Fearless Tiny Deer Challenges Amused Rhino in Viral Video

A small, 28-pound deer decided to spar with a 1.7-ton rhinoceros, and the moment is going viral online. In the video, a Chinese muntjac named Tata fearlessly takes on Maruśka, a female rhino at the Wrocław Zoo in Poland, who seems more amused than concerned by the little creature’s attack.

The zoo later posted about the moment on Facebook, joking [in Polish] that “someone probably forgot to look in the mirror this morning.”

Wroclaw Zoo explained that Tata’s “partner is in heat, and the bachelor is pumping with testosterone. He needs to release his energy and show who’s boss – even if his sparring partner weighs 1.7 tonnes. “Who would have thought that such a warrior could be hidden in that tiny body?”

Neither animal was harmed in the encounter and are used to hanging out with each other. Wrocław zookeeper and caretaker Maciej Okupnik said that muntjacs and rhinos often interact with each other in the wild, not just their zoo. Okupnik said (as translated by the Telegraph), “This time, Tata got a little carried away by his hormones, but he wasn’t really taking any risks. It’s more like theatre and you can see Maruska is having a little fun.”

The zoo later shared a calm follow-up video showing the pair peacefully sharing a hay bale. They wrote [translated], “They are the most famous duo on the Internet at the moment. And what does their relationship look like every day? Exactly as you can see in this video.” The clip shows Tata, his female partner, and Maruśka quietly munching on grass together.

“Rhinos with munchkins have lived together in our zoo for years, they have separate bedrooms, but a common ‘yard’,” the zoo continued. “They ate hay together from more than one plate and, as you can see, there is usually full agreement here. What you saw in the record-breaking popularity of the movie is natural behavior, albeit very rare. Dad Mundzak defended his territory because the female has a ravine. Maruśka treated it as a form of fun. Luckily she is very gentle and remembers that she weighs about 100 times more than her colleague!”