By Hope Kirwan
Wisconsin veterinary officials are closely watching the northward progress of a parasitic fly affecting livestock.
Six cases of New World screwworm have so far been confirmed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Most of the cases have been in cattle from Texas, but officials also found the parasite in a dog from New Mexico.
The parasitic fly feeds on the flesh of warmblooded animals, causing severe and potentially fatal infestations, according to the USDA.
It was previously eradicated from the U.S. in 1966, and later eliminated in Mexico, Central America and Panama. But the recent outbreak started in Panama in 2023, with the flies making their way north ever since.
State Veterinarian Dr. Darlene Konkle said Wisconsin officials are monitoring the joint response of USDA and Texas agriculture officials. The agencies have so far set up a quarantine zone and deployed sterile flies in the area to slow the fly’s ability to breed.
The New World screwworm uses open wounds to infest an animal, which Konkle said is typically a mammal but can be a bird. In cattle, the parasites often infect the healing umbilicus of new calves. Infestations of humans are rare, Konkle said, and are typically detected much more quickly than in an animal.
She said Wisconsin has an advantage because the parasite prefers warm temperatures.
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