Did you know that a single meerkat is capable of killing a cobra? A cobra is at least 3 times bigger and more venomous! So how is this possible? A meerkat is so fast that it is able to dodge any cobra attack and kill it with its seven-centimeter claws. So what is a meerkat? A meerkat is a unique mongoose with a diverse diet that lives in the desert where it is picky about reproduction and has many enemies that it is helped to fight by its other mongoose relatives. At this point you are probably wondering what a meerkat looks like. It is covered in fur like a cat or dog. It stands about two feet tall, not including its 10-inch tail. It has a very strong tail that it uses almost like a kickstand when it stands on its hind legs, which it does quite often. It has razor-sharp, three-inch-long claws that it uses to dig small holes in search of food. So what does he eat? A meerkat has a diet of desert grasses, almost all types of insects, and, occasionally, a scorpion. Meerkats have a rather interesting way of hunting, they line up three to ninety meters between each animal depending on the scarcity of food and run around the desert digging into the sand with their sharp claws and occasionally finding a tasty cockroach. Usually the best fed animals will have one of two jobs. The first option is to be a babysitter and take care of the cubs in the den while the others are hunting, and the second option is to be a sentry who warns if any enemy approaches. These jobs usually only go to the best-fed meerkats because it is difficult to find food in the habitat they live in and if an animal that wasn't fed very well was standing sentinel and had nothing to eat, it would likely die. They live in the hot African desert mainly in the Kalahari......middle of paper......kat as you may have noticed by now is not actually a cat. It is a member of the mongoose family. All mongooses are almost the same, the only major difference is where they live and how they have adapted to that environment. The main types of mongooses are: the mongoose, the weasel, the squirrel, the civets and the genets. Mongooses live in Asia, Africa and Europe. Mongooses are also much larger than a meerkat, but not as intelligent. Weasels live throughout the world except on islands and polar regions. Weasels are a little smaller than meerkats, but much more vulnerable. They don't have burrow systems, sharp claws, live in groups, or any of the intelligent abilities of a meerkat. Squirrels can range from one-seventh the weight of a meerkat to seven times larger than a meerkat depending on the breed. They live on almost every continent except Antarctica and nest in forests or plains.