Meerkats will stand on their back legs for a few reasons. Meerkats will use the increased height to survey their surroundings, calling out to other group members if any predators are close by. They also use this position to get extra heat and to defend their territories from other groups of meerkats.
Meerkats live in groups of as little as three members, to larger ones ranging up to 30 members. These small animals are among the few that can live in such large groups successfully. A meerkat family group is referred to as a mob, a gang, or a clan.
Many people are familiar with the upright position of a meerkat. You will either see one meerkat or a group standing together. Animals, whether big or small, have distinct behavior, and there is a reason for this. Meerkats stand to attention for a few different purposes.
Being such small mammals, meerkats are susceptible to all kinds of predators. Due to being so small, the meerkat has to search for food quickly. By searching for prey quickly, they spend much less time in the open and away from predators. Meerkats will try to get back to their burrows very quickly. The burrows protect them from their natural predators.
The aerial predators of a meerkat are large birds such as eagles and hawks. The meerkats also need to look out for predators on the ground. There are many terrestrial predators, including animals much larger than them, such as jackals.
The meerkats know that having one or more meerkats standing guard means that they can concentrate on foraging for food.
Credit : North American Nature
Picture Credit : Google
