It appears like us humans aren't the only ones who are selfie-obsessed. We all remember the copyright controversy surrounding the monkey selfie, the octopus who grabbed the camera, and the grotesque but amazing barfing dog selfie.
Now another animal is making headlines for taking one of most unique vacation photos captured on camera — the "elphie."
It's common for tourists to snap a few selfies while on vacation, but this 22-year-old didn't need a selfie stick to help fit his new friend into the shot. While standing next to an elephant during a trip on the Thai island of Koh Phangan, the elephant snatched up this tourist's camera to capture an elephant selfie, better known as the "elphie."
Vancouver, British Columbia, native Christian LeBlanc came across a few elephants while exploring the Thai island with his girlfriend. The pair bought some bananas to feed the gentle beasts, but one elephant in particular proved to be a ham.
When the couple ran out of bananas, the elephant began using his trunk to search for more food. The elephant then grabbed LeBlanc's GoPro, which was set to continuous shooting, allowing the elephant to take its very own selfie.
Let's get this Elfie on Ellen Degeneres! #ElfieOnEllen @theellenshow
A photo posted by Christian LeBlanc (@christian_leblanc) on May 19, 2015 at 7:16am PDT
"I got the selfie of a lifetime, which I can't take full credit for," LeBlanc told ABC News. “Elephants are incredibly intelligent and it definitely makes you wonder if it was a conscious action.” Although the photo was taken about two months ago, the elphie has made headlines across the web, along with over 4,000 likes on the photo that was posted on LeBlanc's Instagram account. While the elephant's selfie with this tourist is certainly unique, it's not the first elphie ever taken. When a visitor to a United Kingdom safari park dropped their phone near an elephant last year, the animal reportedly picked the phone up and captured the world's first elphie. Since his cameo in the elphie-making headlines, LeBlanc has stepped up his own animal selfie game. He recently took an underwater photo with a whale shark while in the Philippines, and a selfie with a turtle two days ago.
Travel is temporary, selfies are forever. Had a whale of a time swimming alongside 10 of these gentle giants today! A photo posted by Christian LeBlanc (@christian_leblanc) on May 20, 2015 at 9:52am PDT
On these occasions, he didn't need any help from the animals.
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Photo: Ted | Flickr
