Here in South Africa, we often get visits from our resident Banded Mongooses. This morning, I saw one on my birdbath. Just as I got my camera, he sensed my presence and decided to turn tail.
He soon returned with his mate. Ah that’s better, safety in numbers. They’re very timid creatures, and didn’t stay any longer than it took to have a few sips.
I opened the sliding door, and stood waiting to see if they would return, and after a few seconds, spotted a sweet little face peeking through the fence.
He looked longingly up at the birdbath, trying to pluck up courage.
Then he got really brave, and hopped up.
Suddenly realising he was was being watched, he turned and gave me the look. “What do you think you’re staring at?”
I decided to leave him in peace to quench his thirst, and went back to doing my housework, asking myself, “What is the plural of mongoose? Is it mongooses, mongeese, mongi, mongoosies, or simply mongoose?” What do you think?
Meerkatte? 😉
Same family as Meerkats but Mongooses are slightly different.
Wouwwwwwwwwwww so cute
🙂 Yes they are.
That looks adorable.
Yes, they are such cute creatures, especially the baby ones. 🙂
che delizioso quadretto! davvero una serie incantevole
in italiano il plurale è manguste…in inglese vedi tu ha ha
that delicious picture! really a lovely series
in Italian the plural ( manguste) mongooses? … in English see you ha ha
Thanks so much, Ventis. Yes, I like ‘manguste’. 😀
Thanks for the ringside view! Love the last shot 🙂
Glad you enjoyed seeing these sweet little critters. 🙂
i don’t think i’ve ever seen one but they are little cuties! great capture, Sylvia!
Thanks, Lola. Yes they are really cute little creatures. 🙂
My vote would be mongi, just because I like the sound of it 🙂 Love the last shot!
Mongi does sound very cute, which is exactly what they are. :)Thanks, Amy. Mongi does sound very cute, which is exactly what they are. 🙂
What a little cutey
Absolutely, Pommepal. 🙂
Schöne Bilder ist gut getroffen.Liebe Grüße und einen guten Tag.Gislinde
Thank you so much, Gislinde. I hope you’re having a great week. 🙂
Love the pictures ad. So cute!
Thanks, Hopestar. I should have linked this to your pet challenge. 🙂
Stop intimidating them, Sylvia. Geez! Thanks for the pictures though. Ahihihi Especially when with the one looking up.
Hey, Rommel. I’m not that scary! 😀 Glad you like my cute little neighbours.
How cute! Wonderful captures 🙂
Thanks so much, Amy. 🙂
Wonderful captures! What a precious face peeking out. I think this mongoose has a fan club. 🙂
Thanks, Jackie. Maybe he should have a facebook site.:)
Lovely photos – I particularly like the third one down where he is peeping through the fence to see if the coast is clear. 🙂
Thanks, Elaine. Yes, he had such an adorable little face. 🙂
I wonder if they make good pets 😕
We could try one and see. You can take it for walks. 🙂
What beautiful little faces. 🙂
Yes, they’re quite irresistible, LuAnn, that is until they want to come in the house. 😀
Adorable creatures 🙂
I’ll tell them you said so, Jake. 🙂
What darling little critters! I’d say the plural can be whatever you want it to be!
Aren’t they just? Yes, you’re right, Gunta. I can call them whatever I like. Thanks for your permission. 😀
What a cute little fellow he is! I have no idea what the plural is but I’m assuming it’s mongooses because that’s what you wrote (and I believe everything you say) 😀
Hahaha. Thanks for your faith in me, Dianne. 🙂
I was already contemplating the plural term while clicking the link, how funny! I opt for mongeeses 🙂 what ADORABLE photos, too, you did a great job. I’ve never seen one, so this was fun.
Thanks so much. I’m so glad you enjoyed seeing my neighbours. 🙂
I never thought about the plural of mongoose but I prefer mongoose to mongooses. In the Caribbean, the plural term preferred would be “bushmeat.” 🙂
Hahaha…….”bushmeat” is horrible! 😯 I also prefer mongoose, but I don’t think we’re right, Annette. 😕
That is really cute characters ! … My favourite photo is the fourth from the bottom … // Maria 🙂
Thanks, Maria. Yes, he has such a sweet look on his face in that pic. 🙂
What a cute neighbor you have Sylvia 🙂
By the way I prefer to use the word mongooses for the plural of mongoose.
Yes, they are cute, Chris. I think you are correct with mongooses. 🙂
Thanks for sharing this glimpse of life there. We don’t have mongoose around here.
You’re welcome Juliann. Glad you enjoyed. 🙂
Gorgeous. Mongeese?
If you insist, Julie. 🙂
So cute! It must be incredible to see Mongeese (????) in the wild like this! I love them ever since I read Rikki Tikki Tavi 🙂
Thanks, Sherri. I haven’t read Rikki Tikki Tavi. What have I missed out on?
Ahh Sylvia, it is a short story written by Rudyard Kipling. I remember reading it when I was quite young and was fascinated by it. It’s about a family who adopt a mongoose that they rescue and in turn it protects them from a cobra. Rikki Tikki Tavi is very brave! I was terrified of the cobra! It’s a wonderful story. Here’s the Amazon link I found for you if you want to find out more! http://www.amazon.co.uk/Rikki-Tikki-Tavi-Rudyard-Kipling/dp/1617205397 xx
Whoa! How amazing is that?!
Much more interesting then our raccoon in the bird feeder, or the trash can. 🙂
Hehehe. I guess these are just smaller, and therefore cuter. 🙂
Aww, that cute little face peeping through the fence! That is a lovely shot, Ad.
In Polish they often add ‘i’ to make a plural so just for the fun of it, I’m going with mongoosi. 🙂 Nah, it doesn’t look right, does it?
Oh yes, I love mongoosi, even if it does look kinda funny. 😀
What cuties! Because the plural of goose is geese, I’m going with mongeese. But I’m blonde. What do I know?!
You’re blonde?? I really hadn’t noticed……… 😆 So am I, and I prefer mongeese. 🙂
Us blondes must stick together. Mongeese wins!
That must be an exciting to have these guesses (plural).. By the way, I just read that Meercat is also mongoose family.
Yes they are lovely to have around, as long as they don’t get in the house. Meerkats are even cuter especially when they stand on their hind legs. 🙂
How lovely and I like that you created a cute story around their explorations. That little fellow really was watching you.
Thanks so much. I’m happy you enjoyed my story and pics. 🙂
It’s mongooses which sounds a bit weird. It makes more sense to say mongeese if you ask me… 🙂
Absolutely, TA. I agree with you.
You have got a new playmate I can see … he is just adorable – I would love to class this monkey business, but it’s not … right. Fantastic shots you captured of him.
Thanks so much, Viveka. We do get monkeys too…..lots of them. 🙂
Yes, that is what I had in mind when I saw the first image.
Where ever you live …. you have very exciting surroundings. All I see once in a while is the neighbors cat. Not many strange creatures where I live.
Not even two legged ones? 🙂
Plenty of them around *smile
i would go with mongeese, but I could be basing that on their flying cousins! He looks so cute and timid, and a little bit of mischief in those eyes I think 🙂
What a great way to be distracted from housework!
Yes, they were very entertaining, Seonaid. Glad you enjoyed seeing them, 🙂
What a lovely fella!!!!
According to Wikipedia: “The word “mongoose” is derived from the Marathi name mungus (मुंगूस) (pronounced as [muŋɡuːs]), perhaps ultimately from Dravidian (cf. Telugu mungeesa (ముంగిస), Kannada mungisi (ಮುಂಗಿಸಿ)). The form of the English name (since 1698) was altered to its “-goose” ending by folk-etymology.[3] It has no etymological connection with the word goose. The plural form is mongooses,[4] or, rarely, mongeese.[5] It has also been spelled “mungoose”. Take your pick!!! 😉
Thanks for checking, Marina. I think I got there just before you did. It’s very interesting that the name is actually a corruption of the Marathi name. I rather like Mungus, but then what would the plural of that be, munguses or mungusses? 😀
😆 😆
A very cute little guy Sylvia. Well done on the patience! 🙂
Thanks, Adrian. You certainly know all about patience, when it comes to photography. This was nothing. 😀
Mongoose watching MUCH more interesting than housework Sylvia 🙂
He is cute one from those pictures . A comment in the visitor’s book at one of the cottages we stayed at recently was about keeping the doors shut because the ‘ mangoes ‘ will run in and out …. would have loved to have seen !
It’s great to know that the population is thriving. If you leave them an egg or two, and you have patience, you could get some marvellous photographs. Very funny to watch them bouncing eggs off walls 🙂
Mostly, after googling (cheater!) it appears that mongooses is the preferred, but preferred by whom? I kind of like mongeese. But then I can be arbitrary. 😉
These pix are adorable!
Monguys and mongals, obviously.
They’re very cute! Until they bite you, I suppose…
Well, obviously, El G! How come I never thought of that. 😀 I don’t think they would bite me, but won’t test my theory. 🙂
I think they are mongooses Sylvia. Cute characters, though they can make a real mess of a rubbish bin! We have some critter digging up our containers at the moment and scattering soil all over the place – thought it was a bird, but now thinking it might be squirrels! (I shall have to get up early and see if I can catch it in the act)
Jude xx
We have to be really careful with rubbish bags here, as we also have monkeys, who are real foragers for anything remotely edible.
So are you in South Africa now then? Do you have a home in each country? Or do you live with friends /relatives when you are in SA / UK. Just being horribly nosey, and quite envious!
I’m voting Mongeese because then perhaps they are related to our Canadian Geese. Dont look much alike though. 🙂 So cute! Do they cause any damage to the property?
Hahaha. I haven’t noticed them causing any mess here, but if they did, the gardeners would soon clear it up.
Oh that’s good. In Canada there can be a problem with rodents getting into your home.
My trusty Oxford says mongooses. They are just the cutest little animals and I miss them up here.
Love the last shot the most.
Thanks, Pussycat. Yes, they have very cute faces. 🙂
Another creature I’ve never seen. They’re so cute. 🙂
Glad you enjoyed seeing these cute creatures, Lisa. 🙂
Ouw… really adorable pict Sylvia…fantastic!
Thanks, Della Anna. 🙂
This post might interest you:
http://blog.londolozi.com/2012/07/what-is-the-plural-of-mongoose/
Yes, I saw this, and commented. 🙂
Sweet! Colonialist shared some shots of the mongooses in his yard. From a quick google, mongooses is the plural. But mongeese is used at times too.
Yes, Colonialist lives only a few miles away from me. 🙂
Would it be mongeese? lol cute lil rascals 🙂
Yes they are. I can’t think why they should be either goose or geese, as they have four legs and no feathers. 🙂
Now if they did have feathers they would be quite something huh lol
Hehehe Too funny! 😀
😀