First to fame was meerkat Timon, making his singing and dancing debut in The Lion King. Then meerkat Aleksandr entranced the small screen with Baltic charm, and now Oliver Twist, a meerkat orphan from Scotland is suckling his way into the nation's hearts.
Undeniably one cannot compare the meerkats, but this adorable baby meerkat is barely two weeks old and can be held in the palm of a hand.
His Dickensian name was given to him after his mother rejected him, despite caring for his eight brothers and sisters.
Miles and miles from the Kalahari desert, where meerkats traditionally roam, Oliver the meerkat is being looked after by substitute mothers and fathers at St Andrews Aquariam in Fife. Staff have set up a round-the-clock watch for the vulnerable baby meerkat.
Andrew Whiston, displays manager at St Andrews Aquarium, commented: "Maternal rejection in the animal kingdom is largely unexplained but, for whatever reason, poor Oliver Twist has been left out in the proverbial cold by his mother when he is just only days old.
"While we ordinarily don't like to interfere with nature's course, we certainly weren't prepared to see any harm come to this little man which means, in very simple terms, that we have stepped in to feed and nurse Oliver until he matures.
"Between us we've set up a care rota which ensures he is fed every two hours, day and night, and we're working to keep him warm and safe. Our team is literally working around the clock to care for this little fella and, once he's bigger and stronger, we hope to be able to re-introduce him back into the pack as a mature meerkat."
