Why are the “zombies of squirrels” in the US and Canada

The idea of ​​”zombie squirrels” may seem a little nuts to you. But this is the term that people use to describe what they have seen in the US and Canada – squirrels with strange, sometimes bleeding, pieces all over their body. These pieces can make them look a little like the characters shown in the television series Walking-People without speaking places, that is. Apart from these squirrels it is not really undead. They are very lively, but they probably suffer from what is called Squirrel Fibromatosis.

Zombie squirrels are actually squirrels with tumors

It is called fibroids because the clots are tumors called fibrous. A fibrous is a non -cancerous tumor consisting of fibrous connective tissue. These tumors can range from a few millimeters to 25mm in diameter. The impact of these increases depends on where the tumors are. In many cases, when these tumors are only on the skin of the squirrel, they will not have significant serious consequences, except for perhaps affecting the ability of the squirrel to take dates, assuming other squirrels are as superficial as humans.

However, things can get cracking when tumors affect vital structures. For example, tumors near the eyes can affect the squirrel vision. Things can worsen when tumors spread into the body, such as the lungs, liver, kidneys and lymph nodes. There they can induce different body corridors, organ dysfunction and even death. Another risk is that such lumps can be contaminated by various microorganisms beyond the microorganism that caused fibrinization in the first place.

This disease is not new, though. Squirrels with this disease have been identified since 2023. And things aren’t really until social media arrives, right? Here is an example of a recent post on Facebook that shows an example of these pieces:

Zombie squirrels arise from infection from a virus

The news for these zombie squirrels may have been viral in social media. But there is something else viral about this disease – its cause. Virus infection called Leporipoxvirus leads to these tumors. This virus belongs to the virus smallpox group. That is why the fibroid Squirrel is also known as Squirrel Pox.

Squirrels can catch this virus by bite mosquitoes like Andis Egypt and Anopheles square or fleas carrying the virus. An infected squirrel can also pass along the virus to another squirrel with direct physical contact. Tumors usually grow first when the transmission of the virus occurred whether it was an insect bite or direct squirrel contact to quadruple.

Is there treatment for zombie squirrels?

Unfortunately, there is no cure for this disease. Fortunately, however, when the disease is not serious, damage can end up receding over time and squirrels can eventually recover. In addition, there have been no evidence that this disease affects the number of North America’s gray squirrels, the type of squirrels affected today are affected today, According to Michigan’s natural resources department.

Do Zombie Squirrels are a threat to humans?

You may have to worry about getting infected with Leporipoxvirus if you happen to be a squirrel or possibly a rabbit or a wood -carved. While the only documented transmission in nature was in squirrels, rabbits and wood carvings have occurred in laboratory arrangements. If you are not sure if you are one of these animals, check yourself in the mirror, contact your doctor, ask yourself if someone has noticed how long your ears are or see how annoyed you get when you hear the question: “How much wood can a wood carved if a wood?”

If, on the other hand, you are human, then there seems to be no risk of being infected. This can happen even if it happens to eat an infected squirrel. This does not necessarily exclude the ability to mutate the virus someday to infect people. But for now, if you see a “zombie squirrel”, there is no reason to run from it as you would from a human zombie.