Previously on Meerkat Manor...
Roving season kicked off in style...
with Daisy's Ubuntu girls becoming moving targets
for Hakuna Matata rovers.
First, serial dater Shandy,
then his brother Belphegor.
A dust storm whipped through the Manor...
During which three of Swift's eldest daughters disappeared,
leaving the treacherous Pandi as her most senior subordinate.
As the breeding season heats up in the Kalahari,
family changes are underway.
The imminent arrival of new borns exposes tensions...
and causes rifts.
But from these divisions, new alliances can form...
and new dynasties may rise.
Fortune can favour the brave but...
those departing must make smart choices...
or get lucky.
Life has already changed at the Whiskers.
It's been two weeks since Bones, Crimson and Epsilon left home,
leaving Swift short of three senior females.
Their disappearance has come at a bad time.
She's nearing the end of her pregnancy
and is going to need all the babysitting help she can get
with her third litter this year.
But right now, her hormones are raging
and she's evicting anyone who could pose a danger
to her new pups.
Last night, she kicked out daughters Pandi and Mercy.
Pandi proved untrustworthy earlier in the year
when she attacked her mother
in an aggressive attempted coup.
She's hardly redeemed herself;
offering little help since becoming Swift's deputy.
And, if she's been seduced by a rover,
she could also be pregnant...
...making her the greatest domestic threat
to Swift's new litter.
Mercy may also be a problem.
But this morning,
the two evictees are still hovering nearby -
in the desperate hope that their mother will change her mind.
Swift is normally resolute in these matters.
But her decision to evict the pair
exacerbates her childcare problem.
She's effectively sacked her nannies before hiring new ones.
But could she really consider
giving treacherous Pandi another chance?
Or has their relationship reached the point of no return?
While Swift is having problems with her daughters,
Ubuntu matriarch Daisy has girl trouble of her own.
It's her daughters' dating profiles
that are giving her a headache.
For the past few weeks,
her patch has become the go-to hang out
for every frisky young buck on the manor.
But woe-betide anyone who falls for their charms.
Pregnant daughters here face the same fate as everywhere else.
To add to Daisy's problems,
her two eldest females Ricky and Wren have recently vanished.
And this morning, The Native has gone too.
It's all getting a bit much.
Daisy leans heavily on the help
and without her best babysitters to supervise,
the kids are running amok.
It's a situation she could well do without,
now that she too is pregnant again.
Still, routines must be stuck to,
and she heads out in search of a hearty breakfast.
But it's her son Mik-kel who hits the jackpot.
A bird's egg is tough to crack
but once he's in, Daisy can't resist.
Sunny side up or scrambled -
it's too good for a lowly subordinate!
Poor Mikkel!
While Daisy and her boys are distracted...
they miss...
not just one...
but two mystery males heading their way.
It looks like Daisy's headache
is about to get a whole lot worse.
A short distance away, Hakuna Matata rover Belphagor
is also seeking his luck in Ubuntu territory.
But this time, he's brought a sidekick...
...his nephew, Gurke.
With barely six months between them,
the boys are like brothers
and the partnership is already bearing fruit.
They've scored a double date with none other than...
Daisy's missing duo: Ricky and Wren.
Together, this foursome has enormous potential.
If one couple can make a go of it,
and the other two accept them, they could start a new family.
A new dynasty even!
With either Ricky or Wren as matriarch.
But being shy and inexperienced,
no-one wants to make the first move.
Eventually Belphagor plucks up the courage
to make a move on Ricky.
That's a no.
Gurke tries his luck with Wren.
No thank you!
Wren then makes a play for Belphagor.
Now, this looks promising!
With this move, Wren fires the starter gun
on the race to be dominant female.
But where there are winners, there are losers.
Young Gurke eyes up Ricky.
But she barely notices him.
The chemistry just isn't there.
Leaving this one awkward double date.
Further south,
things are getting increasingly uncomfortable at the Whiskers.
All eyes are trained
on Swift's evicted daughters, Pandi and Mercy,
who are refusing to leave.
Swift is ready to call time on this unhappy relationship.
There'll be no pandering to Pandi.
Or clemency for Mercy.
The younger girls are unsettled by their mother's ruthlessness.
It could be one of them next.
Brea has seen all this mother-daughter drama before.
It's not his business to get involved.
But he can show his support,
with a confident swipe of his scent gland...
which reminds everyone that he's the man around here.
Job done, Swift resumes the day's other priorities.
Family feuds are exhausting.
She'd just like to forget all about it and move on.
In Ubuntu territory, the two rovers are still lurking
unnoticed by Daisy and her family...
who are otherwise occupied.
The mystery boys are Pixie, and his brother Jay.
They're from neighbouring group - the Zulus.
There's no love lost between the two families
but the brothers are here to find some.
Daisy is exhausted
from being lumbered with the kids all morning.
but just as she settles down, her lookout spots something.
Not the advancing rovers who are keeping a low profile.
But someone else
whose world has already been turned upside down.
How the tortoise got like this is anyone's guess...
but with no-one coming to his rescue...
he's left to sort himself out.
The temporary distraction has bought Pixie and Jay
enough time to move in closer...
Where they discover
that the only eligible females Daisy has left
are Magalee and Mamoof.
Two sisters for two brothers.
Perfect!
If the boys can split Ubuntus defences
with a two-pronged attack, they could be in with a chance.
But Daisy clocks the intruders.
Pixie turns on his heels and everyone falls in to give chase...
...but he vanishes.
His tactic leaves Ubuntu's right flank exposed -
giving Jay an unguarded way in.
Oh no you don't!
Lost him.
Pixie reappears...
and the chase is on again!
He narrowly escapes a severe beating from Scar.
While Mikkel sends Jay packing.
Despite their daring manoeuvres,
the Zulu boys leave empty-handed.
Oh well.
Some you win, some you lose.
For Daisy, victory over the Zulu rovers
puts a temporary end
to the mayhem surrounding her daughters.
She may yet retain a few to help with the childcare.
Family planning of a different sort
is preoccupying the last of Daisy's missing daughters,
The Native.
While her family has been chasing off rovers,
she's been courting the attentions of one.
And she's on the brink of landing herself quite a catch.
As his tracking collar would indicate,
Lewie was, until recently,
the dominant male of a group called Namakwa.
But, having been kicked out by his partner's new man,
he's now single again, and available.
Unfortunately for The Native, Lewie doesn't have the air
of one in a hurry to settle down again.
Tired of waiting for him to make a move,
she takes the initiative.
And, dispensing with the small talk,
makes her admiration for him abundantly clear.
Lewie, divorced dad of 15 ,
turns out to be more than happy to father a few more.
Unfortunately, The Native doesn't have much experience
of roving males.
She's about to learn the hard way
that all too often they'll love you,
then leave you.
And, sure enough, having taken full advantage
of the young hopeful, Lewie slips away.
Leaving The Native to ponder their brief encounter
and what might have been.
Things are finally hotting up for the absent Ubuntu girls
on their double date.
Ricky has crashed Wren and Belphagor's grooming party.
She turns her attention to Wren,
as Belphagor makes his move on her.
Poor Gurke doesn't know where to look.
Thankfully, something distracts his eye
but there's no escape!
He's surrounded by Spring fever.
Behind him, Ricky has now given up,
leaving would-be dominants Wren and Belphagor to it.
It looks like uncle Belphagor has got this wrapped-up.
Or... maybe not?
Wren is keeping her options open.
Gurke seizes his chance and Wren responds positively
to the youngster's rather bold approach.
Belphagor has missed his moment to shine.
How could it all go so wrong so quickly?
The new lovers embrace...
for 20 minutes!
Belphagor should be putting up a fight for dominance...
but instead, he opts for a nap.
It's too hot to bother contesting it.
As long as Ricky doesn't challenge her,
Wren will most likely be crowned leader.
But it's still very early days.
And The course of true love never did run smooth .
As the sun sets on a complicated day,
the drama is far from over at the Whiskers burrow.
Swift and the rest of the family are on edge
as they arrive back for the night.
They have company.
Pandi and Mercy have still not accepted
they are no longer welcome...
and are loitering with intent.
Pandi has good reason to want readmission.
As Swift's eldest daughter,
she stands to inherit the Whiskers crown,
but she can only do that from within the family.
Cast adrift, she'll be just another evictee
in the wilderness.
With her pups due any day now, Swift could really use the help.
But Pandi can't be trusted.
Swift needs to put an end to this.
Once and for all.
Finally, the girls get the message.
Swift won't allow anyone to endanger her family.
Her decisive move
would have made her great-grandmother Flower, proud.
But the turmoil of family change may not yet be over...
...and for others on the Manor, it has only just begun.
After seven months of drought,
that thirst is being quenched.
In Hakuna Matata territory,
Gurke has returned home.
He's welcomed back with a good dousing of Hakuna Matata scent.
Ubuntu leader Daisy is over halfway through her pregnancy.
The biggest threat she faces is not from rovers,
but from her closest kin.