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Bloodsucking ticks that attack large animals in such numbers that they bleed the creatures to death have become a major problem in the northeastern US.

Hordes of the little vampires have attached themselves to moose and deer in New England, according to Vermont Fish & Wildlife.

“As many as 90,000 winter ticks have been found on one moose,” the department said on Facebook.

“More than half of moose calves have died in recent winters due to blood loss caused by the winter ticks.”

A horrifying photo that showed one moose with ticks so thick on its skin that they had completely replaced its fur was shared by the agency.

(Image: Facebook/vtfishandwildlife)

And the problem is only going to get worse as the climate continues to change.

A report from the University of New Hampshire says that winter ticks are killing moose at an alarming rate and the warming seasons are allowing them to feed for longer and longer.

“The iconic moose is rapidly becoming the new poster child for climate change in parts of the Northeast,” said Pete Pekins, professor of wildlife ecology.

“Normally anything over a 50% death rate would concern us, but at 70%, we are looking at a real problem in the moose population.”

A study published in the Canadian Journal of Zoology showed that of 179 young moose tagged with radio collars, 125 had died within three years.

An unusually high number of winter ticks was found on each calf. There were an average of 47,371 per moose – this was causing death from blood loss in most cases.

Even the moose that survive are not in the clear, because the animals are weakened and less likely to reproduce.

(Image: Facebook/vtfishandwildlife)

Tragically, the only answer available to the problem appears to be killing more moose.

Vermont wildlife biologists say a cull would make it harder for the winter ticks to spread through the moose population.

They want to reduce the number of moose in the state by at least 33 animals, and are thinking of allowing hunters to shoot the slow-moving creatures in order to do that.