EXTENSION NEWS
For the states of Texas and New Mexico, detection of the first cases of New World screwworm (twelve so far) reminds some of us around then what it was like to ranch before New World screwworm (NWS) was eradicated. The last reported case occurred in Texas in 1982, but the United States had worked to eradicate the fly, since 1961. Now, this fly is back in the United States and much has changed in farming and ranching since then.
The reader may recall from a previous column (December 19, 2024) that New World screwworm is a name given to the maggot (not a worm) of a fly (blow fly; Cochliomyia hominivorax) which lays eggs in the borders of open wounds or at the edge of orifices of mammals. Maggots emerge from eggs twelve to twenty-four hours after being laid (a single fly lays about 340 eggs) and begin feeding immediately.
