Helpful birds eagerly clean buffalo's nostril

During a late afternoon safari in the Kruger National Park, South Africa, these people came across a small herd of buffalo bulls lying down in the long grass. One buffalo in particular caught their attention. He was resting his head backwards against another herd member’s side. His head was facing upwards with his nose and mouth straight up in the air. Suddenly two birds came bouncing around the head of the buffalo. These birds are called oxpeckers and they are on the buffalo for a very good reason. They are looking for ticks and parasites such as blood-sucking flies, fleas and lice that they consume as food. Amazingly they also remove earwax, grease and even mucus from the buffalo’s hard to reach places such as around the eyes, nose, mouth and ears!