Maine is adding new restrictions to bringing animals into the state in response to a parasitic, flesh-eating fly recently rediscovered in Texas, six decades after it was eradicated from the country.
The New World screwworm can lay its eggs in open wounds or orifices of any warm-blooded animals, from livestock to wildlife to pets — and even people.
Larvae then feed on the animal’s tissues, tearing into it with sharp hooks around their mouths, injuring and potentially killing the host. The larvae then drop to the ground and later grow into adult flies.
That means infested animals moving to new areas bring a risk of spreading the fly, giving it an opening to establish new populations, the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry said Tuesday in announcing new restrictions on transporting animals into the state.
If screwworm spreads, a reappearance could lead to “significant economic damage” to the country’s livestock industry, the department said. Currently, the U.S. Department of Agriculture considers the risk to people and animals “very low.”
Twenty-nine cases have been reported in the last 30 days, most in Texas and one in southwestern New Mexico. They involve mostly sheep and cattle, along with a few goats and dogs.
Animals infested with the larvae, or suspected to be, aren’t allowed in without an inspection by a veterinarian. Animals from places under quarantine for the screwworm aren’t allowed in Maine until the quarantine is lifted.
Healthy animals from infested areas that aren’t under quarantine are also under “enhanced surveillance” with a requirement for a certificate of inspection by a veterinarian to enter the state. That applies to both livestock and pets.
Nationally, movement of animals across the southern border from Mexico has also been restricted, and cross-border livestock trade specifically is closed.
