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In pictures: Assam elephants swim for higher ground

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Elephants crossing
Image caption,

A herd of elephants swam through the park on Sunday

Wild elephants have been swimming away from a national park in the Indian state of Assam, which has been hit by floods.

Subhamoy Bhattacharjee photographed a herd of elephants swimming through the flooded park and crossing a national highway for drier higher ground.

During floods, hundreds of animals in one of the world's most important wildlife parks - including the highly endangered one-horned rhino along with elephants, swamp deer and tigers - move to the adjacent hills of Karbi Anglong for safety.

Traffic was held up on the highway to help the elephants cross.

The 430 sq km (166 sq mile) Kaziranga park lies on the south bank of the Brahmaputra river and is often inundated during heavy monsoon rains.

In April the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge visited the park and fed orphaned baby elephants and rhinos.

It is estimated to be home to 2,400 one-horned rhinos out of a global population of 3,300.