ZAVALA COUNTY, Texas – A second case of New World screwworm has been detected in Texas.
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What they’re saying:
The US Department of Agriculture has confirmed the second case in a one-month-old calf in Zavala County.
The second case was found about 5.6 miles from the first case, a three-week-old calf.
The USDA says that an APHIS strike team is on site and mobile response trailers have been deployed.
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Sterile fly releases are also underway with two million released in the air and four million released on the ground per week.
Big picture view:
The New World screwworm is considered one of the most devastating livestock and wildlife pests in history. Unlike common fly larvae, screwworm maggots burrow into and feed exclusively on the living flesh of warm-blooded animals, causing severe injury, massive economic loss, and death if left untreated. While rare, they can also infect humans.
The USDA and the Texas Animal Health Commission have formed a unified Incident Command Team and established a 12-mile infested zone around the Zavala County site, implementing strict quarantines and movement controls on live animals.
To eradicate the population, federal officials are expediting the release of billions of laboratory-raised sterile flies, deploying ground release chambers to supplement the four million sterile flies already being dispersed aerially in the region each week. When wild flies mate with the sterile flies, no offspring are produced, eventually collapsing the population.
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