Meerkats, known scientifically as Suricata suricatta, are small, highly social carnivores belonging to the mongoose family. These mammals inhabit the arid and semi-arid regions of Southern Africa, including the vast expanses of the Kalahari Desert. Their survival in this harsh, dry environment relies on a specialized diet that provides both nutrition and essential moisture.
The Core Diet of Invertebrates and Arachnids
The bulk of the meerkat’s diet is composed of invertebrates, making them primarily insectivorous. Approximately 82% of the food consumed by wild meerkats consists of insects, with spiders and other arthropods making up most of the remainder. They consume a wide variety of these small creatures, including beetles, caterpillars, termites, and particularly insect larvae, often referred to as grubs.
Meerkats are well-known for their consumption of scorpions, which are common arachnids in their habitat. They possess a degree of adaptation to the venom of local scorpions. However, they employ a precise technique to neutralize the danger of the sting: a meerkat will expertly bite or scrape off the scorpion’s stinger before consuming the body. The process of de-stinging is a learned skill, often perfected over time through practice. When handling a particularly venomous scorpion, a meerkat might repeatedly toss the prey into the air to dislodge or weaken the venomous tail segment.
Other common arthropod prey includes centipedes and millipedes, which are also readily available underground or beneath rocks. The constant foraging for these small, dispersed items means meerkats spend a significant portion of their day digging through the sandy substrate.
Supplemental Prey and Essential Plant Resources
While invertebrates form the majority of their diet, meerkats also consume a range of supplemental prey items and plant resources. They are opportunistic hunters and will readily take small vertebrates when the chance arises, including lizards, small snakes, and rodents. Bird eggs, especially those found in ground nests, are another valuable food source. However, these larger prey items are not reliably available and are consumed far less frequently than insects.
Plant matter, particularly bulbs, roots, and tubers, is a necessary component of the meerkat diet in the desert. These underground storage organs are consumed primarily for their high moisture content, not just their caloric value. Meerkats obtain the hydration necessary for survival directly from this food source. The digging required to find these plant resources often overlaps with their search for insect grubs.
Specialized Foraging Techniques
The meerkat’s survival is closely tied to their specialized foraging techniques, which are primarily centered on constant digging. Their non-retractable claws are strong and curved, acting like efficient miniature shovels for rapidly excavating sandy soil. They use their sensitive noses to detect the faint presence of prey buried beneath the surface.
As a group, meerkats spread out while foraging, systematically scratching and digging at the ground to find food. This method allows the group to cover a wide area efficiently, maximizing the chance of finding scattered prey. An individual typically forages within a few meters of its groupmates, maintaining communication through soft calls.
A defining social behavior during foraging is the use of a sentinel, or guard. While the majority of the group is focused on digging for food, one individual will take an elevated position to scan the horizon. This sentinel’s constant vigilance provides an early warning system against predators like birds of prey and jackals. The sentinel uses specialized calls, sometimes referred to as the “watchman’s song,” to signal that all is safe, allowing others to concentrate on finding food. Furthermore, young meerkats are taught essential hunting skills, with older group members bringing them live, but sometimes disabled, prey to practice with.