Biggy arrived from DierenPark Zoo in the Netherlands with her sister Missy in May last year. She was paired with Snaggle, the park’s resident male meerkat, and previously gave birth to a litter of three pups—Bing, Biggles, and Bundi—last September.

According to Lead Ranger Teresa Power, the animal care team monitored Biggy closely for signs of pregnancy after noticing a weight gain in May.

“On the morning of June 22, when Biggy and Snaggle didn’t appear for breakfast, we suspected Biggy had given birth in an underground burrow, which is a typical birthing practice for meerkats,” Ms. Power explained.

Over the following days, Biggy was seen intermittently emerging for food, while other members of the meerkat group took turns caring for the newborns. On July 7th, the two pups were spotted in their habitat, surrounded by the entire meerkat group, demonstrating the strong family bonds and communal care typical of meerkats.

Meerkats, members of the mongoose family, are social and curious animals that live in groups called mobs, gangs, or clans. They spend much of their time digging and foraging for food, such as insects, roots, eggs, small reptiles, and scorpions. Notably, meerkats are immune to scorpion venom, unlike humans.

In the wild, while the group feeds, at least one meerkat stands guard on its back legs, watching for predators like eagles, foxes, or jackals. If danger is spotted, the guard will sound an alarm, prompting the group to quickly retreat underground.