Slender-Tailed Meerkat

Meerkats live in close-knit groups called mobs. A mob has up to 40 members, and each meerkat has a role to play in helping the mob survive and thrive, such as standing up as a lookout for danger or caring for the young. They live in dry, open grasslands in southern Africa, feeding mostly on insects by day and staying alert to what’s happening in and around their territory. Sentries keeping watch over the territory use different vocal calls to alert the mob to take action against different predators. Meerkats use their long claws to dig underground burrows and to find food.

Meerkat mobs are teeming with youngsters, especially during the warmer rainy months. Females give birth to 3 or 4 pups after about 10 weeks’ gestation. Newborns have closed eyes and ears and nurse from their mom for the first 2 months. Females can have several litters each year.