My Favourite Places: Melbourne Zoo and Its Marvellous Meerkats
Melbourne Zoo is another of my favourite places, and it has been part of so many family days out. There's always something new to discover, but there's one spot I keep coming back to: the meerkats.
The Story of Melbourne Zoo
Melbourne Zoo opened in 1862, which makes it the oldest zoo in Australia (Victorian Heritage Database). Its official name is still the Royal Melbourne Zoological Gardens.
The zoo grew out of the Zoological Society of Victoria, formed in 1857, which first kept a small collection of animals in temporary enclosures at the Royal Botanic Gardens. In 1862 the animals moved to a permanent home in Royal Park, where the zoo still stands today (State Library Victoria). By the 1880s, a day at the zoo was already one of Melbourne's favourite pastimes.
Today the zoo sits just 4 km north of the city and is home to more than 320 species from Australia and around the world. It's known for its beautiful gardens, its butterfly house (the inspiration for my Australian Butterflies wall calendar), and its focus on conservation and fighting wildlife extinction.
Why I Love the Meerkats
I love many parts of the zoo, but the meerkats are my favourite. I could watch them for hours: one standing tall on lookout, others digging, chasing and tumbling over each other.
Most people stop, laugh and move on, because meerkats look like the comedians of the animal world. But the more I watched them through my lens, the more I realised there's a lot more going on behind those curious faces.
Meerkats: Cute, But Tough Survivors
Meerkats look funny and adorable, but in the wild they're tough little survivors of the Kalahari and Namib deserts in southern Africa. Here are some facts that surprised me:
- They belong to the mongoose family. Meerkats are not related to cats at all; they're small carnivores, also known as suricates.
- They live in mobs. Groups of about 20 to 30, sometimes more, usually led by a dominant female and male.
- Someone is always on guard. While the mob forages, a sentinel stands tall on a mound or branch and watches for eagles, jackals and snakes. Its alarm calls can tell the others what kind of danger is coming and how urgent it is (SANBI).
- The sentinel takes the biggest risk. It's the first in line if a predator strikes, and it misses out on food while the others eat.
- They eat scorpions. Meerkats bite off the stinger, then rub the scorpion in the sand to remove remaining venom. Adults teach the pups how to do it.
- They can handle some venoms. Meerkats tolerate certain scorpion and snake venoms far better than we do, though not every venom.
- They gang up on predators. Together, a mob can mob and even drive off a snake that wanders into its territory.
- Their burrows are huge. A single burrow system can have as many as 70 entrances, so the mob can vanish underground in an instant.
- Built for the desert. They can close their ears while digging to keep sand out, and the dark patches around their eyes help cut the sun's glare.
- Rival mobs fight hard. Territories can overlap, and fights between mobs can be deadly.
So the next time you see a meerkat standing upright, it isn't posing for the camera. It's on duty, keeping its family alive.
A Must for Animal Lovers: Zoos Victoria Membership
If you love animals as much as we do, a Zoos Victoria membership is absolutely worth it. One membership gives you unlimited entry, every day of the year, to all four Zoos Victoria zoos (Zoos Victoria):
- Melbourne Zoo
- Werribee Open Range Zoo, where I photographed my Safari Animals wall calendar
- Healesville Sanctuary
- Kyabram Fauna Park
Members also get free entry to five interstate zoos, including Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Adelaide Zoo and Perth Zoo. Kids under 16 join free with an adult membership from the same household, and you can pay in monthly instalments. It also makes a wonderful gift for any animal lover.
Prices change from time to time, so check zoo.org.au for the latest.
My Meerkat Calendar
All those hours watching the meerkats have given me some of my favourite animal photos: sentinels standing tall, curious faces peeking out, and mobs huddled together in the sun.
I've turned them into a Meerkat wall calendar, 12 months of these clever little survivors. It's a perfect gift for meerkat fans, families and anyone who loves a day at the zoo.
It's part of a new set of animal calendars, alongside the Safari Animals, Echidnas and Rainbow Lorikeets wall calendars.
