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Kanji for Lion
The kanji most commonly used for "Lion" are 獅、獣.
獅
Kanji that mean Lion
獅 does not stand alone. The word is 獅子 (shishi), and the character is effectively never written by itself in modern Japanese — a lone 獅 reads as half of something.
獅子 is also not quite the lion in a zoo. For the live animal Japanese uses the loanword ライオン. 獅子 belongs to the stylized, half-mythical creature that reached Japan from the continent, and it is the lion of 獅子舞, the lion dance performed at New Year, and of the paired guardian figures at shrine gates. It is the lion of the constellation too: 獅子座 is Leo.
So the register matters. Writing 獅子 evokes a temple carving or a festival mask rather than an animal on the savanna. If you want the beast itself and want to be understood immediately, most Japanese would write ライオン.
Before you use Lion kanji
Write 獅子, not 獅 — the single character is not a word and will look truncated. And note that 獅子 reads as the stylized ceremonial lion of festivals and shrine gates rather than the African animal; for that, Japanese uses the katakana ライオン.