The
United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant
Health Inspection Service (APHIS) confirmed the presence of New World
screwworm (Cochliomyia hominivorax) in a stray dog near Homestead, Florida. The dog was isolated and his infested wounds were treated. Federal and state officials have started active surveillance in the area.
This
is the first confirmed case on Florida’s mainland. Screwworm was first
confirmed on October 3, 2016 in Key deer from National Key Deer Refuge
on Big Pine Key, Florida. This initial presence of screwworm was the
first local detection in the United States in more than 30 years and
Florida’s Commissioner of Agriculture, Adam Putnam declared an
agricultural state of emergency in Monroe County, Florida.
Since
October, 13 Keys had known infestations mostly in the key deer
population, with five confirmed infestations in domestic animals. Animal
health and wildlife officials at the state and federal levels have been
working aggressively to eradicate this pest. Extensive response efforts
have included fly assessments to determine the extent of the
infestation, release of sterile flies to prevent reproduction and
disease surveillance to look for additional cases in animals. Officials
have received significantly fewer reports of adult screwworm flies in
the area and fewer cases of infected Key deer. To date, fly assessments
have been conducted on 40 Keys. USDA has released over 80 million
sterile flies from 25 ground release sites on twelve islands and the
city of Marathon. The initial epidemiology report on the Florida Keys
infestation may be viewed at https://www.aphis.usda.gov/stakeholders/downloads/2017/nws-epi-report.pdf.
Residents
who have warm-blooded animals (pets, livestock, etc.) should watch
their animals carefully. Florida residents should report any potential
cases to 1-800-HELP-FLA (1-800-435-7352) or non-Florida residents should
call (850) 410-3800. Visitors to the area should ensure any pets that
are with them are also checked, in order to prevent the spread of this
infestation.
While
human cases of New World screwworm are rare, they have occurred, and
public health officials are involved in the response. No human cases
have been reported in Florida. For more information about this disease
in humans, please contact your local public health department. Using fly
repellents and keeping skin wounds clean and protected from flies can
help prevent infection with screwworm in both people and animals.
New
World screwworm are fly larvae (maggots) that can infest livestock and
other warm-blooded animals, including people. They most often enter an
animal through an open wound and feed on the animal’s living
flesh. While they can fly much farther under ideal conditions, adult
flies generally do not travel more than a couple of miles if there are
suitable host animals in the area. New World screwworm is more likely to
spread long distances when infested animals move to new areas and carry
the pest there.
In
the 1950s, USDA developed a new method to help eradicate screwworm
using a form of biological control, called the sterile insect technique,
which releases infertile flies in infested areas. When they mate with
wild females, no offspring result. With fewer fertile mates available in
each succeeding generation, the fly, in essence, breeds itself out of
existence. USDA used this technique to eradicate screwworm from the
U.S. and worked with other countries in Central America and the
Caribbean to eradicate it there as well. Today, USDA and its partners
maintain a permanent sterile fly barrier at the Darien Gap between
Panama and Colombia to prevent the establishment of any screwworm flies
that enter from South America.
Issues of concern to people who live in the west: property rights, water rights, endangered species, livestock grazing, energy production, wilderness and western agriculture. Plus a few items on western history, western literature and the sport of rodeo... Frank DuBois served as the NM Secretary of Agriculture from 1988 to 2003. DuBois is a former legislative assistant to a U.S. Senator, a Deputy Assistant Secretary of Interior, and is the founder of the DuBois Rodeo Scholarship.
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