The unusual appearance of the rabbits has drawn significant concern among locals and even social media users online.

The cottontail rabbit papillomavirus, which alarmed some Colorado residents, cannot spread to other species and often goes away on its own, according to experts.

Colorado residents have been spotting rabbits with tentacles on their heads in recent weeks, but it's actually caused by the cottontail rabbit papillomavirus.

Northern Colorado—specifically a town called Fort Collins—has recently made headlines for its rabbit population after it was revealed that several of them had long black tentacles growing all over their bodies.

HORRIFYING images of ‘zombie’ rabbits with tentacles sprouting out of their heads have been circulating online – so is your pet bunny safe? The traumatising snaps have led to

Some rabbits spotted in Fort Collins, Colorado, appear to have growths or tentacles coming out of their heads, which Colorado Parks and Wildlife confirms is a type of virus. KUSA’s Amanda Gilbert reports.

On social media, surprising images have circulated of wild rabbits with strange black protuberances emerging from their heads, resembling horns or tentacles. The phenomenon caused

They may look like real-life jackalopes, but these rabbits owe their peculiar appearance to an infection caused by a cousin of the human papillomavirus.

Experts have confirmed that the herbivores have Cottontail Rabbit Papilloma virus (CRPV), an infection which locals have been worried about contracting. Cottontail Rabbit Papillomavirus, also known as Shope papilloma virus, was discovered on cottontail rabbits, a species which is usually found in Midwest America.