Keepers at a zoo have been left bewildered after a mysterious animal was caught on camera.
The creature that appears on night vision camera at the Bristol Zoo Project appears to have four legs and looks fairly small in nature.
It follows reports of something unusual that has been lurking in the trees over the last few weeks.
But the mysterious animal has been impossible to identify.
Rosie Sims, public engagement manager at Bristol Zoo Project, said: ‘The sighting of this mythical-like creature is a mystery to us here at Bristol Zoo Project and has been a great inspiration for the Halloween trail this year.
‘Scotland has the Loch Ness monster and Cornwall has the Beast of Bodmin Moor – have we discovered a similar mythical here in Bristol perhaps?’
Bristol Zoo Project is undergoing a transformation with the creation of a new conservation zoo.
At the moment 78% of the animals it cares for are both threatened and are part of targeted conservation programmes.
The aim is for this to rise to 90% of species by 2035.
What could the mysterious creature be?
People on Reddit appear to have solved the mystery as to what this creature could potentially be.
They believe that it has all the characteristic features of a muntjac deer.
According to the Wildlife Trusts, the way in which to identify a muntjac deer is that they are very small and stocky.
They are about the size of a medium dog, are gingery-brown in colour and have a pale underside.
They have darker stripes on their faces and are small with single-pointed antlers.
The animals are common in southern England so you never know – this could actually be a muntjac deer.
There are other mysterious creatures that call the UK home as well – most famously the Loch Ness monster in Scotland.
Just last month, the infamous creature brushed up against a man while he was swimming.
Duncan Roberts, 39, had the terrifying encounter when he was swimming in the chilly waters of the famous loch.
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He said: ‘It was something big. During my swim I experienced a bump half way across.
‘There is some weird energy at play in that water. The depth and the darkness of that water plays tricks with your mind.’
Another scary thing researchers think they have found in the Loch include ‘micro-monsters’.
Technically, the organisms are plankton (tiny marine drifters) and so won’t be pulling anybody down into the depths.
They are still incredibly interesting in telling us about the loch’s ecosystem and biodiversity.
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