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(14/01/2009)

A group of elephants has been filmed dealing with sibling rivalry in an unusually direct way - with their tusks.

The elephant mum was caught on film ticking off her child, Buster, during the making of a new natural history series for the BBC.

The series follows the normally gentle giants of Kenya's Samburu reserve.

Buster, for six years the only offspring to his mother Harbatten, has become a big boy after monopolising her milk.

But as the Telegraph reports, the arrival of a little sister on the scene shook up the family order, with jealous Buster pushing baby Breeze from her mother's side, and trying to disrupt the parent-baby bond.

For elephants, actions speak louder than words - and Buster quite literally got the point when his mother gave him a sharp poke with her tusks.

Presenter Saba Douglas-Hamilton said the incident was a surprise for experts and jealous son alike, but that Buster had become more independent after his prod in the right direction.

"He was clearly very confused and shocked because she'd never done this before," she added.

The Secret Life of Elephants begins on Wednesday 14 January at 9pm on BBC One.