US New World screwworm cases reach 15

WASHINGTON — The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced three new cases of New World screwworm (NWS) in Texas on June 20 and June 21, bringing the total cases in the United States to 15, according to the agency’s NWS dashboard.

According to the USDA’s @Screwworm_RR account, one lamb in Crockett County, Texas, and two calves from Edwards County, Texas, tested positive since June 20.

“The Edwards County detections are inside the currently affected area. This was anticipated, even with sterile fly dispersals underway, because Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) does not kill existing larvae,” the agency said. “Instead, it prevents future generations of flies. Because a fly’s life cycle is an average of 21 days, it takes multiple reproductive cycles for populations to die off following sterile fly releases.”

The USDA said it is working with the Texas Animal Health Commission (TAHC) by deploying tens of millions of sterile flies weekly to control NWS flies in the affected areas.

Federal and state officials continue to push for farmers and producers to inspect their animals and report any new cases to the proper channels.

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