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00:00Ala Jones looks ahead to the BBC Cardiff Singer of the World with a preview of the competition
00:08in 50 minutes. But first, meet the meerkats on BBC2 as Simon King joins the family in
00:14Natural World.
00:34This is Digger. He's an adult male meerkat. Three years old and in his prime. And this
00:43is his mate, Mumma. She's the head of the family. Digger and Mumma have had quite a
00:50few pups together over the past year or so, including Arnie, a young male who, with the
00:58rest of his family, has already had some incredible adventures. They make a formidable team.
01:19This family is small by meerkat standards. Digger and Mumma are a new couple. They've
01:25only been together for a year or so, and they're just beginning to stake a territory
01:28of their own. To do that, they'll need reinforcements. The more pups they have, the bigger the family
01:36and the stronger the team. Arnie is one of the newest arrivals, and already he stands
01:46out, a meerkat with real attitude. Exploring the world of the meerkat is quite a challenge.
01:59Even Digger is no bigger than a half-grown domestic kitten, and the babies are the size
02:03of mice. To find out what they get up to throughout the day, and in a way which has never been
02:09seen before, I've had to earn their complete trust. And that's taken time. The best part
02:21of a year, in fact. When I started, the first hurdle was to pick the right spot. This is
02:34Tswalu Kalahari Reserve, a huge area of sand dunes and mountains on the edge of the Kalahari
02:39Desert in South Africa. First-class meerkat territory. There's lots of life here besides
02:50meerkats, some of it a bit easier to spot. There's some rhino up ahead, so I'm just going
02:56to back the car up and set the camera up. With so much big stuff around, it's easy to
03:16overlook the little guys that live in the sand dunes. But there are meerkats here, and
03:22the best time to spot them is when they first wake up in the morning. I've decided to get
03:34to know this small family. The adults are more nervous than their babies of anything
03:40new, so it's best if, for now, I keep my distance and stay in the car. OK, let's see how they
03:46take to this. I'm not trying to mimic a meerkat's call, I'm just trying to make a distinctive
03:59sound that won't scare them, but it's one that they will gradually come to link with
04:04me. Got their attention. Not bad. Not bad at all. The hand movements are all part of the same
04:28process. I want the family to be able to recognise me at any distance and realise
04:33I'm not a danger. They have to learn to trust me. This is what they're going to have to get
04:49used to. It is ridiculous, but it should work. I only have half an hour or so each morning when
04:59I can spend time with the family, just after they wake up. Once they've warmed up, they're
05:10off into the long grass and I lose them. It's frustrating. I have a lot more work to do before
05:26I can follow them. I've got to keep to a routine, calling and waving to them day after day until I
05:53feel the whole family is ready for the next step.
05:55Nights are short in the South African summer, but I have to be out before
06:25sunrise. I need all the time I can get with the family. Fortunately for me, they sleep through
06:34the hours of darkness, but I want to be at the burrow before they first pop their heads above
06:38ground. And today especially, because today I'm going to take the next step in getting them used
06:49to me. I'm going to leave the vehicle and sit outside. Digger, the adult male who's up first,
07:04looking calm. I, on the other hand, am really nervous. One wrong move now, even a simple
07:12sneeze would scare him. This is where the sounds and movements I've been making start to pay off.
07:27I might not be in the car anymore, but the family have begun to associate me with this
07:31quirky behaviour and they've learnt that no harm can come of it. When they start looking nervous,
07:45my heart goes into my throat. Maybe they're not ready for this. I may have blown it. But
07:53it's not me at all they're worried about, it's Swifts. Swifts aren't dangerous to meerkats,
08:04but the youngsters don't know that, they've never seen them before. The birds have been
08:11in Europe for the past five months and they've just arrived in South Africa to escape the northern
08:15winter. Youngsters have never seen anything like it. Meerkats are often attacked from the air by
08:31eagles and other birds of prey, so it does pay to be wary. The pups will learn from Mama and Digger
08:43which birds mean trouble and which ones, like the Swifts, are okay. In fact, they're going to need
08:51a lot of survival lessons before they can fend for themselves and that's a part of their lives
08:56I really want to see. But for now, I just have to watch them disappear off into the grass again.
09:02It is really tempting to try and follow, but if I scare them now, they may never trust me.
09:32I have a few weeks of work to do to earn that trust. I have to move closer each morning until
09:45at last I'm just one meter away when they first poke their heads above the ground.
09:50After two months of seeing me day after day, they hardly give me a second glance. This is
10:05what it's all about for me. It's a chance to see inside the world of a wild animal.
10:09The family, like all meerkats, are real sun worshippers. After a chilly night down the
10:20burrow, the first thing they do is warm up. The pups try their best to keep alert along
10:29with their parents. But it's a bit of a struggle when you've just woken up.
11:20One thing that's clear now that I'm sitting so close,
11:50is that Mama is very heavily pregnant. She'll probably be giving birth again in the next week
11:55or so. And perhaps it's because of this, that over the past few days, Digger has been going
12:02into territorial overdrive, smearing his scent all around the burrow system, warning off any
12:07invading meerkats. These are among the most social of all mammals, but usually only within
12:20the family. Strangers aren't welcome and breeding pairs will often stay together for years if not
12:26for life. Grooming helps with the practical side of keeping any ticks or other parasites at bay,
12:35but it's also important for cementing relationships. Attempts to clean the kids
12:44almost always end up as an excuse for them to have a wrestle. Play may be good fun,
13:00but it also helps the pups and the juveniles establish their place in the hierarchy of the
13:05gang. The family's close, but it's important each member knows where it stands in relation
13:21to the other. The significance of who can beat up who isn't such a big deal for these youngsters yet,
13:33but it will be more important as the pups grow up and consider raising their own families. Now
13:39though, most of the exercise is the result of pure high spirits. It looks like the whole family trusts
13:57me enough to begin revealing their world away from the den in a way which has never been seen before.
14:02It's time for my secret weapon, meerkam.
14:32With this tiny camera I can reveal the world at meerkat level, follow them into the densest
14:39vegetation and spy on their every move. And the first thing they do when they leave the burrow
14:45is have breakfast. Meerkats shift an enormous amount of sand each day, several hundred times
15:01their own body weight to dig up their prey, which is mostly insects and other bugs. A sense of smell
15:11is phenomenal. They can pinpoint a bug buried deep in the sand with the slightest sniff,
15:16then they'll bend over backwards to reach it. They'll eat just about any small animal they
15:23can dig up, but they're particularly partial to beetle larvae, lizards, centipedes and if
15:28they can get them, scorpions. Meerkats seem virtually immune to scorpion stings, which
15:36could kill a human child, but when they eat them, they're harmlessly digested in the stomach.
15:41Inevitably whilst foraging, the family come across more formidable opponents.
15:56Meerkats and snakes do not get on.
16:05Mole snakes may not be venomous, but their bite is nasty and they could do real damage
16:30to any tiny youngster inside the burrow.
16:51By giving the snake a hard time, the family focuses on the danger and encourages it to
16:56head for cover. That is one burrow the family will not be dashing down in the event of an
17:09emergency. Moments after the excitement's passed, it's back to business for the whole team. All
17:20that is, apart from mumma. Whilst the others have been foraging and chasing snakes,
17:26there's been no sign of her anywhere. All a bit of a worry really. But thankfully,
17:35she does turn up later in the day, looking rather slimmer. She must have given birth.
17:43Back at the burrow, it's all quiet apart from one juvenile male who's been left behind. He's
18:01babysitting. Neither digger nor mumma will help much with looking after the babies during the day.
18:09It's the younger members of the gang that take turns in keeping guard of the new litter until
18:16the rest of the family comes back to the burrow in the evening. By my reckoning,
18:37the new babies should be popping up above ground for the first time in about three weeks.
19:07As far as I'm aware, the juveniles have done their guarding job well,
19:19but I still haven't seen the new babies. I don't even know how many there are.
19:23Today though, the babysitter seems more anxious than usual. It's a bit of a chore,
19:39isn't it? I mean, everybody else goes out and gets breakfast, lunch, supper. Meanwhile,
19:47juvenile has to stay and look after the kids. Definitely hear a baby. Hello sweeties.
20:11How gorgeous is that?
20:25They're tiny. They're no bigger than mice.
20:36They are just too cute.
20:46Ready, the instinct to sit up and to dig is kicking in.
20:58You can feel their tentative excitement, they are just wanting to get out, wanting
21:12to see the big world.
21:13Hello honey.
21:14And yet it is all so different.
21:19Everything they have known has been down inside that burrow before now.
21:26This is my chance to really join the team.
21:29I want this generation of meerkats to be as familiar with me as they are with the sand
21:34they are walking on.
21:46One pup already stands out from the crowd, he is a young male, he is bolder, more inquisitive
21:52than his brothers and sisters, little Arnie.
21:59What an experience, what an experience, what a pup.
22:20It is a great feeling to be so close when the others return from a hard day's foraging
22:33and to share their space on such a special day.
22:46This is the first chance the babies have had to feed since mumma headed out early this
22:50morning.
22:58Producing enough milk to satisfy four hungry mouths is a real drain on her, but thanks
23:03to the support of her team she can afford to spend the day away, stocking up.
23:22It's one of the huge advantages of living in such a cooperative mob.
23:26With other members of the team helping with the kids, mumma has been able to produce three
23:30litters of young in a single season.
23:33Good going in such a tough place and especially important if she and Digger are going to keep
23:37hold of this new territory.
24:00They're only four weeks old but already Arnie and his brothers and sisters are keen to keep
24:19up with the rest of the family.
24:22Just a few days after popping out of the burrow but they want to explore a wider world.
24:36They're far too young to dig up their own bugs and once again the cooperation of the
24:40team helps to start them off on the right foot.
24:51Each baby stays glued to an older family member, begging constantly.
24:57The response is immediate, hard won food is handed over to the new arrivals without a
25:01quibble.
25:26Mumma, Digger and the juveniles provide a constant service, often putting the demands
25:31of the babies before their own.
25:43Not always though.
25:50The pups can get pretty grumpy if a brother or sister tries to muscle in on their free
25:54deal and one of the male pups is harder than most, Arnie of course.
26:11These disputes can get quite nasty sometimes, even at this tender age status in the group
26:15is beginning to take shape.
26:27It's high summer in the desert and by 9.30 in the morning the temperature in the sun
26:32is already in the mid-thirties.
26:36The shade of course is considerably cooler, that is if you can find somewhere to settle.
26:51It may take a bit of getting used to but being covered in sand does have its advantages when
26:56it comes to cooling down.
27:19Meerkats have a low metabolic rate, which means they produce surprisingly little heat
27:36internally for an animal their size, handy in these temperatures.
27:48As the morning wears on, even the shade of the tree gets unbearably hot.
28:03Summer decides it's time for another move.
28:21I have no idea where they're going, I'll just have to follow.
28:26It's not a nice thought, with the temperature touching 40 degrees now.
28:36It's a wise decision by mumma, the old aardvark hole's much cooler than any tree shade could
28:40offer.
28:41Oh, don't tell me guys, you're not going to have a siesta here.
28:51The surface of the sand out here now is over 70 degrees.
28:56Zero shade.
29:13The nearest large tree is too far away for me to keep a watch on the burrow, I need to
29:17find some shade.
29:18I'll have to make some then, won't I.
29:19Oh, stinkers.
29:50My parasol's better than nothing, but it can't compare with the burrow, which can be
30:05up to 30 degrees cooler than the world outside.
30:10I have to confess to feeling pretty jealous.
30:36Six hours later, with the afternoon starting to cool down, it's back into action for the
30:47meerkats.
30:54Despite the heat, meerkats hardly ever drink, they get all the water they need from juicy
30:59grubs and bugs, and the new babies just can't get enough of those.
31:11The moment they head out, they're begging again.
31:14It's these constant calls that stimulate the older members of the gang to bring food to
31:19the babies, and with the day cut short by the heat, it's all the others can do to find
31:23time to feed themselves.
31:49Supplies of bugs come thick and fast to the youngsters, but they're already trying to
31:53feed themselves.
31:56Stinging ants are a challenging start though.
32:23Strangely, even though ants might give them a bit of jip, a scorpion is dealt with in
32:28quick time.
32:41If I was stung by that fella, I'd be feeling very sick very quickly, but little Arnie munches
32:46it down without even trying to remove the sting.
33:09This routine of looking after the babies continues for the next month, and through the rains
33:13which sweep over the desert.
33:15Rain's scarce here.
33:16Its arrival is good news for the meerkats.
33:23They don't like getting wet, but the whole family benefits from the glut of bugs which
33:26emerges after a good downpour or two.
33:45After the storms move off to the north, other desert dwellers creep out of the woodwork.
33:53Puff adders are common here, and highly venomous.
33:56These large, lazy snakes are ambush hunters.
33:59They rely on their superb camouflage to get within striking distance of their prey, and
34:03that could easily include a meerkat.
34:08Rather than give trouble a wide berth, the family, led on by a now well-grown Arnie,
34:13mob the snake.
34:14It's like playing with fire.
34:34Lightning reactions keep the meerkats out of harm's way.
34:51They can usually deal with trouble they encounter at ground level, but as you watch the family
34:56feed it's clear they face a dilemma.
35:00With their noses buried in the sand most of the time, they can't look out for trouble.
35:05And being small, they're particularly vulnerable to attack from the air by eagles and hawks.
35:16So they address the problem with a very effective security service.
35:22There's almost always one member of the clan on watch, keeping a keen eye out for danger.
35:30All of the older members of the clan take a turn on sentry duty.
35:34Some more than others, largely based on how well they're fed.
35:39And the guards are the first to dash for cover when trouble appears, so it's not an entirely
35:44selfless act.
35:50The guards continually chirp, letting the rest of the group know that they've got the
35:53job in hand.
35:54They're very good at getting up, but when it comes to climbing back down...
36:01Well, that's one way to get down out of a tree.
36:09It's not really elegant, was it?
36:30There's a truly mischievous edge to the family's character.
36:46Their very survival depends on their investigating every opportunity and noticing every threat.
36:51But I can't help feeling that their reaction to the local ground squirrels is plain loutish.
37:06Meerkats and ground squirrels share the same homes.
37:08In fact, many meerkat burrow systems started out as the hard work of the local squirrel
37:12community.
37:15It's hardly the way to treat your neighbours.
37:24But the younger members of the team just can't resist the temptation to terrorise.
37:45All of the babies are now feeding themselves, and there's an increasing need for mumma and
37:49digger to claim new territory to meet the demands of their growing clan.
37:57Moving to new ground brings with it the risk of the unknown.
38:01As the family ventures further and further from their familiar stamping ground, they
38:05become noticeably more tense.
38:25When they come across a serious adversary, they're pumped up and ready to rumble.
38:36Their attack monitors are well over a metre long, heavy, and almost fearless.
38:40Their bites powerful, and their muscular tail can deliver a heavy blow, irresistible to
39:17Monitors are quite capable of devouring a litter of young meerkats deep in a burrow,
39:28but this one just wants to avoid being hassled.
39:46Despite the risks, the gang can't resist one last look.
40:16It seems completely crazy they could so easily just walk away, but it is this curiosity and
40:24the spirit that I love about meerkats.
40:30Away from their more usual haunts, they do face a real risk.
40:38They haven't spent any time checking out escape routes in this area, so when a real threat
40:43turns up in the shape of a goshawk, the dash for cover is going to be in uncharted territory.
41:13It was Arnie who was first into the hole, and he stumbled into real trouble in the darkness.
41:32A small scratch on his left shoulder suggests a snake bite.
41:43He almost certainly ran straight into a puff adder just inside the burrow entrance.
41:48A bite from this snake could kill a man.
41:54Agonising to watch as he struggles to keep up with the rest of the family, but there
41:58really is nothing that can be done, other than stay nearby and watch over him.
42:19He eventually manages to make it back to the burrow alone, and only just in time.
42:28He falls unconscious.
42:59By the time the rest of the family returns in the evening, he's barely breathing.
43:08He holds on to life through the night, and the whole of the next day.
43:30Then, on the third morning after the bite, there is a miraculous change.
43:37Somehow, he's pulled through.
43:45I find it absolutely incredible that an animal this size can withstand a snake bite,
43:51be close to death for the best part of two days,
43:55and now you can hardly tell him apart from the rest of the family.
44:00They're so tough, rock hard.
44:06Quite how he survived, I'll never know.
44:09Mere cats have some immunity to snake bite, but they can and have been killed by snakes.
44:14But survived he has, and in inimitable fashion.
44:20Within a few days, he's back to his normal, boisterous self.
45:21I've spent so much time with the family, I'm pretty much seen as part of the landscape now.
45:39Arnie especially has been getting really close since his accident.
45:49I don't want to pretend this is a mere cat displaying any form of affection.
45:53My arms simply form a cave that Arnie can use to launch surprise attacks on his brothers and sisters.
46:02It gives me the chance to check that his wound is healing up nicely.
46:10His trust in me encourages the others to investigate.
46:26It is such a treat.
46:57The mornings are colder now, well below freezing at dawn,
47:00and to Arnie I represent a warm rock to snuggle up against.
47:12It may not be affection, but it is complete trust from a truly wild animal.
47:18Now let me see, Arnie I think.
47:22Hello friend.
47:25And I couldn't be more delighted.
47:33The family's gone from five individuals when I first met them, to ten strong.
47:39Arnie is 100% well, and the future looks good for Digger, Mumma and the rest of the gang.
48:10They look set to hold their own as a team against all challenges.
48:27Doctor Who's on BBC2 tonight, but Christopher Eccleston swaps the TARDIS for four wheels
48:33as he takes on the Top Gear Saloon Car Challenge. That's here at eight.