Gardens across North America are being invaded by grotesque grey squirrels covered in oozing sores, and experts warn that garden bird feeders could be fuelling the outbreak. The rodents, afflicted with bulbous growths that split open and leak pus, have been reported in the US and Canada, with disturbing images showing tumours spreading across their faces, eyes, legs and even genitals.
The phenomenon first surfaced in Maine in 2023, when locals captured images of the stricken animals. Since then, reports have snowballed online, with stunned social media users swapping theories. Wildlife officials believe the culprit is squirrel fibromatosis, a virus that disfigures the rodents with wart-like lumps, rather than the initially suspected squirrel pox.
Everyday bird feeders may be turning the problem into an epidemic, according to Shevenell Webb of Maine's Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. "It's like when you get a large concentration of people. If someone is sick and it's something that spreads easily, others are going to catch it," she warned. The virus, spread through saliva and open lesions, is harmless to humans and pets but brutal on squirrels.
Experts advise people to avoid touching infected squirrels at all costs. "I would not recommend trying to capture a squirrel that has the virus," Webb told the Bangor Daily News. "It is naturally occurring and will run its course in time." While most squirrels eventually recover, the disease can sometimes penetrate internal organs, leaving the creatures doomed.
In a separate incident, a mysterious virus in Colorado has transformed rabbits into alien-looking creatures with black tentacle-like growths sprouting from their heads. The so-called Frankenbunnies have been reported multiple times in Fort Collins, with local resident Susan Mansfield describing a cottontail rabbit covered in what appeared to be "black quills or black toothpicks sticking out all around his or her mouth." The culprit is cottontail papilloma virus, also known as Shope papilloma virus, transmitted by parasites such as fleas and ticks. Authorities have urged the public to steer clear of the affected animals.
