5 things you need to know about the flesh-eating screwworm outbreak threatening Florida livestock
- The New World screwworm (Cochliomyia hominivorax) is a parasitic fly that lays eggs in open wounds of live mammals, with larvae that burrow into flesh and can kill an animal within days if untreated.
- Florida's Key deer population, already endangered, is at critical risk after a recent screwworm infestation was confirmed, with a single infected animal potentially spawning millions of flies in weeks.
- The USDA has declared a state of emergency, implementing a "sterile insect technique" (SIT) program that releases millions of sterile male screwworm flies to disrupt the breeding cycle and crash the population.
- Humans are also vulnerable: while rare, screwworm larvae can infest human wounds, causing severe myiasis, tissue destruction, and secondary infections that may require surgical removal.
- Livestock producers face mandatory quarantines, movement restrictions, and huge veterinary costs to treat infected animals, with the 2016 Florida outbreak costing over $100 million in losses before containment.