- A parasitic New World screwworm fly, which eats human tissue and lays eggs in open wounds, has been detected in Nuevo León, Mexico, just 90 miles from the US border.
- Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller has declared the presence of the screwworm an “imminent threat” to the state's livestock industry and food supply, urging vigilance.
- The screwworm, typically found in South America and the Caribbean, has been spreading north through Central America and into Mexico since 2023.
- Infestations can lead to serious, potentially fatal infections in both humans and animals, with larvae feeding on flesh.
- The US Department of Agriculture is investing in sterile fly production and maintaining surveillance teams to contain the spread, though efforts have not yet been fully successful.
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