Did You Know Deer Eat Meat?

Did you know deer eat meat? Yeah, me neither, 'til I stumbled across this video of a buck devouring a live bird. As you can see, two birds are dive-bombing a buck in an effort to keep it away from another bird struggling to fly. I am assuming it's their baby. I guess, unlike me, they knew the deer was a true threat. Suddenly, the deer picks the bird up off the ground and devours it.

You hear the woman in the video exclaim, "Oh my goodness, he ate a bird! Michael, he ate a bird! He ate a bird! Did you see that?"

I think I was as equally shocked with the video footage. Although I'd heard of other herbivores, such as hippos, eating meat, I'd never even considered that deer enjoy the occasional meaty treat as well.

This video peaked my curiosity, spurring me to search for more incidences of deer eating meat. Surprisingly, I found several.

A USGS article quotes biologists who observed deer dining on nestling birds and elk eating bird eggs. The biologists say that, while this meat-eating behavior is not common, it's not unusual either, and that the animals are simply taking advantage of a quick, easy and nutritious meal.

Some biologists suggest that deer eat meat when their calcium levels are low.

Check out these other videos and images of deer eating meat.

Video of a deer eating a squirrel.

Video of a deer eating a piece of steak.

Outdoor Life image of a deer feeding from a gut pile.

Have you ever witnessed a deer eating meat?