Rare Encounter: Meerkat Family vs Cobra

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Image by BBC earth via YouTube

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One of my favorite childhood memories involves watching Meerkat Manor with my family. This documentary, spanning four seasons, first premiered in 2005.

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So, when I came across the video captioned a Meerkat Family Surrounds Cobra. What Happens Next? It’s no surprise that I find myself rooting for the meerkats. They are, without a doubt, among my favorite animals.

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Habitat: Deserts and grasslands of southern Africa Diet: insects, lizards, snakes, scorpions, spiders, and plants Threats: Predation by eagles, hawks and snakes

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Habitat: Africa, the Middle East, India, Southeast Asia, and Indonesia. Diet: primarily feeding on small mammals, birds, and other reptiles. Some species also eat eggs.

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Meerkat vs Cobras; Who wins?

[{"selector":"#anim-f8d65f31-6cbc-4ff7-b897-a87d9c672876","keyframes":{"transform":["scale(1)","scale(1.5)","scale(0.95)","scale(1)"],"offset":[0,0.33,0.66,1]},"delay":0,"duration":1450,"easing":"ease-in-out","fill":"both","iterations":1}] Meerkats share their habitat in southern Africa with several species of cobras. The Cape cobra is among the species known to prey on meerkats. However, meerkats' vigilance and social bonds often deter cobras from attacking, as seen in the video. gorilla via unsplash Image by BBC earth via YouTube Read The Story

Cobras are opportunistic creatures and are often successful in their hunts when young meerkats are left vulnerable, when meerkats fall sick or when individuals are isolated.

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Interstingly, Meerkats also sometimes prey on cobras. Meerkats are powerful in numbers, using teamwork to hunt they are capable of taking down some of the most venomous snake species.

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Image by BBC earth via YouTube

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