Gruesome images of deer covered in black, bubble-like growths are circulating online, sparking another wave of panic after similar “zombie” sightings of rabbits and squirrels went viral earlier this summer.
Photos shared on Reddit and other platforms show whitetail deer with large, dark warts clinging to their skin. One user who spotted a deer in their backyard admitted they didn’t know if it was suffering from a gunshot wound, tumors, fireworks injuries, or even a prion disease.
The unsettling look comes only weeks after “Frankenstein rabbits” in Colorado and grotesque, tumor-ridden squirrels in Maine and parts of Canada dominated headlines. Now, the trend has shifted to deer in states like Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
Disturbing animal sightings spread
According to wildlife officials, the growths aren’t cancer. They’re fibromas, non-cancerous tumors caused by a virus that spreads through close contact, especially grooming. They also can’t infect people or their pets.
The condition, also called cutaneous fibromas, appears most often on a deer’s head and neck but can also develop on the body and legs. Sizes range from smaller than a coin to several inches across, leaving animals looking like they’ve sprouted mutant bubbles.
Despite experts assuring that the condition isn’t deadly in most cases, the photos have terrified social media users who compared the deer to creatures from horror games and post-apocalyptic TV shows.
The warty deer are only the latest in a string of viral animal scares: earlier in August, rabbits with black, tentacle-like growths on their heads were likened to monsters from The Last of Us.
Meanwhile, “zombie squirrels” covered in pus-filled tumors fueled fears of a mysterious wildlife outbreak.
