Species of the week:Meerkat

Species of the Week:
Meerkat (Suricata suricatta)

1. They are found in the Kalahari Desert, in the Namib Desert, southwest Angola and in South Africa.
2. A Meerkat social group consists of about 20 members and it is called a clan, gang or mob.
3. Meerkats hunt and forage during the daytime and sleep during the night.
4. They are mostly insectivores but will attack and eat lizards,fungi, small mammals, eggs, scorpions, centipedes and millipedes, spiders and some plants.
5. They are immune to a variety of venoms including the scorpion venom of the Kalahari desert.
6. When Meerkats forage there is always one member of the clan that has sentry duty and looks out for predators. When one is spotted, the meerkat sounds the alarm and all the other clan members go into hiding.
7. Meerkats can reproduce throughout the year but prefer warmer seasons to give birth too. Usually only the matriarch gets to breed however in larger groups for subordinate meerkats may secretly breed. These females are often chased away from the group and form their own clan.
8. One to five pups are born with the most common number being three pups.
9. Meerkats have been found to demonstrate altruistic behaviour and will often look after young that are not their own.
10.  Meerkats are considered "Least Concern " under the IUCN Red List.