NMSU continues to monitor screwworm

New Mexico State University Cooperative Extension Service officials, along with the New Mexico Livestock Board and New Mexico Department of Agriculture, are continuing to monitor cases of the New World screwworm, which have been found in Mexico.

In May, the U.S. Department of Agriculture stopped animal imports from the southern border because cases of NWS were found in two Mexican states, Oaxaca and Veracruz. The effort is meant to protect the country’s food supply and livestock. The NWS was eradicated from the United States in the late 1950s and 1960s. In September, a confirmed case was found in Sabinas Hidalgo, located in the state of Nuevo León, which is less than 70 miles from the U.S.-Mexico border.

NWS is a parasitic fly that lays eggs in open wounds of warm-blooded animals. The larvae feed on living tissue, causing severe damage and potentially death if untreated. Livestock, pets, wildlife and, in rare cases, humans are affected.

PHOTO: Main campus at New Mexico State University (NMSU photo by Josh Bachman)