By Martin Ruffell
THIS LITTLE egret picked the worst possible place to stand when it got blasted with urine from a massive rhino.
The small snowy white egret, which weighs less than one-pound, could be seen exploring the long grass behind a huge 2500-pound black rhino.
All of a sudden, the male rhino decided to relieve itself and in doing so, it showered the unfortunate bird in gallons of urine but despite the nasty surprise, the egret continued to follow the rhino – seemingly unfazed by the surprise shower.
The amazing images were captured by photographer Nagaraj Tilakraj (40) from Nairobi, Kenya, who was visiting Nairobi National Park with his family when he witnessed the hilarious event unfold from just 30-feet away. Much to the egret’s shock, male rhinos pee behind them as they have a curved penis.
“I was watching the egret as it followed the rhino from right behind and I was just anticipating what was about to happen,” Nagaraj said.
“The egret got completely showered, but it still followed on looking remarkably comfortable. It was truly committed to following the rhino no matter what.
“My son loves rhinos and giraffes and so we drove to Nairobi national park in the hope that we would be able to see these wonderful creatures.
“We came across a good number of rhinos at a place called Murram pit. I was driver-cum-photographer so I one hand steering and the other trying to hold my camera steady.
“The rhinos were resting at first and then walked around marking their territory before the action happened.
“Maybe this wasn’t the first time this had happened to the egret.”
Rhinos are notorious pee-ers and can shoot their urine over 16-feet away allowing them to show off in front of viable female mates. Rhinos also share a special connection with egrets – allowing them to sit on their backs as egrets eat ticks and other insects that would otherwise be pests to the large horned creature.
Nagaraj captured the photos on his Canon 7D Mark 2 camera with a 400mm F5.6 lens.
