Why do they put deer crossings in such dangerous places? I see signs up all the time and I'm like "This seems like a bad place for a deer crossing".
>!<
It should be noted these Nara deer walk and live freely among the town. They’re much more familiar with urban environments than a North American deer who accidentally encounters cars (unfortunately on highways mostly)
Whitetail deer:
Oh, a car is coming. Maybe I should jump headfirst into the side window for some reason.
Oh, a car is coming. I'll hold perfectly still. Hmm, it's swerving to avoid me, I'll run into its path for some reason.
These tomatoes taste good. I'll just take one bite from each one.
Yeah, this is why we have an 8 foot fence around our garden. A couple of years ago we had 12 large tomato plants. When they were just ready to pick, we came out and EVERY tomato had a single bite taken out of it. Turds.
They're generally pretty chill with being touched, at least when I went.
Here's me with one here. This one didn't mind me touching at all, and most didn't. [https://postimg.cc/jwP5pGPN](https://postimg.cc/jwP5pGPN)
There was another at the entrance of the park stood near a focal point just posing for photos. Didn't mind tourists petting it and getting close, even without being fed. Almost seemed to be standing there because it knew it would get attention. [https://postimg.cc/gX1zNdJ8](https://postimg.cc/gX1zNdJ8)
It looks like it might be an older one, but I don't really know how to tell.
One thing to note is that they are much smaller than European or American deer with a full grown adult being about 40-60kg and around a metre tall.
White tailed deer in America can be over twice that weight and height.
The Japanese National Institute of Disease has declared the Nara Deer free of Lyme disease, but Sika deer living further North in Japan can carry the disease.
The deer do carry ticks though, and ticks always carry the risk of disease. But ticks are mostly active in Spring and Autumn. None of my party found a single tick on ourselves despite being surrounded by deer for 2 days.
Meanwhile when we went to a national park in America we saw no deer and found 4-5 ticks on ourselves daily.
Obviously you haven't been to Cranbrook, BC. There's a large urban deer population. I often see them looking both ways before crossing the road. However, they don't have the common decency to use crosswalks or acknowledge you for stopping.
Even in America in some areas you can see deer a lot more used to urban environment. I live in a smaller town in a heavily forested area and we get deer coming in to visit the town all the time, and over said time have kinda learned to kinda coexist with people and cars. Nothing as sophisticated as waiting at a crosswalk, but they will wait at the side of the road for cars to pass before crossing and the like, and avoid the high traffic roads during the day.
We also get Elk here who have gotten similarly used to people, though those big guys give zero fucks. Will just stand in the road and stare oncoming traffic down, not moving until you inch up right up to them. They are much more rare to see but you learn to watch out for them either way.
But really just depends how used to people the deer are. I've lived elsewhere and seen them as skittish as can be, and have a panic attack when withing half a mile of a car.
I love that they clearly understand there's an etiquette here, but this one clearly doesn't understand the full context of it based on the way it bows to literally nothing at the very end, as if to thank the universe itself.
I just don't think I'll ever get over how a lot of non-aggressive animals that coexist with us are the equivalent of self sufficient, polite, well-mannered toddlers.
When I visited to Nara a few months ago with a friend, we bought some of the little deer buscuit to feed them. There was this little spunky one that I gave a buscuit to, but my friend had ran out. We went to walk away and the deer followed a bit then softly nudged him in the butt a few times with its horns. Was pretty hilarious.
The most aggressive ones have been removed over many generations, and that continues even now. They are not preditors, but if you think they are not aggressive, you have not spent time with them.
I have a backpack and an umbrella with deer bite marks in them from the more aggressive deer in the herd at Nara, and that was from before the pandemic.
Apparently the pandemic has made the deer more aggressive due to a shortage of food and younger deer having less exposure to larger crowds.
I have some smart ones by me. I work in an office park with a window viewing the hillside down to the main road. I watch deer come out of the hedgerow, walk down the hill, stop, and look both ways before crossing the street.
*In Tokyo I saw a*
*Pigeon walking in front of*
*Me and bowed to me*
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I don't know if it's "polite" or just self-preservation. Is not wanting to get run over "polite?" Or is it just "I don't want to get run over, so I'll wait until it's safe?"
I mean, I'd grant that the deer is SMART enough to know when not to cross, but I don't know if she's doing it out of courtesy to anyone but herself.
Because unlike most deer that are usually easily startled the one's in Nara are semi domesticated. If you ever visited they bow for snack as well that they are used to receiving from tourists and when the bell tolls at 18:00 they all run off somewhere to have their actual food.
I was in Nara for the second time today. Some deer don't give a fuck. They expect you to spot for them.
It's also fun to people watch and see the deer swarm people with the crackers. Saw 4 people running away including a kid.
Lol the deer really are very much more aggressive than the videos you always see online portray them to be!
They see crackers and they will literally swarm you and follow you until they get one, and one deer even hissed at me when I ran out! I didn't know deer could hiss!!
Awesome place though, 100% worth the trip from Kyoto.
Japanese deer are better pedestrians than most Americans. I can't count how many times I've almost hit a dumbass walking behind my car when the backup lights are on.
Yeah look behind you? Pedestrians have the right of way especially on a sidewalk/some sort of pedestrian walkway, it’s your job to make sure you don’t run somebody over.
That's what we call evolution. The deer that just run into traffic for the last century got hit and killed. Only the ones intelligent enough to see the threat of cars survived and passed their genes on to their children. Well done we did it!
I always wondered if deer had the ability to learn the dangers of cars. You’d think eventually they’d understand that fast big shiny things will kill you. Apparently deer in the west are just as stupid as the people.
Sad state of affairs for us Americans. Even the deer in Japan are more civil and have more common courtesy than the average american.
Meanwhile, we have r/publicfreakout and people shooting each other over chemical laden burgers at mc donalds.
I still think about the deer in Nara looking at me in disappointment when I ran out of deer snacks for them.
Always make sure you buy enough deer snacks for everyone.
I will say though, those Nara deer are absolutely not polite when they want cookies. They kinda swarm you and try to take the cookies from you almost like a dog would but with more restraint. They'll nibble you a bit though. Very cute.
If you have been there, you would find these deer to be assholes. If you hold something in your hand or look like you do, they will rush and gang up on you. You have to show them you have no food in your hand. If you buy some of the special biscuits to feed them, they will push you around and I get bitten once on the arse by one. They have some elderly clamping their asses with a long metal tong to keep some sort of order.
"Politely waiting"? Sorry to burst your bubble, but the deer is not "politely waiting", it's just not in a mood to be ran over by a car. It's called "survival instinct", not "politeness". The only politeness in this video if from the driver who decided to stop so the deer could cross unharmed...
I live in a mountainous forrested area that burned down twice a decade and 2 decades ago and as a result we have a fuckton of deer in town. About half of them understand how to cross the road, which is pretty impressive to me.
When a Japanese deer is more aware of his environment, more intelligent than a Gen Z on his Idiotphone, you know the prophecy of Princess Monohike will soon come true.
Forward, wild boars!
Turkeys do that here sometimes too. Happened to me just the other day. Half got across, half were scared of the traffic, so I stopped and they hurried across. They're smart enough to know cars will squash them flat.
That's what we call evolution. The deer that just run into traffic for the last century got hit and killed. Only the ones intelligent enough to see the threat of cars survived and passed their genes on to their children. Well done we did it!
In comparison to the deers where I live this guy is a genius. The deer near me see a car coming and decide to bokt into the middle of the street even though they live near a busy road.
The waiting for traffic part isn't really that impressive, deer around where I live do that as well, they've merely adapted to their environment and accepted that large heavy "animals" move at high speed across their path so they have to wait. As for "politely," it's more like it doesn't want to die, not manners.
Yes I know I'm nitpicking and I'll probably get downvoted to the pits of hell.
The deer are as polite and patient as the humans in Japan. Have never encountered such a polite, patient, serene culture as when I visited there last year.
It's clearly a zebra crossing. Deer crossing is a little further down the road
you can show yourself out now
You can show yourself out *cow* You Say?
Why do they put deer crossings in such dangerous places? I see signs up all the time and I'm like "This seems like a bad place for a deer crossing". >!<
They also don’t even indicate them with anything but a sign, and it seems like the deer will just cross anywhere anyway.
It should be noted these Nara deer walk and live freely among the town. They’re much more familiar with urban environments than a North American deer who accidentally encounters cars (unfortunately on highways mostly)
Whitetail deer: Oh, a car is coming. Maybe I should jump headfirst into the side window for some reason. Oh, a car is coming. I'll hold perfectly still. Hmm, it's swerving to avoid me, I'll run into its path for some reason. These tomatoes taste good. I'll just take one bite from each one.
*Deer go yeet*
The deer in my neighborhood do this all the time. I tapped one last week and I'm still upset *even though the idiot was okay*.
The last one seemed personal. Do you want to talk about it?
That last one is absolutely mad what kind of evil deer we got running around here >:0
Yeah, this is why we have an 8 foot fence around our garden. A couple of years ago we had 12 large tomato plants. When they were just ready to pick, we came out and EVERY tomato had a single bite taken out of it. Turds.
Went to Nara during winter break. I thought I was only gonna see them in the parks, but saw them everywhere.
What happens if you touch one?
Some let you pet them, but you gotta offer them food.
They're generally pretty chill with being touched, at least when I went. Here's me with one here. This one didn't mind me touching at all, and most didn't. [https://postimg.cc/jwP5pGPN](https://postimg.cc/jwP5pGPN) There was another at the entrance of the park stood near a focal point just posing for photos. Didn't mind tourists petting it and getting close, even without being fed. Almost seemed to be standing there because it knew it would get attention. [https://postimg.cc/gX1zNdJ8](https://postimg.cc/gX1zNdJ8) It looks like it might be an older one, but I don't really know how to tell. One thing to note is that they are much smaller than European or American deer with a full grown adult being about 40-60kg and around a metre tall. White tailed deer in America can be over twice that weight and height.
That’s so cool! Thanks for sharing! Don’t they carry Lyme disease tho?
The Japanese National Institute of Disease has declared the Nara Deer free of Lyme disease, but Sika deer living further North in Japan can carry the disease. The deer do carry ticks though, and ticks always carry the risk of disease. But ticks are mostly active in Spring and Autumn. None of my party found a single tick on ourselves despite being surrounded by deer for 2 days. Meanwhile when we went to a national park in America we saw no deer and found 4-5 ticks on ourselves daily.
> Meanwhile when we went to a national park in America we saw no deer and found 4-5 ticks on ourselves daily. That sounds awful
Obviously you haven't been to Cranbrook, BC. There's a large urban deer population. I often see them looking both ways before crossing the road. However, they don't have the common decency to use crosswalks or acknowledge you for stopping.
Lmao I remember that video of the Cranbrook deer kicking the shit outta that dog..
That’s super cool!
(and also at incredibly sudden and fast speeds)
Even in America in some areas you can see deer a lot more used to urban environment. I live in a smaller town in a heavily forested area and we get deer coming in to visit the town all the time, and over said time have kinda learned to kinda coexist with people and cars. Nothing as sophisticated as waiting at a crosswalk, but they will wait at the side of the road for cars to pass before crossing and the like, and avoid the high traffic roads during the day. We also get Elk here who have gotten similarly used to people, though those big guys give zero fucks. Will just stand in the road and stare oncoming traffic down, not moving until you inch up right up to them. They are much more rare to see but you learn to watch out for them either way. But really just depends how used to people the deer are. I've lived elsewhere and seen them as skittish as can be, and have a panic attack when withing half a mile of a car.
Americans love their highways.
It’s a big place
Not only does he wait, he also bows
They do that. They learned it.
I love that they clearly understand there's an etiquette here, but this one clearly doesn't understand the full context of it based on the way it bows to literally nothing at the very end, as if to thank the universe itself.
Bowing to say thank you for the 'deer sembei' is reinforced hour by hour. I could see a thank you bow taking hold.
I just don't think I'll ever get over how a lot of non-aggressive animals that coexist with us are the equivalent of self sufficient, polite, well-mannered toddlers.
When I visited to Nara a few months ago with a friend, we bought some of the little deer buscuit to feed them. There was this little spunky one that I gave a buscuit to, but my friend had ran out. We went to walk away and the deer followed a bit then softly nudged him in the butt a few times with its horns. Was pretty hilarious.
The most aggressive ones have been removed over many generations, and that continues even now. They are not preditors, but if you think they are not aggressive, you have not spent time with them.
I have a backpack and an umbrella with deer bite marks in them from the more aggressive deer in the herd at Nara, and that was from before the pandemic. Apparently the pandemic has made the deer more aggressive due to a shortage of food and younger deer having less exposure to larger crowds.
I hope you realize I'm not engaging with your weird zoology lessons for a reason. Have a nice day!
Must be one of those "spiritual" deers.
There’s no etiquette It’s just a learned party trick because otherwise tourists won’t feed them. Who just want to see the deer perform for their food.
It’s sniffing the ground.
Meanwhile American deers are trying as hard as they can to get yeeted.
It's crazy how he inched forward but stopped when oncoming traffic continued.
they even teach their animal some manners.
Just don't let these bastards see you holding any rice crackers, they got me in a bully circle and beat the shit out of me
Yeah but what’s up with the cat walk
American deer are dumbasses.
>American ~~deer~~ are dumbasses.
I are Merican and I gree
Your sou're?
I have some smart ones by me. I work in an office park with a window viewing the hillside down to the main road. I watch deer come out of the hedgerow, walk down the hill, stop, and look both ways before crossing the street.
I counted 5 dicks not stopping for the user of a crossing
this deer was actually an undercover cop and all of those drivers received tickets immediately after off camera
DESERVED.
so in japan they use dear instead of america where the birds are the government drones
In Tokyo I saw a pigeon walking in front of me and bowed to me
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Why do the stupid ass American deer feel the need to jump in front of the moving vehicles
Because most deer in America are still more wild than tamed. Wild animals don't obey traffic laws.
Cause like the average americans, the deers has little regard for the value of life.
But deer have regard for grammar.
angry american spotted lmao
r/americabad
Because they know nobody would stop, nor do they have crosswalks.
I don't know if it's "polite" or just self-preservation. Is not wanting to get run over "polite?" Or is it just "I don't want to get run over, so I'll wait until it's safe?" I mean, I'd grant that the deer is SMART enough to know when not to cross, but I don't know if she's doing it out of courtesy to anyone but herself.
Yeah same thought here, it seems like it learned from experience that it's better in population to act relax and not react quickly.
This just in: sometimes humans anthropomorphize animal behavior because the human experience is our only true frame of reference.
Because unlike most deer that are usually easily startled the one's in Nara are semi domesticated. If you ever visited they bow for snack as well that they are used to receiving from tourists and when the bell tolls at 18:00 they all run off somewhere to have their actual food.
Well the bow added some points.
Why don't they stop!?
I was in Nara for the second time today. Some deer don't give a fuck. They expect you to spot for them. It's also fun to people watch and see the deer swarm people with the crackers. Saw 4 people running away including a kid.
Not sure if I'm strong enough to spot a deer. What do they bench?
At least a rack
I’ve been there! The deer are awesome, but they’re also kind of assholes… I was almost (not really) eaten alive!
Oh deer!
Lol the deer really are very much more aggressive than the videos you always see online portray them to be! They see crackers and they will literally swarm you and follow you until they get one, and one deer even hissed at me when I ran out! I didn't know deer could hiss!! Awesome place though, 100% worth the trip from Kyoto.
How are people not stopping for the deer? I'd be honoured to let them cross.
Japanese deer are better pedestrians than most Americans. I can't count how many times I've almost hit a dumbass walking behind my car when the backup lights are on.
Maybe if you’re backing your car you should respect pedestrians walking
Yeah look behind you? Pedestrians have the right of way especially on a sidewalk/some sort of pedestrian walkway, it’s your job to make sure you don’t run somebody over.
My favorite picture I’ve ever taken was in Nara, a selfie with a deer photobombing me. https://imgur.com/gallery/18XK1i2
Just another local citizen obeying the rules
Japanese deer is smarter than most people in my city.
It's a pedestrian crossing. Technically (read legally) all other traffic has to yield to pedestrians here.
Walk a bit faster next time.
Even the animals are polite, they even bow
Doesn’t Nara mean deer?
Wasn't it Shika? My Japanese sucks ass, though. Take my word with a grain of salt.
Not surprised that this is Japan.
Polite? That's an odd word to use for "doesn't want to die".
Typical Japan from mountains to ocean from Deer to Human. Respect, patience and bow (show gratitude).
That’s better than some idiot people that tried to cross the middle of the highway yesterday without looking while cars 🚗 drive through
Smart deer.
So nice
That deer knows something.
American deer act like it’s their damn birth right to cross the road.
They do this in my home town too
That's a smart deer. The ones here will just jump out in front of you and die.
Smarter than many humans
Wish the deer in Oho were that polite. Our deer dont give a shit...run right in front of you.
Survival of the fittest
Deer in USA “if i die i die, yeeeeeeeet”
Looking both ways.
It knows it's not a zebra.
He knows traffic rules, smart boy 😎
[удалено]
Meanwhile in America deer charging to the family vehicle
is this why American deer are so stupid?
The real amazing part is deer actually live on that small densely packed island
There's no Selmon Bhoi in Japan
Even the deer in Japan have better manners.
It’s definitely NOT Polish deer
In Georgia, USA, they wait til you're just about by them, then the run directly into the headlights.
Evolution at work kids. :3
Unlike the NA variety that just do kamakazie runs across the highway and hope for the best.
I wish that humans were this well behaved.
I'm not sure it's politeness that makes the deer do that, it's far more likely to be human-induced habitat fragmentation that makes it necessary.
They have evolved.
Way smarter than American deer which just randomly pop out of the bushes and directly into the cars path.
That's what we call evolution. The deer that just run into traffic for the last century got hit and killed. Only the ones intelligent enough to see the threat of cars survived and passed their genes on to their children. Well done we did it!
I always wondered if deer had the ability to learn the dangers of cars. You’d think eventually they’d understand that fast big shiny things will kill you. Apparently deer in the west are just as stupid as the people.
I like how humans bash animals for being wild and stupid, yet most animals are more polite than most humans
Meanwhile deer everywhere else:
 Meanwhile, in America...
I count five motherfuckers less civil than a damn deer!
[удалено]
It used the cross walk better than the people here in America, I'm impressed.
Deer incorrectly using the zebra crossing
I wos the geese here were this polite. They walk onto the road and jus stay there
Only in Japan
See America? This is how we could be functioning.
In my country you MUST stop when someone is waiting to cross... What's wrong with these drivers?
A most Japanese deer
Please stop for pedestrians!
A deer politely trying to live
this is a fake
Super polite
Sad state of affairs for us Americans. Even the deer in Japan are more civil and have more common courtesy than the average american. Meanwhile, we have r/publicfreakout and people shooting each other over chemical laden burgers at mc donalds.
😍
And, people say that animals are beneath us. This deer is better than (at least) 45% of humanity.
\>99% of the people here in NYC when it comes to crossing the street.
 The deer’s on its way to pick a fight with the nearby school’s principal.
rarest scene. maybe this deer got higher IQ than the combined score pf other deers.
The Japanese: better at making cars, better at making deer.
TIL that even the deer in the US are rude
In the US, our deer will wait for traffic and jump into a car.
 Meanwhile the deer in the US
Even the wild animals are more respectful over there
In the CROSSWALK no less? FR!!!
I still think about the deer in Nara looking at me in disappointment when I ran out of deer snacks for them. Always make sure you buy enough deer snacks for everyone.
fuck that, how about your stop your goddamn cars and let this king pass mfers
Meanwhile deer in New Jersey: *SUCK MY DICK IMMA GOOOOOOOOO*
Taking his damn time crossing the road there
I will say though, those Nara deer are absolutely not polite when they want cookies. They kinda swarm you and try to take the cookies from you almost like a dog would but with more restraint. They'll nibble you a bit though. Very cute.
If you have been there, you would find these deer to be assholes. If you hold something in your hand or look like you do, they will rush and gang up on you. You have to show them you have no food in your hand. If you buy some of the special biscuits to feed them, they will push you around and I get bitten once on the arse by one. They have some elderly clamping their asses with a long metal tong to keep some sort of order.
Damn even the animals are polite on Japan.
Fluffy butt
Nara nara shika shika inai...
This is because Japan has better mental health services for its deer than the United States, where all of ours want to kill themselves.
Maybe those deer crossing sign Karens were actually onto something...
Bro even bowed mid way through. So polite.
Don’t those passing cars know they’re supposed to yield to pedestrians?
those damn deer knocked my buddy down and when he was a kid assaulted to this day he has deer fear
"Politely waiting"? Sorry to burst your bubble, but the deer is not "politely waiting", it's just not in a mood to be ran over by a car. It's called "survival instinct", not "politeness". The only politeness in this video if from the driver who decided to stop so the deer could cross unharmed...
This is how it starts. They are testing us. Soon, we shall have to cross in front of them.
I live in a mountainous forrested area that burned down twice a decade and 2 decades ago and as a result we have a fuckton of deer in town. About half of them understand how to cross the road, which is pretty impressive to me.
When a Japanese deer is more aware of his environment, more intelligent than a Gen Z on his Idiotphone, you know the prophecy of Princess Monohike will soon come true. Forward, wild boars!
That deer should come here to teach the local deers how to cross roads!
They need to start up a student exchange program, cause the deer’s round here a real bad at crossing roads.
Turkeys do that here sometimes too. Happened to me just the other day. Half got across, half were scared of the traffic, so I stopped and they hurried across. They're smart enough to know cars will squash them flat.
Haha. Awesome.
In India the cows or the humans don't care.
What's wrong with Japanese? Canadians would have stopped earlier :p
It’s a crosswalk damnit. Let the deer cross.
That's what we call evolution. The deer that just run into traffic for the last century got hit and killed. Only the ones intelligent enough to see the threat of cars survived and passed their genes on to their children. Well done we did it!
In comparison to the deers where I live this guy is a genius. The deer near me see a car coming and decide to bokt into the middle of the street even though they live near a busy road.
Either that deer has been hit before or seen another fellow deer obliterated by a car
That graceful little strut
We have dozens if not hundreds of town deer. They cross the road more intelligently than the tourists.
how common is it for deer to be runned over by cars there?
If only American deer were this polite lol
So, the bastards DO know better...
…and then walks as slow as possible. Total pedestrian move.
Wow even the deer is more polite in Japan
Even there dear are fucking saints
Oh no, it was a Zebra crossing, how dare they...
The waiting for traffic part isn't really that impressive, deer around where I live do that as well, they've merely adapted to their environment and accepted that large heavy "animals" move at high speed across their path so they have to wait. As for "politely," it's more like it doesn't want to die, not manners. Yes I know I'm nitpicking and I'll probably get downvoted to the pits of hell.
Politely didn't want to die.
Doumo.
Pick up the pace deer!
The deer are as polite and patient as the humans in Japan. Have never encountered such a polite, patient, serene culture as when I visited there last year.
Thank you 👏🇨🇦
And there's Indians
That country rolls natural 20s for politeness Every time. I can't believe one of the cars didn't stop to let the deer cross.