Giant tortoise thought to be vegetarian hunts and eats bird. Watch

“Researchers capture on film the unexpected moment when a giant #tortoise – thought to be vegetarian – attacks and eats a tern,” reads a part of the caption shared along with the video.

A video of a giant tortoise hunting and eating a bird has now left both scientists and netizens intrigued. The video is shared on the official Twitter handle of Cambridge University. Since being posted, the clip has created a buzz.

The image of the tortoise trying to eat a bird is taken from the video shared by Cambridge University. (Twitter/@Cambridge_Uni)

“Researchers capture on film the unexpected moment when a giant #tortoise – thought to be vegetarian – attacks and eats a tern,” reads a part of the caption shared along with the video. The share is complete with a blog link by the university that gives details about the incident. This is the first documentation of any tortoise species deliberately hunting, explains the blog.

“The hunting tortoise was seen in July 2020 on Frégate Island, a privately owned island in the Seychelles group managed for ecotourism, where around 3,000 tortoises live. Other tortoises in the same area have been seen making similar attacks,” it further describes.

Take a look at the video that comes with the warning, “some viewers may find scenes in this film distressing.”

“The giant tortoise pursued the tern chick along a log, finally killing the chick and eating it. It was a very slow encounter, with the tortoise moving at its normal, slow walking pace – the whole interaction took seven minutes and was quite horrifying,” he added.

What are your thoughts on the incident?