Irresistible
Photograph by Mattias Klum

Feed me? Cuddle me? Whatever this four-week-old pup wants, there’s likely to be a grown-up meerkat nearby ready to meet the need. Group members take turns providing day care—even though baby-sitting means going without food all day. “Well-cared-for pups grow up to be generous helpers themselves,” says University of Cambridge biologist Tim Clutton-Brock, “and that lightens the workload for every member of the group.”