A flesh-eating screwworm is creeping dangerously close to the US border. Can anything be done to stop it?

(NEXSTAR) – A devastating parasite that burrows into the flesh of its hosts is inching dangerously close to the United States, the Texas Department of Agriculture warns. The New World screwworm has been found just 62 miles from the U.S.-Mexico border in Nuevo León.

“This is now the northernmost active case in Mexico, and that puts Texas squarely in the crosshairs,” said Sid Miller, commissioner of the Texas Department of Agriculture.

If it crosses into the U.S., the New World screwworm could devastate the cattle and livestock industry. The screwworm flies lay eggs in animals’ wounds, noses, ears, eyes or mouths.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the eggs can be laid on any warm-blooded animals (including humans and pets), but they primarily impact livestock animals.

Once the eggs are laid, they develop into parasitic larvae, or maggots, that feed on the surrounding flesh as they burrow deeper. If untreated, screwworm cases can be fatal.

“The New World screwworm is not some distant problem. It is a direct and imminent threat to Texas, and we are treating it that way,” Miller said earlier this month. “This is a high-stakes situation for our ranchers, our livestock industry, and our food supply, and we are moving aggressively to stay ahead of it.”

The Texas Department of Agriculture acknowledges the federal government has been working to contain the screwworm’s spread, but efforts haven’t been entirely successful. In February, agriculture inspectors stopped a case of the New World screwworm from entering the country in Florida when the parasite was spotted on an imported horse from Argentina.

Besides inspecting animals that cross the border, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is also trying to cull the screwworm population along the southern border.

The agency has been releasing 100 million sterile screwworm flies every week, focusing on the border in Texas. Female flies only mate once in their short lives, so the hope is they will end up mating with one of the sterile males, therefore laying unfertilized eggs that never hatch.

Just in the past few weeks, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers broke ground on a new facility in Edinburg, Texas, that will produce even more sterile flies. Once the facility is up and running, the USDA is hoping to ramp up to releasing 500 million sterile flies per week.

To keep on top of surveillance, the USDA has also set up fly traps along the border region so they can keep an eye out for any potential screwworm flies. The agency emphasizes the New World screwworm is not currently present in the United States.

Even so, Miller warns it’s no time to let down our guard.

“While the USDA has taken steps to respond, the reality is the spread of the New World screwworm has not been successfully contained to date. … There is zero margin for delay when it comes to screwworm. Early detection is the difference between containment and a full-blown crisis that could devastate herds and livelihoods.”

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