Just A Cat-Like Critter, Chillin' On A Rhino

A cat-like creature in Africa that became a social media sensation after it was spotted hitching rides on rhinos and buffaloes is at it again -- and this time her antics were caught on video. 

The little critter is a genet, a spotted carnivore who was captured on video riding an endangered black rhino in South Africa's Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park.

Wildlife ACT, which helps monitor endangered animals in the park and other locations in Africa, dubbed her Genet Jackson last year after she was photographed several times getting a lift. 

The organization said the footage released last week is believed to be the first time this behavior has been documented on video. The "very grumpy black rhino" briefly tolerates the genet before bucking and running in what may be an attempt to shake her off. 

As it fades out of camera range, the genet is seen clinging to the rhino's back. 

"This grumpy rhino certainly didn’t make things easy for our hitchhiking friend," the organization wrote.

The image is a little reminiscent of the children's book "Riley The Rhinoceros" about a good-natured rhino willing to give rides to baby animals, but who is exploited by all the larger creatures that want a lift. 

The genet -- or perhaps it's Miss Jackson, if you're nasty -- even has her own Twitter account, which was set up by Wildlife ACT last year.

While the genet looks a little like a cat and even has some cat-like behaviors, it's actually part of the viverridae family, which makes it more closely related to civets and linsangs. 

Craig Sholley, wildlife biologist and vice president of the African Wildlife Foundation, told National Geographic that the genet on the rhino probably wasn't looking for a ride so much as searching for food. 

Along with the tasty bugs crawling on the larger animal, being higher up gives the genet an advantage in hunting. 

"It’s novel, but nothing in the world of nature surprises me anymore," Sholley told the website. "That’s why I keep going back to Africa." 

Wildlife ACT agreed there's no way of knowing for sure just what the genet was up to. 

"We have learnt through the years never to assume that we know exactly what is going on in the bush," the organization wrote.