Today in nature I saw

It’s not exactly nature, but today we went for a lunchtime drink and stumbled across a meerkat colony. No shit!

Adult meerkat on watch, kits huddled at the base of the pole. Click thru for the full image

Google Photos

Adult and kit

Google Photos

They’re in a large and complex run, with private areas, but I think there are two families (could be more). They’re rescued descendants of what was originally a “pet” colony back in the last century. Given that they have obviously been breeding, I don’t know how the lack of genetic diversity in a small population has been managed.

We stayed and watched for about 20 minutes. I mean, you could lose a week and a half watching them, no bother. The pub? Well, according to google maps it now goes by the name of The Royal Oak Inn & Meerkat Retreat in Brockham. An easy google if you’re so inclined.

j