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The return of the New World Screwworm has raised concerns among ranchers, government officials, and pet owners.
Experts say the parasite poses a serious threat to livestock and other animals. But they also point to an important historical fact: the United States has beaten screwworm before.
Many of the same tools used decades ago are being deployed to help stop the pest again.
What is a New World screwworm?
The New World screwworm is a parasitic fly native to the Americas, according to Texas A&M Agrilife. It can impact any warm-blooded animal, including livestock, pets, wildlife, and humans.
“Wounds will attract the female flies,” said Dr. Guilherme G Verocai, a veterinarian and parasitologist at Texas A&M, “They lay their eggs usually around the edge of those wounds.”
Verocai explained that the hatching larvae burrow into living tissue to feed.
The condition in which larvae feed on living tissue is called myiasis, according to the Screwworm Coalition of Texas.
Many animals are vulnerable to the screwworm, Verocai explained, “This parasite really doesn’t discriminate.”
He emphasized that while emphasis has largely been placed on cattle, it isn’t exclusively targeting livestock.
“The parasites will potentially lay eggs and feed on the live tissues of a variety of warm-blooded animals, especially mammals, but also birds.”
Why has it returned?
Verocai said the screwworm is endemic in many countries, particularly in South America. The re-emergence in the U.S. is tied to a slow geographic spread that began in 2021, when cases were found in Panama.
The spread did not happen overnight.
In 2023, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service within the USDA detected an unprecedented number of cases in Panama. Since then, cases have been detected in every Central American country and Mexico.
The CDC says the current outbreak has been moving north through Central America and Mexico since 2023 before reaching Texas this year. No locally acquired human infestations have been reported in the United States.
How America beat the screwworm before:
The parasite was eradicated from the U.S. in 1966 through an innovative sterile fly program developed by the USDA. Hundreds of millions of sterile flies were released by aircraft.
“I believe the true reason for success was the sterile insect technique,” said Verocai, “The wild females would mate with those sterile males, and they would not have a progeny.”
Breaking the reproductive cycle eventually led to the fly’s elimination across the Southern U.S. and much of Central America.
The flies have a very short life cycle, and only mate once, Verocai explained, so an influx of sterile males greatly reduces the population.
“By outnumbering the wild males, the likelihood of those females mating with sterile males will increase.”
The sterile insect technique remains the cornerstone of eradication efforts today. The Screwworm Coalition of Texas notes that the strategy was responsible for eliminating screwworm from the United States and eventually pushing the pest south through Mexico and Central America.
Texas is using the same playbook:
According to USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins, crews released 8 million sterile flies over a South Texas ranch within hours of confirming the first livestock case in the state. The agency says additional sterile-fly production facilities are being built and expanded to increase response capacity.
USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, or APHIS, maintains a public dashboard tracking confirmed New World screwworm cases, including affected species and locations. The agency says the information is updated as new cases are confirmed.
For Verocai, the current response is rooted in a lesson learned decades ago: eradication is possible, but it requires coordination, resources, and sustained effort.
“Every single country, with this massive collaboration of different governments and stakeholders, was able to make that happen.”
What pet owners should know:
While cattle account for many of the reported New World Screwworm cases, they are not the only animals at risk.
Texas A&M AgriLife says companion animals can also become infested if flies gain access to wounds or other vulnerable tissue.
The risk to household pets remains relatively low, but officials have already confirmed at least one companion animal case during the current U.S. outbreak. USDA says a dog from Lea County, New Mexico, tested positive for New World screwworm after being examined by a veterinarian in Texas. Federal officials later clarified that the case originated in New Mexico, making it the state’s first confirmed detection.
Verocai noted that dogs are among the most commonly reported non-livestock hosts in areas where the parasite is established.
This case underscores why veterinarians say pet owners should stay vigilant. Verocai recommends regularly checking pets for cuts, scratches, or other wounds and contacting a veterinarian if anything appears unusual.
The good news, he said, is that veterinarians already have tools available to help protect animals. Several commonly used flea and tick prevention products have demonstrated effectiveness against screwworm infestations and have received emergency authorization for use in affected areas.
Verocai says concern is warranted, but panic is not.
“We should be concerned, right? It’s a nasty parasite,” he said. “But I think we have the tools to treat and prevent in different animal species. And we know it’s possible to eradicate the parasite again, as it happened in the past.”
| # | Наименование новости | Тональность | Информативность | Дата публикации |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | What to know about the New World screwworm fly and its reappearance in the US | 0 | 7 | 08-06-2026 |
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