On February 14, Meerkat mom Twig delivered three kits at the Paradise Wildlife Park in the United Kingdom.  The little Meerkats, all males, were named Mr. Darcy, Romeo, and Puck after characters in classic romantic stories.  The trio’s arrival brings the grand total of Meerkats at the park to 13.

Photo Credits:  Paradise Wildlife Park

It doesn’t take Meerkat kits very long to become busy, active members of their clan.  At about three weeks old, the kits emerged from the burrow for the first time and quickly learned to forage with the adults.  They now spend much of their day investigating their exhibit and playing with each other, according to the Park’s staff.

In the wild, Meerkats construct a complex system of underground burrows in which they sleep, bear young, and hide from predators.  They live in family groups of 20-30 individuals and often share duties parenting the young, acting as lookouts, and babysitting kits.  Meerkats spend most of the day foraging for insects, bird and reptile eggs, lizards, scorpions, spiders, and small mammals. 

Meerkats are native to southernmost Africa, where they inhabit portions of the Kalahari and Namib deserts, Angola, and South Africa.  They are not considered a threatened species. 

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