There’s nothing worse than having an itch that you can’t scratch, and it’s doubly terrible if you’re a fully grown elephant in Kenya.
One elephant had to resort to desperate measures when it sought to cure an irritation on its bottom, unable to extend its trunk far enough or bend its neck sufficiently to utilize its huge tusks.
Instead of rubbing against a trunk, the clever elephant slowly lowers itself to have a wonderful scratch against a giant anthill in these amusing pictures.
It was fortunate not to be covered in irritable ant bites when it rubbed against the earthy mound, which was probably not the finest scratching post.
The photographs were taken by Kenyan photographer Usha Harish, 36, who was documenting the elephants in Amboseli National Park.
‘The elephants were completely unanticipated. They were retreating to the bushes after having spent the day in the marsh, drinking, basking, and dusking.’ ‘Usha said.
‘They crossed the track where our vehicle was, and after about 120 ft, the elephants paused for a while. There was a small termite hill, and suddenly I saw the female elephant scratching her bottom.’
‘Another female elephant followed her, and both wanted to scratch themselves together. One gave way, and the other female happily scratched her back to glory as she walked off.’
It was amusing and exciting to see the enormous creature perform such behavior in the open and on a termite hill, which is rare. It was adorable to observe. I’ve recorded many amusing animal behaviors, so I’d love to witness anything similar again.’
