NATURAL HISTORY OF SOUTH AFRICA 



enemy. On the slightest cause for alarm they 

 instantly disappear underground or into cover 

 afforded by rocks or undergrowth. Out upon the 

 karoo they cannot be distinguished from the Ground 

 Squirrels unless approached closely. Although as 

 large as itself, the Bushy-tailed Meerkat attacks 

 and devours the Ground Squirrel. In the neigh- 

 bourhood of man they are usually shy and secretive. 

 They are frequently seen in the bush-veld, dense 

 shrub, or vegetation-covered, rock-strewn localities 

 where they have their burrows securely hidden. 



They are diurnal by habit, but when living in 

 the vicinity of man they often become night prowlers 

 and do considerable harm to the poultry farmer. 

 They often hunt in this way in pairs under cover 

 of darkness. 



When riding or driving across the vast stretches 

 of the dry karoo of the Cape Province midlands, I 

 have seen a dozen or more of those Bushy-tailed 

 Meerkats in the course of a day's journey, but they 

 were always either in pairs or in quite small colonies. 

 Sitting erect for a minute or two the meerkat watches 

 you approach, then dropping down it makes off at a 

 fairly rapid pace with a series of leaps and bounds 

 through and over the sparse stunted growth of 

 the dry karoo, with its handsome tail streaming 

 out behind it. Dogs can easily overtake this meer- 

 kat if it is not within a hundred yards or so of 

 dense cover or its hole. When brought to bay it 

 fights with the greatest of determination and 



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