Young Buck Forgets Who It Is and Swallows a Bird… And The Bird’s Family Comes For Revenge!

To most people, deer are kind and gentle creatures that frolic in the forest. Whether it’s children’s movies or books that paint this friendly version of the animal, everyone seems to agree that does and bucks are peaceful.

However, a recent YouTube video has exposed another side of deer. While the animal still appeared peaceful in the clip, it had no problem making a meal out of a bird. It may shock many animal enthusiasts to witness a buck eating meat, but it does show just how complex these animals are.

In the following sections, we’ll explore a deer’s normal diet, why one might eat meat, and how the birds responded to the unfortunate encounter.

What Is a Deer’s Normal Diet?

Even though most deer are herbivores, their diet varies depending on the species and region in which they live.

As resources become scarce in fall and winter, deer consume more twigs, stems, buds, and leaves. However, once the weather starts to warm up in the spring and early summer, their diet shifts to more tender grasses, clover, and flowering plants.

Outside of those two major groups, deer also occasionally eat:

• Apples
• Persimmons
• Berries
• Acorns
• Crops

Is Meat Part of a Normal Deer Diet?

Meat isn’t usually part of a deer’s normal diet. Since these creatures are herbivores, their digestive system is specifically adapted to process plant-based material. They also have an incredible four-chambered stomach and a unique jaw structure perfect for grinding and fermenting fibrous plants.

While all these unique characteristics make deer well-equipped to eat a variety of vegetation, there are rare instances when a doe or buck might eat something outside their regular diet. For instance, some scientists have documented certain deer species eating eggs, carrion, or small birds, as shown in the video. Even though most experts consider these behaviors opportunistic, the likely driving force behind the action is one of the following:

• The deer has a mineral deficiency
• The deer is under stress
• The deer is facing extreme environmental conditions

Are Deer Dangerous to Other Animals?

Generally speaking, deer are not aggressive animals outside of mating season. In most environments, they prefer to avoid confrontation and spend their time grazing, resting, or keeping an eye out for predators.

However, that doesn’t mean deer can’t defend themselves or show aggression in specific situations. For example, bucks can become territorial during mating season and may act aggressively toward other bucks. These displays often include antler clashes and posturing, but in rare cases, deer may lash out with their hooves if they feel cornered or threatened.

When it comes to interactions with non-predator animals, deer are generally indifferent and typically share feeding areas with birds, rodents, or smaller mammals without issue. But they can react defensively if startled or irritated, especially while feeding or caring for young.

That said, it’s important to view incidents like the one in the video as anomalies, not as a change in typical behavior.

Could This Behavior Become More Common?

While a buck eating a bird is rare, many researchers are beginning to wonder whether environmental conditions are changing the foraging behaviors of animals across the country.

Climate change, habitat loss, and seasonal shifts could affect food availability in certain regions, causing some animals to adapt to a new diet. As nutrient-rich plants become harder to find, herbivores like deer may begin to explore more opportunistic food sources.

How Do Bird Parents Typically Defend Their Young?

Even though the bird in the video didn’t survive, there are many well-documented cases of bird parents stepping in quickly and successfully defending a nest or their chicks.

Many bird species have developed impressive defensive behaviors for warding off predators. Some, like those in the video, will dive-bomb or peck at attackers that get too close. Others use sharp, repeated alarm calls to signal danger to nearby birds and chicks, sometimes causing an entire group of birds to respond in unison.

Species like mockingbirds, crows, and swallows are known to fearlessly confront much larger animals, such as raccoons, snakes, and even people, when their young are threatened. In ground-nesting birds, such as killdeer, parents may use a “broken wing” display to distract predators and lure them away from their nests.

While birds can’t physically overpower most threats, they often succeed in creating enough confusion or deterrence to give their chicks a better chance of survival. In the case of the video, the surrounding birds instinctively responded to the threat but were unable to stop the buck.

What happened in the video may seem out of character for a deer, but the natural world is full of surprises. Animal behavior isn’t always rigid or predictable — sometimes, the unexpected is just an animal adapting to the moment.

This encounter doesn’t redefine what we know about deer but reminds us to look at wildlife with curiosity rather than assumptions.