Viral photos have inspired a fluffle of unflattering nicknames, including "Frankenstein bunnies," "demon rabbits" and "zombie rabbits."

Wildlife officials in Colorado have confirmed a troubling rise in cases of shope papillomavirus, a rare disease causing wild rabbits to grow tentacle-like growths from their heads and mouths. While the condition is not new to science,

Earlier this week, the internet collectively gasped and recoiled as photos went viral of rabbits in Fort Collins with features on their heads that resemble horns or tentacles. Join In The NoCo host Erin O'Toole in a Q&A with Kara Van Hoose,

A rapidly spreading virus is causing cottontail rabbits to grow black, tentacle-like growths out of their heads, prompting warnings to steer clear of the mutated animals.

Rabbits with black, tentacle-like growths sprouting from their faces have been spotted in Colorado. Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) said a viral infection called the cottontail rabbit papillomavirus caused the black growths on the rabbits.

Rabbit owners have been told to look after their pets after a number of 'Frankenstein' bunnies have been spotted in Fort Collins, Colorado. The terrifying-looking rabbits - comparable with the iconic Halloween character - have been hopping around in residents' gardens with tentacle-like growths on their faces.

The grotesque “Frankenstein”-esque rabbits — once just a Colorado curiosity — are now turning up in Minnesota and Nebraska, their furry faces sprouting grotesque horn- and tentacle-like growths straight out of a B-movie.