'Wily' stag uses antlers to steal bird seed from gardens

A 'wily' stag has been filmed using his antlers to steal bird nuts from gardens in Exmoor.

The red deer stag has taught himself how to knock feeders out of trees over a number of years.

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Somerset biologist Dr Jochen Langbein captured the footage and uploaded it to YouTube.

Speaking to the BBC, he said: "It's learned to very deliberately use the tip of his antlers to dislodge bird feeders in order to get at the contents.

"At the moment it's only him, the others haven't caught on yet."

Dr Langbein caught the stag in action back in January. He said:"He was a particularly wily old stag.

"I saw him raiding another bird feeder two years ago, but he was not quite as adept then."

He has written a blog, called Deertails, about deers adapting to living amongst us in suburbia.

He explains that since the 1960s, the six species of deer living wild in Britain have greatly increased in numbers and distribution, while urban sprawl has expanded into their habitat.

Smaller species, like roe, are often seen on the 'urban fringe' but the larger red deer, the largest land mammal in Britain, have started to become established on the edge of some towns in the UK.

Read more on Dr Langbein's blog here.