Meerkat Manor: Flower Of The Kalahari
Publisher: Weidenfeld & Nicolson (November 2007)
Meerkat Manor is the true-life story of Flower, the heroine of the successful Meerkat Manor series and the dominant female of Whiskers group. It is the story of Flower’s birth to Holly, the group’s breeding female who was later replaced by tow nieces in turn, until Whiskers was at risk of being driven from its range by powerful neighbours. It is the story of how Flower was banished from the group by one of them and was only saved from certain death by her cousin’s sudden demise. Finally, it is the story of how Flower returned to the group and acquired the dominant position herself, tried to breed and failed, and then, in the nick of time, suppressed her competitors and reared three successive litters of pups, saving herself and her group from losing their range to their rivals and securing her position as queen of Whiskers – and of all she surveys.
It is also the story of how Tim Clutton-Brook and his team have come to understand how meerkat societies operate. Meerkats may be cute, funny, affectionate, amusing, cuddly, playful, fearless and amazingly unselfish, but they can also be vicious, ruthless, murderous, uncaring, infanticidal and vindictive. Selfless co-operation and intense conflict are both necessary components of their lives which are played out with all the drama of a human soap opera. Meerkat Manor not only describes what meerkats do but explains why they do it, providing important insights into the working of other animal societies and the evolution of co-operative and competitive behaviour in other animals, including humans.
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