Battersea Park Children’s Zoo shows off meerkat babies (From Your Local Guardian)

Battersea Park Children’s Zoo shows off meerkat babies

8:40am Thursday 23rd July 2009

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Meerkats are enjoying something of a renaissance at the moment after the unlikely success of a television advert for comparing the market, but surely these little guys are beyond comparison.

Handlers at Battersea Park Children’s Zoo are currently swooning over these three baby “kits” who were born just two weeks ago and have just opened their eyes for the first time.

Like any newborn their primary concern seems to be where their next meal is coming from and they can’t get enough of their favourites treats including crickets, mealworms and cat biscuits.

Catherine Salmon, Zoo manager, said: “We had three meerkat kits born on June 27 to the only breeding pair in the mob, Lilac and Jimmy. This is their third litter this year meaning we have 17 in total.

“They are very social animals that live in larger groups with the eldest offspring of the breeding pair helping to look after their younger siblings. - so there is always a member of the mob on babysitting duties.”

Meerkats are a member of the mongoose family and inhabit all parts of the Kalahari Desert in Botswana and South Africa.

For more details visit batterseaparkzoo.co.uk.

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