Zombie Deer: Where Do Strange Animals Come From? 0 11

Local residents claim they have never seen anything like it, but they are particularly surprised by the strange behavior of the animals: they run, jump, spin, fall, and foam comes from their mouths — they look like real zombies. For a long time, no one could explain the reasons for such behavior, but now the results of the analysis of the deer’s biological materials have become known.

Local hunters reported about the unusual “zombie deer” as early as last autumn. They filmed a video of the animals, which quickly went viral on social media.

After that, specialists went to the hunting grounds, examined the places where the fallen deer were found, collected biological materials, and sent them to the laboratory. According to the results of the examination, the regional veterinary department reported: “no pathogens of infectious diseases, including those dangerous to humans, were detected.” For further research, samples were sent to the All-Russian Research Institute of Animal Diseases in Vladimir.

Later, the Department of Civil Protection of the Kurgan Region added that “the causes of the disease have not been determined.” However, soon the causes were identified: seasonal stress and bacteria that do not pose a threat to the population.

A year later, the situation repeated itself. Zombie deer reappeared in the Kurgan Region, and the symptoms remained the same.

Recently, the results of new analyses of the biological material of the ungulates became known. A source close to environmental protection activities shared a document stating that the samples contained dibromide dichloropropane (an active ingredient in pesticides) and deltamethrin (an insecticide and neurotoxic agent banned in many countries).

Soil, plant samples, and a canister containing the pesticide “LOST (desiccant)” were also examined — it is used to dry plants before harvesting crops. Desiccants are toxic to animals and can lead to the destruction of cell membranes and cell death.