Meerkats!

Native to the Kalahari Desert of South Africa and Botswana, the Meerkat is a small mammal belonging to the same family as mongooses. Weighing approximately 1.5 lbs (3.3 kg), and standing only 10-14 inches (25-35 cm), meerkats are best known for their cute young, and for their group behavior (the groups are known as mobs, gangs, or clans). Within a meerkat mob, selfless behavior is displayed as one or more of the mob members will take defensive positions so that the others can play or forage without worry. In order to strengthen their social bonds, meerkats engage in acts of play, such as wrestling and foot races; they will also groom each other. Meerkats are also known for their large number of communication calls (at least ten), their tremendous digging abilities, and their wonderful eye site. Meerkats are usually born after eleven months of gestation in litters of three pups; at this time, they’re covered in hair and their eyes and ears are closed. There eyes open at between 10 and 14 days after bring born, and their ears about a day later. Baby meerkats finally come above ground at around 21 days, where they stay with a babysitter until about a week later. At this point, the baby meerkat enters the world as a member of the mob. Meerkats are such a fascinating species, that they have their own show, Meerkat Manor!