HUMANS aren't the only ones who enjoy to soak up the sun on a deck chair, when it makes an appearance.

One meerkat at West Midland Safari Park has embarked upon a deck chair challenge this summer.

Not entirely sure what do with it or on it, Sydney the meerkat decided to take it steady at first and enlisted the help of his meerkat mates. After a timely recce, he took his chance and launched himself onto the deck chair.

Meerkats are busy, inquisitive animals that enjoy new experiences, so to encounter a colourful deck chair in the sand on a sunny afternoon seemed the perfect distract. Staff at the park like to introduce something new and unusual to their lively mob of meerkats on a regular basis, as a form of enrichment.

Noel Carey, deputy head of wildlife operations, said: “Meerkats are active animals. When they get excited they will growl or bark and hold their tail high and vertical.

“One of their great passions is for digging which is why we sometimes hide mealworms in the sand.

“In the wild their burrows are as deep as two metres and every day they can dig up to several hundred times more than their body weight. They also have a membrane that covers and protects their eyes whilst they dig – rather like us wearing sunglasses.”

West Midland Safari Park has a total of twenty-four meerkats, which live in small groups in Meerkat Mayhem, located in the African Village.