Deer Captured Eating Snake In Shocking Video

A man has captured the shocking moment he saw a deer eating a snake while driving in Comal County, Texas.

The video has gained viral attention online and has been re-posted across Twitter, TikTok, Facebook and Reddit, where it has been viewed millions of times.

In the unusual footage, taken on Friday, June 9, a young white-tailed deer can be seen eating a snake—a food a little different to their expected grass and plant matter diet.

"I was a bit shocked when I saw it," outdoor enthusiast Trey Reinhart told Newsweek.

The white-tailed deer originated in North America, with fossil records showing that they have been on the continent for millions of years.

Today they are found across North America and in parts of Europe, South America and Asia, but their population thrives in the U.S. and their numbers are estimated to be around 40 million.

White-tailed deer primarily feed on plant material as their digestive systems are specifically adapted to process and extract the nutrients from plant matter. With a four-chambered stomach, they usually eat leaves and shoots from woody plants.

But the snake-eating deer's unusual diet choice isn't completely unheard of, either.

Mark Fellowes, a professor of ecology at the University of Reading, U.K., told Newsweek: "Deer are herbivores, of course, so we wouldn't think of them ever eating meat—but lots of animals eat unexpected foods when they lack certain nutrients.

"I'm not aware of many reports of deer hunting live prey, but they will occasionally eat eggs or even chicks from bird nests and scavenge dead animals as appears to be the case here."

This isn't the first time a battle between a snake and deer has gained viral attention. In 2018 the roles were reversed when a huge Burmese python devoured a whole deer in Florida.

Signs would suggest that the deer in the video was looking for food that would fill a gap in its diet.

"Deer have been recorded eating bones, fish and other carrion. While their guts are adapted to digesting plants, meat will provide greater concentrations of calcium and other minerals and salts, which may otherwise be in short supply in their diets," said Fellowes.

"The thing to remember is that while plants look open to attack, they survive for good reason, as they have many physical—think thorns, tough bark—and chemical—like tannins, cyanides—defences which reduce the nutritional value of the plant, and so occasional feeding on carrion can provide some easy calories," he said.

People online were stunned by the footage and shared their reactions across the internet.

One Twitter user wrote: "Holy s***, Bambi," while another said: "Oh deer."

"I would take that as a warning and leave the immediate vicinity," said another Twitter user.

Commenters on Instagram were equally confused.

"I take it that's not a fruit roll up?" said one comment, while another viewer wrote: "That's so disturbing."

While unusual and a little strange, Fellowes said that the footage was a great snapshot of the natural world.

"This was a really cool example of how nature is rarely as simple as we like to think," he said. "I'd imagine the snake is roadkill which is an increasing challenge to some species."