like to see what others have done with life size African Lion mounts. Especially something artistic and unique!

Looks good Jerry, great expression.

Here is a Tanzanian lion ruining a Hyeena's day. It is the new SCI #4 world record.

Wildlife Designs Taxidermy Studio
20 Old Montana St Hwy
Montana City, MT 59634

Below is a picture of a Lion shoulder pedestal mount that Animal Artistry did. I think it looks very nice.

http://www.animalartistry.com/pb/af_sm/12_af_sm.php

VERY nice old H&H

you've seen the rest - now see the best:-

http://www.lifeform.co.za/gallery/02-lion.htm

http://www.lifeform.co.za/gallery/04-lion-buffalo.htm

http://www.lifeform.co.za/gallery/05-lion-nyala.htm

http://www.lifeform.co.za/gallery/10-Lions-vs-Zebra.htm

http://www.lifeform.co.za/gallery/14-lion.htm

I've seen a shed load of taxidermy by taxidermists from all over the world - but I've never seen any cat set up as nicely as Lifeform do them........ I visited there a while ago and they were just packing a huge mount of a lioness that had killed an impala beside a waterhole with a Lion running in from one side to take the kill away from his lady friend. It was a huge set up and quite simply exquisite. Also very cleverly put together as it could be broken up for shipping and then reassembled without any joints showing.

If any of you guys ever get to the White River area, it's well worth a visit and they're always happy to give you a tour of the facilities...... you can also drop into my place for a beer or two if I'm around!

Shakari. I could not agree more. Years back Zac Zuccaro at Life Form did a great many mounts for me, including a full size African Lion. His work is just fine. This is not a great picture but it is the one I have on my computer. That's a Xmas wreath my wife put on him a few years back. And Zac did all the others you can see.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Jerry Huffaker:

That is a great pose. So natural and relaxed.
Good on ya....

Sorry, forgot to tell you guys the username and password needed to see the link I posted above. Both the username and password are 12345

Here's the link angain;

http://www.animalartistry.com/pb/af_sm/12_af_sm.php

Its a picture of a Lion Pedestal mount that I thought looked pretty good.

On "Cats" section of the Animal Artistry site, I like numbers 4 and 14 the best.

Kino....that is a horrible job on a beautiful Lion! It dosen't get much worse!

If you want to see African lions mounted in one of the most imaginative poses I've ever seen. Dennis Harris of Artistry of Wildlife in Detroit has mounted two lionesses taking down a gemsbok with a full maned male coming in to clean up. Only the back leg of the male touches the base. The other connection is through the back of one lioness with the 3 animals suspended in air. If you're an SCI member, it's in this months catalog in the center. Trust me, you'll never see anything like that again. Breath taking.

Dennis has posted pictures of them on www.taxidermy.net/forums under "Taxidermy Industy" and click on "Air Lions".

Thank you Wolfgar for saying something about that mount. I normally don't talk bad about someone's animals or mounts, but that one was not good at all.

That's a damn nice mount Jeffery. Looks alive.

There were some impressive mounts at DSC.

But I'll probably choose my mount based upon one of these:

Would that sneak mount look realistic if his mouth was slightly open or open with a small to medium snarl? I'd like to show some teeth.

OK, I'll stick my neck out . . .

I saw those mounts at the DSC and they were very impressive. What immediately came to mind on the top mount, though, was the lion biting the neck of the roan. I know that Rocky knows his stuff but the right front leg of the lion just didn't look right. I looked at it closely and I think what I didn't like can be seen in the second photo. From his elbow to his wrist it appeared that it was curved to match the neck of the antelope. That should be a straight bone and not curved. I think if the elbow were filled out more, or raised higher above the neck, it might look OK. Maybe it was because the elbow looked too flat.

I don't know . . . it just jumped out at me that it looked wierd.

Anybody get a photo of Salisbury's running leopard? That was outstanding!

Have a great day!

JDS

I didn't see that until you mentioned it and your right. I took a photo of the running leopard and the lepoard standing by the tree. I'll post them all on here next week.

Jerry, what are your thoughts on the sneaking lion and showing some teeth?

At the risk of appearing controversial, I'll really stick my neck out and make a few comments. Starting with the bottom images of the Lion sneaking through the grass...... I think there's something wrong with the position or angle of the head - but can't put my finger on quite what's wrong. - Perhaps the nose is slightly too high or low. Also the eyes look slightly crossed - but that might just be the way the photo was taken or indeed just my monitor. I'd also agree that it would have looked better with the mouth slightly open....... also the mane looks like he's just been to the hairdressers. - Why try to set it up to look like a wild Lion and then give it that kind of a hair do. Here's what a wild Lion looks like:-



Moving onto the running Lion, firstly the same comments to the mane apply equally to this one - but also check how the mouth is closed. A running Lion needs to get a lot of air into it's lungs quickly - it can't do that with it's mouth closed.... check this picture of a real live running/charging Lion:-



I'd also comment that both Lions are wonderful representatives of the species - but if Professor Craig Packer is right in his black nose theory, the noses should be considerably less pink and more black.

All that said, these are some of the better examples of taxidermy I've seen - and I've seen a hell of a lot worse over the years.......

Of course, all the above is just my personal opinion..........

Steve, thanks for the comments. That is what I'm looking for.

Also, on the sneaking lion. How would he hold his tail if it was seconds before he was to pounce?

Scott,

Usually it would be held low and just a split second before he hit the go button, it would stiffen like a broomstick - in a turn it would be used as a counterweight (?) and it would move in the direction of the turn similar to the way a rudder on a boat.

Don't know if you can buy a (UK) hunting mag called Sporting Rifle over there - but I've just written an article for them on predicting a charge from DG etc.............

Note how stiff the tail is in my photo of the charging Lion..........

I don't know if the running is actually charging or just running . . . but I would have opened the mouth a little to add to the mount. It's not wrong in the closed position as a lion can close it's mouth while running . . . I just think the open mouth would complete the "picture".

As far as the sneaking lion, I really can't comment on the head position. I don't see a problem with it. I did look at the eye position at the show and thought it was great. The appearance of them being slightly crossed might be the photo.

Just my $ .02 - adjusted, of course, for inflation.

JDS

No taxidermy should be judged by a photograph, there are too many variables such as light, lens distortion, etc.. that being said, I would have preferred the running lion with the mouth panting, it's possible that the customer wanted it done with the mouth closed. I saw all these lions in person and I thought they were excellent.There were some things in all of them I would have done different but, You can find little mistakes in all taxidermy, I've never seen a mounted animal that looked "alive", no matter how good a mount is it's stll not the real thing.

Jerry, you haven't been to enough shows yet then. Phil Soucy's mountain lion at the NTA last year looked alive. Ken Walker of Alberta has done dozens of species that captured the mind's eye snapshot of real life. His re-creation Panda and Irish elk were well up there. Marcus Zimmerman does some exceptional work in this same vein. Mike Harris is unbelievable in his work.

Though I agree in principle with your remark of not judging taxidermy from a picture, in reality I'd have to differ. I've seen some live animals that wouldn't pass as good taxidermy, so to say that every mount is flawed makes the wrong assumption that every animal is perfect by our standards. I've seen many big awards winners and finding a REAL flaw versus the perception of a judge scoring it was always nearly impossible. Exceptionally good work is always going to show up that way. Anything less than that is going to create questions.

Here is another interesting lion from DSC:

quote:

Originally posted by SBT: I took a photo of the running leopard and the lepoard standing by the tree. I'll post them all on here next week.

I would like to see the leopard pictures!

quote:

Originally posted by Wolfgar:
Kino....that is a horrible job on a beautiful Lion! It dosen't get much worse!

I can't see where KINO posted anything???

The SCI #4 lion mount is also not right. The hind legs and the torso are out of proportion and the silhouette is incorrect, IMO.

also the lion/warthog mount is not one of my favorites. The warty looks like a seal with legs.

The best mounts I've seen so far are the pics from Life form. The proportions and body mass are very accurate.

Holy crap pigs do fly

Look at the picture of the real lion running. If I was to mount a lion for a customer in the EXACT same pose and expression he would sue me or slander me for a crap job. Just because an animal might look a certain way doesn't mean that is the way it should or shouldn't be mounted in that particular pose.

I like all the lions, except for the cat which has the Gumby front leg. I think it can be very hard to make a resting cat not look stiff when lying on a hard, flat surface. Every taxidermist puts his art into the piece. Some taxidermists just have more talent than others.

I enjoyed viewing all of the mounts, and agree with most of the comments, especially Jerry's about judging by photograph alone. It is very easy to misjudge any mount viewed in a photo. Steve's post of the live mounts are outstanding and all Taxidermists should print them out for reference IMHO. As for the "hair do" Steve mentions, this is very true. But once long haired or maned animals go through the tanning process, they lose the natural body oils that give the mount a "live look". An advanced artist (Taxidermist) should take close note of this and proceed with his job accordingly. There are several processes that will give a Lions mane a more natural look. One is to leave out the hairspray and brush On running Lions, I prefer the mouth to be ajar, slightly open with lower teeth only showing. LDK

Great, thanks for sharing.