12 Sep Babies meerkats!
Two small females were born on June 22nd. They spent their first three weeks well sheltered in the galleries of their enclosure, pampered and protected by their mother but also by all members of the clan. This small mammal is one of the most social carnivores and it is particularly visible around youth care. Even if the mother takes care of her young, other females can serve as nannies and monitor the young. Some are even sometimes able to produce milk to feed them, in the temporary absence of the mother. These are often young females who have lost their young, or even not having any at all! The whole group here is very attentive to the two young people, who now follow the adults in all their activities: foraging, digging galleries, surveillance (we see then these “mini-sentinels” imitating adults) … At the slightest cry of alert the sentry, the little ones are immediately sheltered, the time that the supposed danger goes away!
In short, it is a clan of suricates in full excitement that you can observe, with these two little females who, between exploration and phases of play, agree small naps, under the look of benevolence of their elders!