Based on the classification of organisms, a lion would share characteristics most similar to an animal in the same

The answer to the question is genus. The classification of organisms goes as follows, Domain, Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species. The more one goes down the list when comparing two different species, the more similar those organisms are to one another. An animal sharing the same species as a lion would be a lion. So, the next level up is the Genus, which is this case is Panthera.