Baby meerkats in Botswana

[FarrenH]

21. I saw them in real life for the first time last year

Sadly, not in their natural environment but in a very large enclosure at a wildlife park outside Johannesburg (the one where "Lion Whisperer" Kevin Richardson used to work). They're as animated in real life as I imagined from Meerkat Manor, so that's not just selective editing. Since they're well fed at the park, they just play all the time. My nephew's girlfriend put her hand down into the enclosure and a whole mob of them came to investigate, taking turns to sniff it. It made me sad, seeing them restricted like that. I've never really liked zoos and although the park has much bigger enclosures than an urban zoo for most of the animals (the main attraction being lions, who have several acres to roam), it's still restrictive. Still, such charming, funny animals in real life. I could have stood there watching them play for hours. Seeing the meerkats was a bigger highlight than seeing the lions.