Society

Deer herd runs through streets of Nara

May 17 (NHK) - An online video of more than 30 wild deer running through a residential area in Nara city, western Japan, has gone viral.

The video posted on Twitter was taken Sunday morning by a college student about 300 meters from Nara Park.

The student says there were about 50 deer in all, racing through a narrow street.

Local conservationists believe the animals are wild deer from Nara Park, which are designated a natural treasure.

They say the deer often walk out of the park in search of food, but they rarely appear in residential areas in such numbers.

There were 1,226 deer in Nara Park as of July last year, and their population is growing. But about 100 are killed or injured in traffic accidents each year.

Conservationist Yoshiaki Kai says the deer may have been frightened by something and stampeded. Deer are timid animals, he says.

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