Meerkats are small, highly social mammals known for their cooperative behavior and distinctive upright stance in the arid landscapes of Southern Africa, particularly the Kalahari Desert. These members of the mongoose family live in large family groups called mobs, which can consist of up to 50 individuals. Their complex social structure is an adaptation for survival in a harsh environment, demanding constant vigilance and coordinated effort. The way these groups rear their young is a defining feature of their biology, offering a remarkable example of cooperative breeding.
What is a Baby Meerkat Called
The most widely accepted term for a baby meerkat is a pup. This designation is shared with the young of many other carnivorous mammals, such as dogs and seals, and is the term most frequently used by researchers and conservationists. Less common alternative names include “kit,” “cub,” or “kitten.” A typical litter size is three to four young, which are born deep within the mob’s underground burrow system.
Physical Development of Meerkat Pups
Newborn meerkat pups are completely dependent on the mob for survival. At birth, they weigh approximately 25 to 36 grams and are blind, deaf, and covered only in fine hair. They remain sequestered in the underground birthing chamber for the first few weeks of life.
The sensory organs develop rapidly. Their ears open around 10 days after birth, and their eyes open between 10 and 14 days of age. Pups remain confined to the burrow system for about three to four weeks.
Once their senses are functional, they emerge from the burrow for the first time, becoming “emergent pups” around three weeks old. They start to eat solid food but still rely heavily on milk. They are fully weaned and capable of foraging independently at approximately nine weeks of age.
How the Meerkat Mob Raises Its Young
The survival of meerkat pups is directly linked to the social system of alloparenting, where the entire mob contributes to their care. Non-breeding members, known as “helpers,” take on specialized duties to ensure the young are protected and fed. These helpers, which include both male and female subordinates, are often older siblings or other relatives of the pups.
A primary role is “babysitting,” where one or more helpers stay behind to guard the pups at the burrow entrance while the rest of the mob forages. This allows the biological mother to leave the den to find food, which is necessary for her to continue producing milk. Some subordinate females may even begin to lactate, or “wet-nurse,” the young, despite never having been pregnant themselves, providing an additional source of nourishment.
The helpers also provision the young with food, bringing them prey items directly to the burrow or during foraging excursions. They give away a significant portion of their own food, sometimes up to 40% of what they find, to feed the pups until the young can find their own meals. This cooperative feeding increases the pups’ growth and survival rates.
Training young meerkats to handle dangerous prey, such as scorpions, is a complex aspect of their care. Adults teach the pups how to hunt using a graduated teaching process. Initially, an adult presents the pup with a dead or dismembered scorpion, often with the stinger removed, to minimize risk. As the pups grow, helpers gradually introduce scorpions that are only partially disabled or fully intact, allowing the young to practice disarming the prey.
The mob also contributes to the sentry system, where one individual stands on an elevated position to scan for aerial predators like eagles. Upon spotting a threat, the sentry issues an alarm call, prompting the pups and the rest of the mob to retreat to the nearest bolt-hole for safety.