PRANKSTERS across Essex have conjured up some rather creative April Fools' Day jokes to trick people with this morning.

The eclectic mix of jokes ranged from Essex Police trialling rabbits to locate hidden electronic devices, to the Northern Lights being captured on camera above beach huts in Brightlingsea.

Here are our top five funniest April Fools' Day jokes:

  • Police rabbit trials

Detective Inspector Rob Brettell took to Twitter to announce his team at Essex Police will be trialling ‘DigiBunnies’ which have been specifically trained to locate hidden electronic devices.

He said rabbits are much easier to transport than the dogs the force currently uses as they can fit into much smaller gaps.

  • Painting historic tower grey so it resembles an elephant

Gazette:

New look - Visit Colchester's April Fool's design for Jumbo

Visit Colchester announced this morning the town’s iconic water tower will be painted grey and have a slide installed so it resembles the elephant it was named after.

The historic tower is named Jumbo after one of Colchester Zoo’s elephants.

Its Facebook post said: “You'd be a fool not to be excited about these plans.”

Visit Colchester even went to the trouble of creating a convincing graphic illustration of the disingenuous plan.

  •  Northern Lights captured on the coast

Gazette:

Magical - Stephen Johnson's unbelievable image 

Stephen Johnson shared a striking photographer of the Aurora Borealis in the skies above Brightlingsea’s beach huts he claimed to have captured on camera.

His April Fool’s Facebook post, which he shared this morning, said: “Wow! What an amazing and rare display of the fantastic Northern lights over Brightlingsea during the night.

“This was taken around midnight.”

The photograph might be fake, but Stephen’s editing skills are no joke.

  •  Eat, drink and bump in Southend

Gazette:

Entertaining - Caddies' April Fools' poster 

A restaurant and crazy golf venue in Southend called Caddies announced the launch a Bumper Car Bar and Restaurant.

The business made a poster of people drinking cocktails while driving bumper cars inside with the slogan ‘eat, drink and bump’.

It’s Facebook post said: “Bumpies is the next crazy social entertainment concept that combines bumper cars, cocktails and burgers.”

The business said it believed this will be a fantastic addition to Southend and Essex.

  • Discovery of ‘Seahenge’

The discovery of the remains of ‘Seahenge’ in the River Stour along Mistley Walls caught social media users’ attention.

The man behind the prank said a ‘Seahenge’, named after the more famous prehistoric structure Stonehenge, in Wiltshire, was discovered this morning.

The Facebook post added: “Seahenge was apparently built in the 21st century BC, during the early Bronze Age in Britain.

“Contemporary theory is that it was used for ritual purposes.

“The site along the walls consisted of an outer ring comprising fifty-five small split oak trunks forming a roughly circular enclosure.”