Due to popular demand we have came up with 3 meerkat adoptions for you to choose from. Click on each of the below to find out more.

Adopt William »	Meerkat adoption in a box  »	Adopt Kate »

Meerkat adoption in a box

Durrell has produced the perfect gift that also allows you to help the Trust to save species from extinction. You can adopt Kate the meerkat who is the breeding female in the group of meerkats living in Discovery Desert at Durrell’s headquarters in Trinity. Kate’s species, whilst not itself greatly endangered in the wild acts, as a model species to give Durrell valuable insights into the habits and requirements of the highly endangered narrow striped mongoose. Wild mongooses are now benefiting from this ongoing research, conservation action and community education programmes, along with other threatened species found in the same region of Madagascar

Your adoption comes in a beautifully illustrated gift box and includes:

• Picture of your adopted meerkat
• Meerkat soft toy
• Adoption certificate
• Durrell car sticker
• Information on meerkats in the wild and at Durrell
• A reply-paid card to register for Durrell's 'on the edge' biannual newsletter and weekly email updates.
• Other adoption boxes available in the series are Jaya the orangutan and Kishka the gorilla.

For information on other animals available for adoption at Durrell, click here

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William, the slender tailed meerkat

William is one of the latest pair of meerkats to be featured in our adoption scheme. Inquisitive & alert, this diminutive digger is constantly on the go, scurrying around Discovery Desert & delighting visitors with his comical antics. He is first in the queue at mealtimes and especially enjoys his morning mealworm treat.

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Kate, the slender tailed meerkat

Kate is one of the latest pair of meerkats to be featured in Durrell’s adoption scheme. She is a dainty individual with particularly attractive features. The caddish Alexander Orlov would most definitely show an interest in her.

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Slender tailed meerkat profile

The slender tailed meerkat is a small mammal and a member of the mongoose family. Meerkats live in all parts of the Kalahari Desert in Botswana and in South Africa. A group of meerkats is called a ‘mob’, ‘gang’ or ‘clan’. A meerkat clan often contains about 20 meerkats, but some super-families have 50 or more members. Meerkats have an average life span of 12-14 years.

Its tail is not bushy like all other mongoose species, but is rather long and thin and tapers to a black or reddish coloured pointed tip. The meerkat uses its tail to balance when standing upright. Its face tapers, coming to a point at the nose, which is brown. The eyes always have black patches around them and it has small black crescent-shaped ears that can close to exclude soil when digging. Like cats, meerkats have binocular vision, a large peripheral range, depth perception, and eyes on the front of their faces.