Chain-eating deer at Japanese temple puzzle experts

The unusual sight of deer gnawing on iron chains is attracting tourists at a temple, while baffling animal experts. Tourists will find the deer at the Todai-ji temple located at Nara Park in Japan's ancient capital. They are usually found around the temple's Nandai-mon gate, located in the middle of the approach to the hall housing the famous Great Buddha.

While most deer at the park demand food from visitors, some seem to be more attracted to the chains separating the temple's approach and the lawn. According to the Foundation for the Protection of Deer in Nara Park, in 2003 the organization first noticed the animal's strange behaviour. Members found a picture of a deer biting iron chains among pictures the group received from the public for a photograph contest.

"I've been watching it for a long time. I thought the animal was getting some kind of nutrition from the chains," said Todai-ji senior priest Sogen Sagawa, 90, who has been living in the temple since his childhood. However, out of 1,100 deer in the park, only one group of around 10 deer living near the Nandai-mon gate and the Honbo building are engaged in the practice, regardless of season, their age or sex, according to the deer protection group.

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"The deer in the group are probably teaching each other to bite the iron chains. The practice has been passed onto younger generations because it's necessary. We will never know unless we ask the deer," said Sachiko Ikeda, head of the foundation. A veterinarian belonging to the organization commented, "Deer maintain their nutritional balance by taking in minerals from soil, but it is unlikely that only a certain group of them have an iron deficiency. They may have acquired the habit after biting the chain by accident."

There's another video here.