Are Meerkats Endangered? What We Can Do To Help Them Right Now

The meerkat is a small weasel-like animal of the mongoose family that lives in the ecosystem of southern Africa.

A meerkat is a small animal of the mongoose family. The scientific name of the meerkat is Suricata suricatta.

Meerkats are commonly found in the arid regions of Africa. They have a wide distribution in portions of southern Africa and are frequently encountered in the countries like South Africa, Zimbabwe, Botswana.

Meerkats mainly burrow in areas where the grounds are firm to hard soils. They also inhabit open habitats like savanna, rocky areas, and open plains.

The meerkat is an animal of the desert ecosystem, and they are commonly found in arid open habitats and woody vegetation of southern Africa. They play a significant part in maintaining harmony in desert ecology.

Meerkats are social animals; they live in a social group consisting of up to 30 members. Groups of meerkats are referred to as mobs. Each group has a dominant male and a dominant female.

A unique sex bias is noticed in meerkats; females are more biased towards young females than young males. They feed the female offspring and take care of them more than the male offspring. However, male meerkats do not notice such bias; while raising the young pups, they treat both genders equally.

The mother forages around searching for food to provide milk to its litter while the father guards the offspring. Meerkat pups are taught to hunt either by parent meerkats or nonbreeding helpers who actively raise young meerkats. They live up to around 14 years of age.

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Role In The Ecosystem

Meerkats form a significant link in the food web of Southern African animals. These small mammals act as food for many larger predators such as prey birds, snakes, and hawks while they themselves prey on small lizards, insects, rodents, and even poisonous scorpions of the desert. This helps in maintaining the prey population of the meerkat species in turn.

This mongoose species is an essential inhabitant of the Kalahari desert, and they also prey on a large number of animals of the desert. They are diurnal, foraging throughout the day while retreating to their burrows at night.

However, like all animals, meerkat groups have both negative and positive roles in the ecosystem. These small mongooses slow down the spreading of harmful agricultural pests in the wild. The meerkat also adapts well in captive environments, and they are popular animals in zoos.

They are good predators, and sometimes meerkats are domesticated to kill invasive rodents in the rouse. The species feed on small reptiles like lizards, spiders, insects and their eggs, and even poisonous scorpions in the wild.

The meerkat also acts as food for some animals, and they have some common predators like jackals, large birds, snakes, and eagles. There are also some negative impacts of the presence of meerkat family groups.

They are well-known carriers of the rabies virus. However, since they remain isolated from human habitations, there are very few chances of them spreading rabies among humans.

The species also carry tick-borne viruses. In some ecosystems, meerkats are considered to be pests. Their habit of digging burrows anywhere has yielded them the title pest.

Threats Facing Meerkats

Meerkats do not face any significant threats. Therefore, the meerkat species has a stable population at present and is not endangered or extinct.

Tuberculosis is a disease that is believed to be common in this mongoose family. This belief has led to the direct persecution of meerkat groups from farming areas at first sight.

This species of mongoose is small in size, and their adaptability in a captive environment has made them a favorite choice for pet trades; this has reduced the number from the wild.

The main threat of meerkats is the threat of predators. The meerkat is the primary food source for some predatory mammals and carnivorous birds.

They can show many anti-predatory behaviors that save them from their carnivorous predators. They start foraging in family groups from a very early age to avoid predation.

A meerkat sentry is always on the lookout while the others forage. During mobbing and defensive threats, this mongoose species appear bigger than they actually are.

A group of meerkats shows various behaviors that confuse predators. If the predator still approaches the meerkat, it will lie on its back, making its teeth and claws fully visible. They aim to protect the back of their neck at any point.

If the sentry of the meerkat group predicts any aerial threat, the animals will retreat to their respective burrows. Still, if a surprise attack threatens them, adult meerkats protect the pups with their bodies.

The most common predator species of meerkats are eagles, jackals, and hawks. Sometimes low precipitation rates in areas of their habitation can lead to the death of the entire pack.

Number Of Young At Birth

Meerkats of the mongoose family are warm-blooded mammals that reproduce by sexual methods. The litter size of meerkats varies depending on the environment in which they live. In captivity, meerkats have been recorded to give birth to up to 11 pups, but in the wild, meerkats can produce three to seven pups.

A meerkat can breed the entire year, although their breeding activities reach peaks during the monsoon seasons. The average gestation period in meerkats ranges between 60 to 70 days.

The maximum number of young meerkats are born between the winter and the onset of the spring season (January to March) in the southern Kalahari desert.

The dominant members breed more than the subordinate members, and the alpha female can give birth to up to four litters in a year. Other female members of the group produce fewer pups than the dominant female.

The litter size of meerkats in the wild ranges between three to seven pups. During the first few days after their birth, a young meerkat weighs only 3.5 oz (100 g).

The newborn pups grow the fastest after the first month they are born.

They live with their mothers by forming a group in a secret burrow until 16 days after birth. The ears and eyes of young offspring open after 10 to 14 days, and they start foraging with adult members of the group after 26 days.

Current Population Estimate

The current population estimate of meerkats has not been determined accurately yet. However, they are frequently observed in their native territories, suggesting that these animals possibly have a reasonably large population. The absence of any significant threat and ample food availability has resulted in the meerkats' more or less stable population status.

The majority of meerkats populate the southern tip of Africa. The meerkat species can adapt to diversified habitats. Their ability to adapt to survive in different habitats does not make them vulnerable to habitat loss.

Meerkats form an essential link in the food chain of Africa, as they act as food to many animals. This keeps the population of meerkats in check. They also feed on a variety of plants and small animals to survive.

Another significant threat faced by meerkats is lower rates of precipitation. It was observed that in a place where rainfall decreased by 10% in a year, the population density of meerkats fell rapidly. The overall population of the meerkat seems to be stable.

Conservation Of Meerkats

Meerkats are listed as a species of Least Concern in the Red List produced by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Even though the population status of meerkats has not been determined, it is believed that they have a stable population. So they are a species of lower concern.

Meerkats are more or less widespread in southern Africa. For this reason, the conservation status of the meerkat species is Least Concern.

Even though the meerkat population is threatened by predation and low rainfall, they do not have any significant conservation threats. Low rainfall can erase an entire pack of meerkats. However, they have been transferred to a few protected areas to protect them from such ecological threats.

For example, meerkat groups occur primarily in Makgadikgadi National Park and the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. There's also a dedicated project called the Kalahari Meerkat Project to keep the meerkat population in check.

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