The meerkat is a small carnivorous mammal found in the warm habitats of Africa. It belongs to the family of mongoose. Meerkats are thought to dig burrows with many entrances. While they live in hot deserts they do avoid extreme heat by staying in their burrows.
Meerkat Facts for Kids
The meerkat is a small animal which lives in the Kalahari Desert (Botswana), South Africa, and Namibia.- The adult meerkat weighs around 1.1 to 5.5 lb. It has a body length of 35 to 50 cm.
- Meerkats use their tail to maintain balance while standing.
- They sharp claws which they mostly use for digging burrows.
- Meerkats are carnivores. They mainly feed on snakes, spiders, millipedes, lizards, eggs, centipedes, insects, and other small mammals.
- The average lifespan of a meerkat is 6 to 7 years in the wild while in captivity they can live as long as 12 to 14 years.
- The potential predators of meerkats are tawny eagle, jackal, and martial eagle.
- Meerkats become active all day long. They will come back to the burrows at night.
- They are thought to utter sounds like bark, chirrup, growl, and trill.
Learn about the diet of chipmunks!
