The animal kingdom can be a funny place. Just when you think an animal is king of their domain, you realize just how much they live in mutual harmony and depend on others.
This baby hippo recently had his first taste of the symbiotic relationship between oxpeckers and hippos. I believe someone forgot to send him a particular memo on cohabitation.
Hippos and birds normally have a mutually beneficial relationship. The birds help free hippos of ticks and other parasites by feeding on them.
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Cater News Agency / Marc Mol
But at the Zambia National Zoo, this baby hippo was having none of it! He screamed with all his might for its mama to help.
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Cater News Agency / Marc Mol
He even tried running to water, and shaking for several minutes to get them off.
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Cater News Agency / Marc Mol
He eventually calmed down and just “went with it.”
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Cater News Agency / Marc Mol
…for about ten seconds before he tried to get them off again!
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Cater News Agency / Marc Mol
The photographer witnessed the entire ordeal: “I was busy concentrating on a pod of hippos, when all of a sudden I saw the baby running toward me with his pursuers. I was at first astonished as to what was going on, seeing this baby hippo running towards me and the safety of water and then realised it was a small flock of Ox-peckers that were the culprits. It was very amusing to witness. The baby hippo was clearly not used to the Red & Yellow oxpeckers on his back.”
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Cater News Agency / Marc Mol
(via Daily Mail)
This baby hippo will come to learn the benefit of having these little guys in his life in due time. Until then, he’s just like every little kid who doesn’t eat their vegetables — one eye roll away from timeout.
