We maintain that we might actually have more things to fear than fear itself, but, luckily, demonic horned rabbits aren’t one of them.
As The New York Times reports, Colorado has seen an influx of bunnies infected with cottontail rabbit papillomavirus, an infection that causes strange protrusions to grow on the animal’s head.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife spokesperson Kara Van Hoose tells the Times that her office has received more than a dozen calls about infected rabbit sightings.
“We’re so used to seeing rabbits, so they’re like, ‘Oh my god, what is that on its face?'” Van Hoose says. “‘I know what a rabbit is supposed to look like, and that’s not it.'”
Luckily, humans need not worry, as the virus can’t be transferred to other species, and rabbits can usually overcome the virus themselves in time. Still, people are advised not to feed or interact with any afflicted bunnies, but feel free to observe any horned rabbits you see from a safe distance.
“Nature is metal,” Van Hoose says. “And this can be kind of cool looking on different rabbits.”
Maybe the cottontail rabbit papillomavirus is just the late Ozzy Osbourne‘s way of saying he’s still around.