Birds get right up buffalo's nose. Literally

These busy birds look like they're getting right up this buffalo's nose.

The tiny oxpeckers feed almost entirely on parasites found on large mammals - and these ones seemed to be having a feast as they cleaned out one buffalo's nostrils and ears at the same time.

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Amateur photographer Nico van Amstel was tickled by the buffalo's indignant expression as his face became a feeding ground for the flock of birds as he tried to munch his own dinner.

But the buffalo's cavities were undoubtedly left much cleaner than it had been to start with.

Nico, from Alkmaar, in the Netherlands, took the pictures while on safari in Tanzania.

He said: "I was so pleased when I looked at this shot close up.

"It's normal for the birds to feed off what they can find on the buffalos' skin, and the big animals don't usually mind.

"But it was great to see so many birds on one buffalo's face at once.

"I love photographing wild animals - it is exciting, like hunting, with with so much more respect for nature."

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Pig Beach, or Pig Island, is an uninhabited island in Exuma, the Bahamas, famed for its many swimming pigs. They are said to have been dropped off on the island by sailors who wanted to return to cook and eat them, but never returned. Others say the pigs survived a shipwreck and managed to swim to the island. Today, the pigs are fed by tourists who visit the island to meet its unexpected residents.