Oh deer!
Nightmarish photos of deer growing mutant-like black bubbles are now spreading like wildfire on social media — soon after sightings of growth-ravaged squirrels and rabbits across the US sparked fears of disease outbreaks.
The slew of images popping up online show various deer roaming through backyards and the wilderness while covered head-to-hoof in huge boil-like warts.
Despite being grotesque-looking, the golf ball-sized warts — officially known as “fibromas” — are just non-cancerous tumors, according to wildlife officials.
The warts, which can spread from deer to deer, most often grow on the animal’s head and neck but rarely affect overall health.
The freaky photos started going viral after sightings of “zombie squirrels” and “Frankenstein rabbits” stoked concerns about possible plague outbreaks across the country.
Reports of cottontail rabbits sporting black, tentacle-like growths out of their heads in Colorado, Minnesota and Nebraska recently prompted warnings to steer clear of the mutated animals.
The unsettling deformities are the result of cottontail papilloma virus (CRPV) — a bug that spreads when mosquitoes, ticks, or fleas bite infected bunnies and then pass it along to others.
Days later, squirrels covered in pus-filled boils were reportedly spotted skulking through parts of Maine.
While some were quick to dub the critters “zombie squirrels,” wildlife experts said it was likely the result of squirrel fibromatosis — a viral skin disease caused by leporipoxvirus.
Despite its scary look, a Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife official recently told the Bangor Daily News that residents do not need to fear the squirrels because they pose no threat to humans, pets or birds.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
