Mara the Lioness are quite convinced that we did the right thing in opposing her release and that for many years to come in Whipsnade Park she will be well-fed, contented and ... safe."" (Irene Grindlay, 1966) It is not known how long Mara resided at Whipsnade Park. The life span of a lion in the wild is approximately 12 years, while those in captivity have been known to live for more than 20. If Mara was fortunate she would have died in the mid to late seventies. Mara the Lioness Mara the Lioness is an animal actor who appeared as Elsa in
Daughter of the Lioness of the Lioness Characters." There is some doubt in the wider community as to the proper title for this series. Although by most online sources it is called the "Daughter of the Lioness" series, there have been several published editions of the books in which this phrase does not appear whatsoever, leading to some uncertainty over whether this can be considered the correct series title. For example, the original Scholastic Australia paperback editions (the first version to be released) not only do not contain the phrase "Daughter of the Lioness" in any place, but they do not identify any title