Bad headline. It makes it sound like that flesh eating parasite only goes after cattle. It doesn’t. The New World Screwworm can infect any warm blooded animal. The fact that they found infected cattle means that there almost certainly are infected wild animals. Wild animals that can carry the infection many many miles before they die from it and spawn screwworm flies in a new area.
That assumes that some rancher in the area doesn’t decide to move their herd and transport infected livestock to another part of the country. That’s one way the parasite moved north from Central America so quickly.
July 3, 2023: Panama declared a state of emergency. Just days later, Costa Rica followed suit.
By the end of 2024: Every Central American nation had identified cases of screwworm.
November 22, 2024: Screwworm larvae were discovered in a cow at the Mexico-Guatemala border crossing, approximately 700 miles south of Texas.
July 9, 2025: A detection [was reported] in Veracruz, approximately 370 miles south of the US border.
September 21, 2025: [A screwworm case was reported in] Nuevo León, only 70 miles from Texas.
If you are in an area with a known infestation, be very carefull.
Keep open wounds clean and covered, no matter how small or location on the body.
Wear loose-fitting, long-sleeved shirts and pants, hats, and socks to limit exposed skin.
Use an EPA-registered insect repellent.
Treat clothing and gear with products containing 0.5% permethrin.
Sleep indoors or in rooms or tents with screens.
Also, watch for symptoms, which can include:
Unexplained, painful wounds or sores that do not heal.
A foul-smelling odor or bleeding from the site of the infestation.
Seeing maggots or feeling movement in open wounds or sores or in the areas of the body such as the nose, mouth, eyes, ears, or genitals.
You may be wishing you only had salmonella or explosive diarrhea before this summer is over.
Bad headline. It makes it sound like that flesh eating parasite only goes after cattle. It doesn’t. The New World Screwworm can infect any warm blooded animal. The fact that they found infected cattle means that there almost certainly are infected wild animals. Wild animals that can carry the infection many many miles before they die from it and spawn screwworm flies in a new area.
That assumes that some rancher in the area doesn’t decide to move their herd and transport infected livestock to another part of the country. That’s one way the parasite moved north from Central America so quickly.
If you are in an area with a known infestation, be very carefull.
Also, watch for symptoms, which can include:
You may be wishing you only had salmonella or explosive diarrhea before this summer is over.