Texans, grab some bug spray because a parasite that can screw into your flesh could be coming our way. We know, we’re kind of freaking out, too.
The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department is deputizing hunters, hikers, and anyone else wandering the wilds of South Texas to be on maggot watch for the hellish New World Screwworm. Because nothing says outdoor adventure like monitoring animals for parasitic larvae.
The alarm bells started after a recent discovery of an infected cow in Chiapas, Mexico, near the Guatemalan border. Experts are now tracking the screwworm’s northward creep through Central and South America, KXAN previously reported.
Dr. J Hunter Reed, a wildlife veterinarian with the department, summed it up: “Those enjoying Texas’ natural resources have an opportunity to serve as the first line of defense in protecting wildlife, livestock, and human health.” Translation: Your hiking trip just got a lot more stressful.
If you’re wondering, “What the heck is a New World Screwworm?” here’s the lowdown (and it’s grosser than you can possibly imagine):
The screwworms are the maggot offspring of the New World Screwworm fly (cochliomyia hominivorax, if you’re nasty). And maybe don’t eat anything while you read this next part: The flies lay eggs in open wounds or orifices on live animals — nostrils, eyes, mouths, you name it. Once hatched, the larvae screw into the flesh using their sharp mouth hooks. Yes, mouth hooks. And if that doesn’t give you nightmares, their habit of turning small wounds into gaping, festering craters definitely will!
After feasting on their host, the larvae fall to the ground, turn into adult flies, and the circle of vomit-inducing life continues. One fly can lay up to 3,000 eggs in her girlboss lifetime, ensuring that no wound is left behind.
In case you thought humans were safe, think again. While the screwworms prefer livestock and wildlife, they’re not above causing a little havoc for humans.
The last time these maggots showed up in the U.S. was in 1966, but a massive eradication effort booted them out. But since then, the screwworms have been living it up in Cuba, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and South America, presumably waiting for their comeback tour.
TPWD advises to look out for animals exhibiting a smell of decaying flesh, unexplained head-shaking, visible fly larvae wriggling around in wounds, and isolation from other animals.
If you’re out hunting, hiking, or bird-watching, keep your eyes peeled for suspicious animals and report them to a wildlife biologist. Livestock sightings should be reported to the Texas Animal Health Commission or the U.S. Department of Agriculture.