Meerkats have long been the favorites of many directors. They are the heroes of popular cartoons and films. So let's see who the meerkat is.
Meerkats - angels of the sun
Where food is quite difficult to find, and much of what comes across is not only inedible, but also dangerous, different animals adapt to life in different ways. The most interesting is the meerkats who bring up and train their young in much the same way as people do.
Meerkats are mammals from the mongoose family. They weigh only about 700 grams, and the length of the body does not exceed 30 cm. And these crumbs have learned to cope with the hardships of deserts.
South Africans believe that meerkats are the angels of the sun who were sent to protect them from lunar angels (the name for werewolf in Africa) that attacks bereaved or lost cattle.
We will not judge how true the legend of werewolves is, but the fact that snakes and scorpions go to the food of meerkats, which are deadly enemies for other animals, is an established fact. Below are the meerkats whose photos were taken at the time of the cobra hunt.
And just getting their dangerous food becomes the first method of teaching kids. It is not known why nature did not endow the meerkat cubs with an inborn instinct, but adults have to teach their youth and explain to them what can be eaten and what not, since they do not orient themselves at all in food.
In the world, many animals teach their young to hunt, but meerkats do it in a slightly different way. They not only show the principle of hunting by their example, but gradually train them in the hunting process.
Initially, adult members of the flock bring the harmless beetles and lizards to the babies and release them from the cubs under the nose, pushing food to them if they are trying too hard to escape. Thus, they focus on an unfamiliar object. As they grow older, meerkats begin to bring poisonous snakes and scorpions, the poison of which is deadly even for humans, not like for such a baby. But strangely enough, he does not act on adults. And they carefully monitor the process until they are convinced that the kids can cope on their own. Only after this the cubs begin to be hunted with adults.
So what is a meerkat? Firstly, it is an excellent educator who, for the sake of the common good for the clan, is ready to transfer his knowledge and skills to the younger generation.
Meerkat family
Meerkats, like gophers, live in large clans, whose head is the dominant female. The animal will never be able to live alone, and not only because it will not be able to get its own food, it’s just going crazy, because it, like the person, needs communication, he loves to “talk”, he needs to protect and protect someone that, and also to feel that someone needs him.
Every morning, after waking up, a family of meerkats exchange mutual caresses, greet each other, congratulate each other on a new day, take sunbathing together and make a morning toilet.
Each member of the clan is ready to protect his family to the last drop of blood. They are often compared with samurai for courage and complete fearlessness. With a clan they are able to drive away even an enemy far exceeding their size, for example, a steppe wolf.
Meerkats also collect food collectively. Moreover, while the group is hunting, specially exposed sentries monitor the potential danger, and in case of a threat, they alert other family members with sound signals. By the way, meerkats are fluent in speech and can make a lot of sounds, depending on the situation.
So who is the meerkat? Secondly, these are social animals that live by their own rules and strictly adhere to them.
Traffic rules for meerkats
As mentioned above, the animal is a meerkat social, and, as in any society, they have their own rules, even traffic.
When the family moves, the dominant female is at the head, but only until there is some danger ahead. If this happens, then the least significant individual for the clan is advanced.
This happens because the survival of the whole family depends on the alpha female, so they prefer to risk those members of the family whose loss will not lead to the collapse of the clan as a whole.
Raising young animals
In the meerkat family, “nannies,” i.e. all babies are supervised by two to three adults, while the rest of the family is hunting. After the young growth is a little older, they are transferred to the “teachers” - meerkats, who will teach them hunting and other necessary skills.
It is interesting that only the dominant female brings offspring in the clan, exceptions can be made if the family is small and there is a clear lack of young animals. In all other cases, the female who dared to bring the cub can be expelled from the clan or kill her babies. Moreover, the females conflict precisely at the “moment of killing”, between them tough fights can occur. But as soon as the alpha female is relieved from the burden, she can safely leave her cubs with the one whose offspring she recently killed or calmly nurse the children of the rival. This is only observed in meerkat clans.
Lifestyle
Where do the meerkats live? As mentioned above, their habitats are deserts in southern Africa, a place that would seem to be completely forgotten, in which it is impossible to survive. However, these crumbs have adapted to such conditions and perfectly dig their holes in the soft sand. In one minute, a meerkat is able to dig sand equal to its own weight. They build entire cities with underground tunnel systems and multiple entrances. The area of such a city can sometimes reach one square kilometer. Also, they do not disdain and alien dwellings or natural crevices. If there is no more food left near the dwelling, the animals change the terrain and migrate to another area. Such “transfers” occur every three to four months.
How many meerkats live?
In the natural habitat, where the life of meerkats is constantly associated with all kinds of dangers, the age of these animals is short-lived - only 3, maximum 5 years. Their main enemies are both birds of prey and animals, and large snakes that can hunt them even in burrows. That is why they pay special attention to replenishment of the offspring, the female gives birth to cubs almost continuously, every 80 days she brings 3-5 cubs.
But in captivity, meerkats are able to live for more than 10 years. By the way, these crumbs have long and firmly won the hearts of people and get along well with them side by side. Recently, they can increasingly be observed not only in zoos, but also as tame animals. Below are meerkats whose photos were taken at home.
Interesting facts about meerkats
- Females are able to feed their cubs, standing on their hind legs and holding the baby in the front.
- Meerkats are able to remember thousands of entrances to their holes, and in case of danger they can accurately find any of them.
- Young people of meerkats are very afraid of birds of prey, they include airplanes to them.
- Meerkats are able to get water from the roots of plants and fruits.
- Adult meerkats have developed immunity against the poison of snakes and scorpions.
Afterword
So who is the meerkat? This is a very charismatic and affectionate animal, which can be a ruthless killer and a brave defender. This is a wonderful educator and caring nanny. This is a predator who loves to enjoy a delicious fruit or spine. This is a wild animal that is easily accustomed to live at home. The meerkat is able to be friends, love, take care of the neighbor, and the person has something to learn from him.