A meerkat is a mongoose relative from dry parts of southern Africa. It uses burrows and lives in groups.
It mainly eats insects. One group member stands watch for danger, with individuals taking turns during the day.
Meerkats take turns watching while companions forage. Cooperation also extends to pups, which follow the group and beg for food. Research on wild groups documented adults changing how they supplied prey as pups grew, including removing scorpion stings before handing prey over.
In a study of wild groups in arid southern Africa, meerkat pups began following foraging groups at about 30 days old and received prey from group members in response to begging calls. As pups grew, helpers gave them intact live prey more often. Scorpions were commonly supplied after their stings had been removed, and helpers usually remained nearby to monitor pups handling the prey.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.
Meerkats use burrows in the dry, open habitats of southern Africa. Above-ground feeding areas and underground resting sites together support their group life.