Meerkats
The newest additions to the animal collection at Chehaw Wild Animal Park have made their grand debut. Guests can get up-close and personal with the four male meerkats in the Zoo’s first interactive exhibit, which includes a window that looks into the animals’ underground burrow.

“The goal of this exhibit is to give guests a true glimpse into the world in which a meerkat ‘mob’ lives,” said Jan Thompson, Chehaw zoo curator and the designer of the exhibit. “Meerkats live a highly social life. Watching these brothers interact and take on specific jobs within the mob is something you can’t learn any better than by seeing the little guys for yourself.”

A Green Exhibit
The meerkats’ night house has already garnered attention of its own because it is constructed with a “green” or vegetative roof. The structure is the first of its kind in the Albany area and Chehaw’s first project that specifically incorporated green building practices.

“The green roof gives the meerkat night house better insulation, which reduces the amount of energy needed to heat and cool the space,” said Doug Porter, executive director of Chehaw. “Given our commitment to education and conservation, we expect to implement some green building practices into future projects, too.”

The Meerkat Maze is Here!
This May, Chehaw welcomes our latest addition to the Park: The Meerkat Maze. This interactive play space created by Georgia artist Chris Moore, will replicate an actual Meerkat Habitat creating a fun, educational experience for children. The Maze will demonstrate Meerkat social life and their typical living arrangements by highlighting their dens, lookout points, and burrows. Many aspects of Meerkat life will be conveyed in the exhibit, including a crow’s nest with a spyglass for children to become the sentinel Meerkat on duty keeping watch
over its savannah.