Meerkat Manor

Meerkat Manor
Created by	Adam Frost
Starring	Narrators UK and Canada: Bill Nighy Australia: Mike Goldman USA: Sean Astin
Country of origin	UK
No. of episodes	33 (to date)
Production
Running time	30 mins (commercials) 20 mins (without commercials)
Original release
Network	Animal Planet
Release	September 12, 2005 – present

Meerkat Manor is a television series made by Oxford Scientific Films for Animal Planet. It presents the daily activities of a family, or mob, of wild meerkats as part of the Kalahari Meerkat Project. Although the narrative is presented in a style similar to a soap opera, it is documentary, featuring actual events in the lives of the meerkats.

The show is narrated by Bill Nighy in the UK and Canada, Mike Goldman in Australia, and Sean Astin in the USA. The series was originally shown in the UK, and is its primary home, but was picked up in Australia, Canada, and the United States, and is now a worldwide hit.

The show began airing the third season in the United States on August 10, 2007 and will begin airing on Animal Planet in the UK on September 10.

Kalahari Meerkat Project

Main article: Kalahari Meerkat Project

The Kalahari Meerkat Project has been a long-term field study in the ecological causes and evolutionary consequences in the cooperative breeding of the Meerkat Suricata suricatta. The project is run by the Mammal Research Institute at the University of Pretoria and the Large Animal Research Group from Cambridge University. Their daily work involves collecting of data on the meerkats' behavior, reproduction, feeding ecology, and growth. The study area is in the South African Kalahari, on the tip of the Botswana border. The researchers/volunteers work with 14 groups of meerkats that are completely used to close study and observation by the researchers. The meerkats provide unusual opportunities for filming and are used over and over by film teams.

Premise

Meerkat Manor is a documentary/drama series following the everyday life of a meerkat family called the Whiskers, living in the Kalahari Desert in South Africa. The Whiskers, all given names as part of the study, have their daily activities tracked and filmed by scientists, showing everything from family squabbles to love affairs. Each episode in the series presents a rare glimpse into the relationships and familial structure of the central characters.

Filming and monitoring

For the first time, successful filming was achieved within a meerkat burrow using fiber-optic cameras. The film crews were housed in specially-built sheds, where they stayed until the meerkats became used to the presence of humans in their territory. The meerkats modified their behavior when humans were around; for example, they would seek shelter from cold early morning winds on the lee side of a human, and sometimes sentry meerkats climbed onto people if there was no suitable natural high place [1] [2] [3].

Scientists tried to limit their interaction to witness the meerkats in their truest and most natural state; the only time that the humans fed the meerkats was when crumbled hardboiled egg was used to entice them onto an electronic weighing scale. One image of this happening shows the scale pan marked "Whiskers", which may mean that they used a pan for each group to avoid exposing meerkats to another group's group scent. The meerkats learned to tolerate such things as scientists taking hair samples and skin scrapings.

The project's field manager is Thomas Flower.[4]

Featured meerkat families

• SPOILER WARNING!!!!

The show portrays several meerkat families, who act communally for the benefit of their respective groups:

• Whiskers, the largest group, with 33 members. Originally led by Flower and Zaphod, Flower recently died so now it is led by Rocket Dog and Zaphod.
• Lazuli, the Whiskers' main rivals until season 3. They were led by Cazanna and Big Si, but Big Si died, leaving Cazanna alone. It has 24 members.
• Gattaca, the smallest group. They have 4 members, and are led by Risca, with no dominant male.
• Commandoes, have 24 in the group and are led by Hannibal and Nikita.
• Zappa, the new neighbours of the Whiskers. They have 9 members and are led by Punk.
• Starsky, a small group led by Kinkajou. It was also led by Carlos, who died.

Whiskers family

The members who are the primary focus of the narrative are featured in the opening credits to the show. This group contains 33 members and was one of the largest groups in the Kalahari. Once living in a three square mile patch of land, which was once said to be two square miles, until the Commandoes evicted the Whiskers from some of their territory.

Main family members

• Flower, the leader and dominant female of the Whiskers. She was born in 2000. Flower is the main character of the show and is the mother of over 30 pups. She was fitted with a radio collar that allowed scientists and film crews to track the group's movements. Despite her toughness, Flower can be nurturing to her pups and the other gang members. Flower dies in the episode Journey's End after being bitten by a snake, and her daughter Rocket Dog takes charge of the group.

• Zaphod, Flower's partner and the dominant male of the Whiskers. He is the largest member in the family and is a bit of a bruiser. His main duties are to scent mark their territory and mate with Flower. He replaced his brother, Youssarian, as dominant male. When Flower is ready to mate he stays very close to her to keep other males away from her, but mostly Youssarian.

• Youssarian, Zaphod's brother. He is eight years old, and used to be the dominant male, until Zaphod took his place. Because of a scar across his left eye, it is thought that as a pup, he was picked up by a bird of prey, then dropped on his head. Later it was proven that he got his scar from Zaphod[5]. He mated with some females from the rival group, the Lazuli. He is infamous for forcing burrow moves while babysitting the pups, and is described as having "social problems". He is responsible for the death of one of Mozart's pups during a burrow move. When Daisy had pups, he tried to help her rescue them, but failed. He also led the splinter group with Daisy. He is the father of Pancake's pups. In Season 3, he has gone on an extended roving trip.

• Tosca, Flower's rebellious daughter. She was initially evicted from the Whiskers for having pups and permanently for taking charge of the Splinters, the larger of the two groups created when the Whiskers temporarily split. The crew believed that the Splinter group would be permanent and fitted Tosca with a radio collar. It is said that she gave birth to Jogu and McMurphy. She also cuddled Sophie after Mitch attacked her. It is assumed that she died during a harsh winter. She has not been seen since 2005. According to Meerkat Manor she has had only one litter.

• Daisy, A troublesome daughter of Flower. She has a nervous disposition and was heard barking with no apparent reason when she was the dominant female of Splinters. During Mozart's last pregnancy, she was the victim of eviction by her sister, which is considered a very rare event in meerkat society. She ended up back in the Whiskers after Flower reasserted her dominance over Mozart. She was babysitting when the Zappa charged and she saved the pups, along with Colombus. She becomes pregnant in season 3 and it's unknown if she got evicted. This would be her second litter.

• Shakespeare, a hero of a meerkat, and the courageous son of Flower. He survived a double bite, on his neck and leg, from a puff adder. He has not been seen since the episode The Calm Before the Storm, and is presumed dead, since his body was never found. The researchers stated that a male of his description was found outside the research area.

• Mitch, the feisty son of Zaphod and Flower. He was a bit of a bully when he was a pup; he stole food from other pups, and attacked Sophie with no reason. He was once on the verge of death after eating poisonous insects he stole from adults and siblings, but survived and has somewhat filled the void left by Shakespeare's disappearance and presumed death. When a gang of teenage meerkats, led by Mitch's sister Kinkajou, abandoned him when he was a small pup, he was later rescued by his older brother Shakespeare. It has been proven that many off the shots claiming to be Mitch were actually played by another meerkat. This includes a contradiction between The Tale of Len and Squiggy and Heavy the Crown. In the former, Mitch is mentioned multiple times in Rocket Dog's group, but is claimed to be with Flower in a later episode, when the Commandos launch their attack.

• Rocket Dog, Rocket Dog is the new dominant female after Flower's death. Rocket Dog is one of Kinkajou's littermates. Rocket Dog previously became the dominant female of a sub-group when the Whiskers split during a drought and food shortage. She loses her first pup(s) through premature labor due to the hardship. When Flower's group and Rocket Dog's group reunite, Rocket Dog again becomes a subordinate.

Rest of the Whiskers family

• Attila, an aggressive son of Zaphod and Flower. He notably led a charge against roving meerkat Grog from the Commandoes, who approached the Whiskers' babysitting burrow to look for females in season 2. Even though he is very brave, he was afraid to fight a scorpion that was given by Mozart.
• Achilles, from the same litter as Attila, Mango and Chutney. He fell into the watering hole and was soaked.
• Apollo. He, Athena, Pepper, and Nutmeg are surviving members of Blossom's litter.
• Athena. She was the only one who went back for Blossom when she was too scared to go hunt food with the adults.
• Basil, from the same litter as Columbus, Parsley, and Rose.
• Big Will, The son of Youssarian. He was born when Vialli, a female, and Youssarian were mates. He, along with Yousarrian and Mitch, wanted to mate with Lazuli females. He also tried to mate with some Gattaca females.
• Bing, born in the same litter as Milley and Shelley and is the only male in the litter.
• Blossom, a daughter of Flower. She wandered away in "Growing pains" and was killed by a goshawk
• Buster, a pup from the first litter of season 3.
• Chutney, in the same litter with Attila, Achilles and Mango.
• Clive, in the same litter as Dudley, Petra, and Marypat. He was separated from the rest of the group with only a few adults in season 1.
• Colombus, the adventurous little pup, is another of Zaphod's sons. He went foraging with the adults the moment he saw sunlight. He helped babysit the pups and protect them from a Zappa raid.
• Cruise, the sister of Mitch, Rocky, and Einstein. She is notoriously feisty.
• Dudley, Clive, Petra, and are Flower's pups. They were separated from the Whiskers in the Season 1 episode Divided Loyalties.
• Einstein, another of Zaphod's sons, is seen trying and failing to open a tortoise egg. He also tried to steal some plover's eggs from their nest when the birds were focusing on the rest of the Whiskers, but was unsuccessful. He is from the same litter as Mitch, Rocky, and Cruise.
• Izzy, one of the pups from season 3. She is said to be always hungry. And when she was left behind in the burrow move Sophie saved her.
• Jogu, the 3-year-old son of Tosca. He and his brother McMurphy were babysitting Flower's pups, but wandered off when they got bored. Shakespeare was giving him a scorpion until Mitch stole it from him. He mated with Melanie of the Zappa.
• Kooky, one of the older females who went on sentry duty shortly before the Commandoes attacked the smaller Whiskers splinter group.
• Maybelline, Rocket Dog's sister. She causes trouble for her. She is pregnant with her first litter, but her mother Flower is also expecting, so it is unsure if her litter will survive.
• Mango, a female in the same litter with Attila, Achilles and Chutney. She was first to see a snake that was in the territory of the Whiskers.
• Marypat, in same litter as Dudley. Marypat is not her real name, as there was a Marypat in the Commandos, a rival mob not yet mentioned.
• McMurphy, a son from Tosca's second litter. In the episode Flower Power, McMurphy and Jogu were assigned to babysit Flower's pups, but due to their youth and inexperience, they lost interest and wandered off.
• Milley, in same litter as Shelley and Bing.
• Nutmeg, Blossom's sister.
• Parsley, in the same litter as Columbus.
• Pooky, one of Flower's sons. As a teenager, he saved one of Tosca's pups during the first burrow move which Youssarian initiated. He was seen trying to steal Flower's food, but failed.
• Pozzo, Pozzo and Sparky followed their mother, Flower, when the Whiskers split up.
• Pepper, in Blossom's litter.
• Petra, in the same litter as Dudley.
• Rocky, the sister of Mitch, Cruise, and Einstein.
• Rose, in the same litter as Columbus. Rose isn't her real name as there is a Rose in the Zappa
• Sophie, Mozarts' daughter. She was attacked by Mitch as a pup. She babysat Flower's pups and defended them from the Zappa.
• Shelley, in the same litter as Milley.
• Sparkle, a female who babysat. She is not the Sparkle known who died in the burrow move.
• Sparky. She and Pozzo followed their mother Flower when the Whiskers split up.
• Spud, Mozart's son who once babysit Flower's pups.
• Suggs, a pup from the first litter of season 3.

Lazuli family

The Lazuli are a family of meerkats who are neighbors and rivals of the Whiskers. The Lazuli lived in an area where the more forested region along the dry Kuruman riverbed gives way to the dunes. The group has 24 members.

• Big Si was the dominant male of the Lazuli. He was the biggest meerkat in the area. Shortly afterwards a fight in the Whiskers' burrow, he became very ill with tuberculosis and had to be put down at the beginning of season 2.
• Cazanna is the dominant female of the Lazuli. She is unable to bear pups since Big Si died, as the new alpha male is her son, J.D. Meerkats generally do not mate with family. Like Flower, she has a radio collar.
• Bubble, one of Big Si's last pups who was in the same litter as Squeak. She was killed in the attack by the Commandos.
• J.D, Cazanna's sly son. He took over from his father, Big Si, as dominant male of the gang but could be thrown off by a roving male since the dominant female is his mother. J.D is seen as a born leader as a fair number of Lazuli males followed him when he chased off roving males Mitch and his uncle, Youssarian.
• Magnus, a large male meerkat who attempted to mate with Flower, but was chased off by the majority of Whiskers males.
• Marilyn, a female member. She could not defend Bubble and Squeak because she was outnumbered by the Commandoes when they attacked while the rest of the Lazuli were away. She survived the attack but was badly injured.
• Pancake, another Lazuli female. She once mated with Youssarian and had two pups. She was babysitting the two during a burrow raid by the Whiskers, but the Lazuli returned and forced the Whiskers to retreat.
• Penny, is a Lazuli female. She was helping Pancake babysit her pups, but ran off when the Whiskers raided the burrow.
• Squeak was the smallest pup in the same litter as Bubble. He is Big Si's young son. He survived the attack by the Commandoes.

Commandoes family

The Commandoes are a family of meerkats that are vicious enemies of the Whiskers and are the main antagonists of Season 2. This group contains 14 members, they chased the Whiskers from their territory. They are a fierce bunch, and are correctly named the Vivian.

• Hannibal, the dominant male of the Commandoes. Hannibal has one missing eye. Along with the rest of the Commandoes, he appears in the episode Young Blood, but they are only shown as dark figures. He and the Commandoes are not seen again until When Flower met Hannibal, United We Stand, and The Quiet Fields. He has been fitted with a radio collar. He stole food from his son Wilson. He and the Commandoes attacked the Whiskers when they returned to thier manor.
• Nikita, the dominant female of the Commandoes. Along with the rest of the Commandoes, she killed Lazuli pup Bubble in a raid on the Lazuli territory. She also killed Mozart's pups.
• Ozzy, the son of Hannibal and Nikita. He was killed during a fight with the Whiskers after he led an attack against Zaphod.
• Grog, a huge male member of the Commandoes. He was the first one seen in Meerkat Manor belonging to the Commandoes. He approached the Whiskers' babysitting burrow to look for females, but was chased by Mozart, Daisy, and Attila. He also tried to mate with Pancake, but was driven off by Youssarian.
• Wilson, Hannibal's son. He has started roving. He lost his turtle shell to his father Hannibal.

Zappa family

The Zappa appear in season three. They cause trouble for the Whiskers, after they steal some Zappa territory. They have 9 members.

• Frank, is the dominant male, but he was getting too old for the job. He is later deposed by Houdini.
• Lola, was the previous Zappa dominant female, until Punk ousted her.
• Punk, is Lola's sister. Punk took dominance from Lola.
• Houdini, Houdini is the new Casanova, after Carlos forms the Starsky with Mozart. He once went roving and Flower, the dominant female of the Whiskers gang, caught his eye. It is unknown whether they mated or not. He, along with Punk, may have taken over the Zappa gang.
• Melanie, a Zappa female. She was seen searching for her family around a burrow where Sophie and Jogu were watching over Flower's three pups. She later mated with Jogu.

Starsky Family

The Starsky were formed by evicted Whisker females and roving Lazuli and Young Ones (a rival group not yet mentioned) males. They have 6 members and little territory.

• Kinkajou, Mozart's half-sister. She seems to be the dominant female after killing Mozart's pups and leading the group foraging. However, this has yet to be confirmed.
• Carlos, The former dominant male of the Starsky. He used to be a roving male of the Lazuli but left and started the group with sisters Kinkajou and Mozart. He had a scar across his face from a battle with Hannibal, but it soon became infected and he died.
• Mozart, founded the group with roving male Carlos after being evicted from the Whiskers by matriarch Flower. She is no longer dominant female of the Starsky because her leadership role seems to have been stolen by half-sister Kinkajou after she mated with Carlos, led the group foraging, and killed Mozart's pups.
• De la Soul, Tosca's grown up pup from another litter. She helped form the Starsky with her aunts. She has not been mentioned yet.
• Shady, a male. He spotted a deadly snake.

Meerkat groups under study

Main article: Kalahari Meerkat Project

Map of territories

Main article: Kalahari Meerkat Project

Episodes & Plot Summaries

First Season

Episode	Summary
A Family Affair	Flower's pup Mitch is kidnapped by a group of teenagers, led by his sister Kinkajou. The small gang abandons him, but his brother Shakespeare saves him. When Shakespeare returns, the Whiskers are trying to evict a puff adder. The snake bites Shakespeare on his thigh and neck. The first episode of the series.
Love Thy Neighbor	Shakespeare is starting to starve after his snakebites. The Whiskers face off against their rivals, the Lazuli. Meanwhile, a Casanova meerkat by the name of Carlos of the Lazuli mates with Flower's troublesome daughter Daisy.
Some Like It Hot	Tosca gives birth to four pups and Flower must decide whether to kill them or accept them into the family. During this episode, Mozart also gives birth to four pups. Meanwhile, Shakespeare recovers from his wounds and goes foraging with Tosca and Mozart.
Revolution	Youssarian "accidentally" starts an infamous burrow move; however, Pooky leads the babysitters to the burrow to put the pups back in. Later on, Youssarian starts another burrow move, and, unlike the first time, the babysitters follow him. The foragers then hear a distress call from the babysitters. Yousarrian drops the pup in his mouth, Sparkle. Flower leads the group to a new burrow. Sparkle dies.
Childhood's End	For the first time, Flower evicts Mozart from the family; Mozart has no choice, but to leave her pups. A storm drives the Whiskers to shelter in the burrow belonging to their rivals, the Lazuli. When the Lazuli came back to find their home invaded, they start a battle to try to regain their territory; however, the Lazuli lose.
Boys Will Be Boys	Flower has a litter of pups: Dudley, Clive, Petra, and Marypat. Mitch eats poisonous insects and becomes ill. Tosca is evicted for having pups. Mozart is allowed back in the Whiskers.
Divided Loyalties	Amazingly, Mitch survives. The Whiskers split in two groups while fleeing from an attacking goshawk. This leaves Flower with only seven members: Zaphod, Mozart, Pozzo, Sparky, Dudley, Clive, and Mitch. Daisy and Yousarrian lead the other group (which is named the Splinters). Tosca deposes a timid Daisy.
The Good The Bad And The Desperate	The Whiskers are reunited, with Flower firmly in charge once more. Tosca is evicted for taking charge of the Splinters.
Daisy's Choice	When Daisy has pups, it is in a wrong burrow, but Yousarrian rescues two of them. The family babysitters then abandon Daisy's pups to go to a new burrow.
Flower Power	Flower has pups: Columbus, Parsley, Basil, and Rose. The Whiskers find Lazuli pups in a burrow. Tosca's sons, Jogu and McMurphy, abandon Flower's newborn pups, but Shakespeare rescues them. A meerkat male named Magnus tries to mate with Flower, but was chased off by males.
An Awfully Big Adventure	Flower's pup Columbus goes foraging the moment he sees sunlight and he and the family ended up in the territory. Youssarian babysits Flower's pups.
The Calm Before The Storm	Shakespeare babysits the pups and is ambushed by the Lazuli. Shakespeare defends the pups against Big Si.
Moving On	Tosca mates with Carlos. The Whiskers return and gain a bittersweet victory against the Lazuli, saving the pups. Shakespeare is not seen again and is thought to have died underground.

Second Season

Episode	Summary
Cold Comfort	It is winter. Three months have passed. Shakespeare and Tosca have not been seen since and are presumed dead. There is a report that researchers found Big Si of the Lazuli ill with tuberculosis and put him down to avoid a slow death and an epidemic. The Lazuli group is then taken over by J.D., Big Si's son. Youssarian mates with Pancake, a female evicted from the Lazuli.
Three Amigos	Youssarian, Mitch, and Big Will look for females to mate with. The Whiskers spend a night with a Cape Cobra in their burrow, but no harm is done.
Young Blood	A group of meerkats named the Commandoes spent a night in the Whiskers den. When morning comes, they invade Lazuli territory, kill Bubble (one of their pups), and injure the current Lazuli babysitter, Maralyn.
Iron Lady	Flower is pregnant. Mozart mates again and receives a warning bite on the tail base.
There's No Place Like Home	Flower evicts Mozart from the family. Mozart becomes pregnant. Flower gives birth to five pups: Blossom, Nutmeg, Apollo, Pepper, and Athena.
When Flower Met Hannibal	A goshawk attacks the Whiskers, scattering them into two groups. Flower's group has to hide in a burrow in Commandoes territory. Mozart miscarries her pups while alone. The Commandoes attack the Whiskers, trying to dig out and kill their pups. The episode ends during the battle.
United We Stand	The Whiskers win the battle; Ozzy of the Commandoes dies in the battle. Mozart rejoins the Whiskers. Flower's five pups surface. The Whiskers confront a Cape Cobra. Some of the heaviest summer rains in decades falls.
The Enemy Within	Youssarian is left to babysit Flower's pups, but deserts to look for Lazuli females. Pancake of the Lazuli has been accepted back and has 2 pups by Youssarian. The Whiskers and Lazuli battle near the waterhole. Flower leads a deep invasion of Lazuli land, but many of the Whiskers split off, chasing Youssarian, thinking that he is enemy. Another battle results in the Whiskers retreating. A bad storm forces the Whiskers to shelter for two hours, but they get home the same day. Youssarian gets wet in the storm and must spend the night alone in Lazuli territory.
The Art of Leadership	Flower, with only 12 followers, decides on a den move before the split-off group comes back. At first, the pups are carried, but the party goes on maximum alert when an eagle owl is seen in a bush, and the pups must travel under their own power. They reach a den at evening.
Balance Of Power	Flower and Mozart are both pregnant. Mozart evicts Daisy; this is considered to be a very rare event in meerkat society, as Mozart is not the dominant female. Daisy is allowed back. Due to hunger and Flower's extra need for food because of her pregnancy, she kills and eats a bird. The other group finds and rejoins Flower's group after over a week's separation. Youssarian babysits Flower's pups, and Blossom wanders off, but Youssarian finds her.
Growing Pains	Summer rains three times normal cover the Kalahari with dense grass and flowering plants too tall for meerkats to see over. First named sight of the Big Dune (the highest point in Whiskers territory). Blossom explores too far and gets lost. Mitch explores, but turns back, a little before he would have gotten within earshot of Blossom. A goshawk kills Blossom.
The Godmother	Flower has three pups: Milley, Shelley, and Bing. A little later, Mozart has her pups. Flower's pups emerge. The Whiskers, including Flower's pups, go foraging, leaving Mozart and her pups in the den, and end the day in another den, abandoning Mozart and her pups.
The Quiet Fields	Mozart struggles to take care of her pups alone in an abandoned Whiskers den. The Whiskers are confined to their den for a while by fear of a tawny eagle flying about overhead. Dry season drought causes food shortage, which drives the Commandoes to cross the dry river bed, and forage in Whiskers territory. They find Mozart's den and drag out and kill her pups. While foraging, Mozart gets closer and closer to the Whiskers without knowing it... This season finale ends as a cliffhanger, with the Commandoes in Whiskers territory.
Re-cap Special	This special re-caps what happened in Season 2.

Third Season

Episode	Summary
On Dangerous Ground	We find the Whiskers trying to survive in a hostile new area after being evicted from their manor by the vicious Commandoes. With danger at every turn and food scarce, Flower decides to lead the family, including her newborn pups, on a perilous journey to find greener pastures. The gang runs into their new neighbors, the Zappa, whom they dispatch with some ease. However, during the fight, Flower's pups go missing.
The Mission	Flower mounts a rescue mission to find her pups, who are lost in the heart of Zappa territory. It falls to Mitch to try to find the rest of the family and lead them back to the frightened pups. On his journey, Mitch runs into Mozart, who has started up her own group with her old flame, Carlos. But with the Zappa closing in on the pups, it's a race against time.
Sister Act	The Zappa finally attack the Whiskers burrow where Colombus and Daisy are babysitting the pups. The Whiskers come back to the burrow and chase off the Zappa. At the Starsky, Kinkajou is leading the group while Mozart feels that her pups are coming, and tries to get the group to come back to the burrow; they are not interested. They finally arrive to a unknown burrow and Mozart gives birth. The next morning, the group does not clean the burrow. Kinkajou leads the group out foraging, and Mozart leaves her pups for food. Kinkajou sneaks out and kills the 1 - hour old pups. Mozart finds an eaten paw on the ground.
The Death of Romance	The Starsky group is looking for a new territory. Starsky dominant male, Carlos, has an infection from his bite mark from Hannibal. Along the way, Shady, a Starsky male, spots a snake and the group mobs it, only to leave in a moment. Houdini is roving around the Whiskers, and Zaphod has let his guard down since his brother Youssarian went off on an extended roving trip. Flower snuck away from Zaphod when he stole some of her food, and ran into Houdini, who bravely mated with her. The Starsky reach a new burrow after foraging. Carlos is nowhere to be found, and the camera then shows he has died from his infection.
The Tale of Len & Squiggy	Len and Squiggy are three weeks old now, and they venture out of the burrow for the first time. However, Squiggy is born with a deformed front leg. When spread out over a wide area foraging, the Whiskers group is split into two groups. Whiskers female Rocket Dog leads the group that is with the pups. Since there is a lack of rain Rocket Dog leads her new group on a foraging expedition and to a hopefully new, more promising burrow. On their way Mitch seems to be the only one to be trying to care for the two pups and eventually they are spotted by a bird of prey, who makes off with Len. At their new burrow Mitch is the only one not with his family because he is with Squiggy. Soon, Squiggy, now four weeks old, is left alone in the desert since he cannot find food for himself. Flower leads the other group of Whiskers and they are about two miles away from Rocket Dog's Group. Houdini and some Zappa males have gotten Maybelline, Daisy, and Rocket Dog pregnant.
Sibling Rivalry	Lola gets bit by a puff adder and has been away from the rest of the Zappa for two days. Upon arriving at her burrow with her family, Punk takes advantage of Lola's weak standings and anal marks her lowering her position to subordinate and raising her own to dominant female. Houdini returns from a roving mission with Rocket Dog's Whisker Group and Frank is unhappy with the welcome his family gives him. After a short battle for dominance Houdini chases Frank away resulting in him, Houdini, grooming with Punk. The combination of Punk and Houdini make an ideal group for the Zappa, but a "nightmare" for the Whiskers.
Heavy the Crown	The food supply of Rocket Dog's group is dwindling, and Flower's group wanders back to their old manor in search of food. Instead, they find the familiar trough of water, only to be met by Hannibal and the Commandoes, who are experiencing the same crisis as the Whiskers. In a deadly battle, the Commandoes drive Flower's group from whence they came. Back at the new manor, Rocket Dog's stress of leadership causes herself to give birth to her premature pups above ground, who die. The rains come and florish the manor, bringing the group back together.
Journey's End	This episode will air September 28
A New Day	This episode will air October 5
Farewell My Lovely	This episode will air October 12
Three Degrees of Separation	This episode will air October 19
The Graduate	This episode will air October 26
A Family at War	This episode will air November 2

Feature film

According to The Washington Post, a feature film, Meerkat Manor: Queen of the Kalahari, is in preparation based on the television series.

DVD releases

Below is a list of DVDs for each country/region in organized Dates.

Title	Release Date	Number of Discs	Number of Episodes
The Complete First Season (UK)	October 9, 2006	4 Single Sided Discs	13
The Complete First Season (AU)	December 1, 2006	4 Single Sided Discs	13
The Complete First Season (US)	November 30, 2006	3 Single Sided Discs	13
The Complete Second Season (UK)	October 14, 2007	4 Single Sided Discs	13
The Complete Second Season (AU)	April 12, 2007	4 Single Sided Discs	13
The Complete Second Season (US)	March 8 2007	3 Single Sided Discs	13

See also

• Meerkat
• Kalahari Meerkat Project

External links

• Meerkat Manor at animalplanet.com
• Animal Planet fansite
• Meerkat Manor at Animal Planet UK
• Animal Planet Europe
• Meerkat Manor at IMDb
• Template:Tv.com show
• Kalahari Meerkat Project
• Earthwatch Institute site
• Earthwatch expedition briefing
• Diary of an Earthwatcher