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Colorado Rabbits Show Horn-Like Growths Caused by Shope Papilloma Virus
The Shope papillomavirus causes wart-like horn growths on Fort Collins rabbits, spreading via insect bites and direct contact; most rabbits recover as growths resolve in colder months.
- Photos of rabbits in Colorado with black, horn-like growths around their faces, caused by a virus, have gone viral, with some describing the animals as "Frankenstein-", "zombie-" and "demon-rabbits".
- The virus that causes the horn-like growths, or papillomas, is harmless to the bunnies unless the growths interfere with eating or other sensitive areas, and will disappear once the rabbits' immune systems fight off the virus.
- The horn-like growths are thought to be the inspiration for the mythical "jackalope", a horned rabbit referenced in North American folklore.
152 Articles
152 Articles
Colorado's 'Frankenstein Bunnies' Are Nothing to Fear
A group of rabbits in Colorado with grotesque, hornlike growths may seem straight out of a low-budget horror film, but scientists say there's no reason to be spooked—the furry creatures merely have a relatively common virus. The cottontails recently spotted in Fort Collins are infected with the mostly harmless...
In the U.S. state of Colorado, several rabbits have appeared that grow black spines out of their heads. The tentacle-like tips come from a virus that is highly contagious to rabbits. Some animals even die. In the past few days, images of rabbits with strange black growths on their heads have appeared on social networks. These animals are infected with the Cottontail Papillomavirus. "The virus is mostly benign in rabbits," explains Kara Van Hoose…
The monstrous appearance of these rabbits infected with papillomavirus fascinates and disgusts Internet users.
Colorado’s ‘Frankenstein Bunnies’ Are Freaking Out the Internet
Residents of Fort Collins, Colorado, have recently been spotting what look like rabbits—but at the same time look like living nightmares. These have jet-black horns and tentacle-like growths sprouting from their faces. Before you grab your pitchfork and crucifix, they’re not the result of a Hellmouth opening up. It’s a virus. It’s the Shope papillomavirus, or SPV, a cousin of the human papillomavirus. Transmitted mainly through biting insects li…
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