Shope Papilloma Virus Deforms 1 in 10-20 St. Paul Rabbits as Cases Wax and Wane
Updated
Updated · St. Paul Pioneer Press · Jun 29
Shope Papilloma Virus Deforms 1 in 10-20 St. Paul Rabbits as Cases Wax and Wane
3 articles · Updated · St. Paul Pioneer Press · Jun 29
Summary
St. Paul naturalist Zach Portman estimates Shope papilloma virus now appears in roughly one of every 10 to 20 rabbits he sees, making the disfiguring “Frankenstein rabbit” a familiar sight in some neighborhoods.
The virus causes dark, hornlike facial and body growths that can regress or turn cancerous; when tumors block eating, rabbits can starve, though wildlife officials say many cope with the condition for years.
Seven infected rabbits have reached the Wildlife Rehabilitation Center of Minnesota this year, but the center said it cannot tell whether Twin Cities cases are rising or falling and has none currently in care.
Mosquitoes and ticks spread the virus, and officials say warmer months and a recent boom in cottontails may help explain why sightings seem more common in parts of Minnesota.
The disease, documented by virologist Richard Shope in 1933, is also considered a likely source of the long-running jackalope myth.