5022 x 3348 px | 42,5 x 28,3 cm | 16,7 x 11,2 inches | 300dpi
Aufnahmedatum:
12. Juli 2008
Ort:
Chester Zoo, Chester, Cheshire, England, Great Britain, United Kingdom, Europe. .
Weitere Informationen:
The meerkat or suricate Suricata suricatta is a small mammal and a member of the mongoose family. It inhabits all parts of the Kalahari Desert in Botswana and South Africa. A group of meerkats is called a mob, gang, or clan. A meerkat clan often contains around 20 meerkats at a time, but some superfamilies have had 50 or more. Meerkats have an average life span of 12-14 years. Meerkats are small burrowing animals, living in large underground networks with multiple entrances which they leave only during the day. They are very social, living in colonies averaging 20-30 members. Animals in the same group regularly groom each other to strengthen social bonds. The alpha pair often scent-mark subordinates of the group to express their authority, and this is usually followed by the subordinates grooming the alphas and licking their faces. This behaviour is also usually practiced when group members are reunited after a short period apart. Most meerkats in a group are all siblings or offspring of the alpha pair. Meerkats demonstrate altruistic behavior within their colonies; one or more meerkats stand sentry (lookout) while others are foraging or playing, to warn them of approaching dangers. When a predator is spotted, the meerkat performing as sentry gives a warning bark, and other members of the gang will run and hide in one of the many bolt holes they have spread across their territory. The sentry meerkat is the first to reappear from the burrow and search for predators, constantly barking to keep the others underground. If there is no threat, the sentry meerkat stops signalling and the others feel safe to emerge. Meerkats also babysit the young in the group. Females that have never produced offspring of their own often lactate to feed the alpha pair's young, while the alpha female is away with the rest of the group. They also protect the young from threats, often endangering their own lives. This photograph is part of the Imagine Images Collection, hosted by Alamy. .
![Erdmännchen (Suricata Suricata) [Chester Zoo, Chester, Cheshire, England, Großbritannien, Vereinigtes Königreich]. . Stockfoto](https://c8.alamy.com/compde/b4mtk7/erdmannchen-suricata-suricata-chester-zoo-chester-cheshire-england-grossbritannien-vereinigtes-konigreich-b4mtk7.jpg)
