New World screwworm (
Cochliomyia hominivorax, or NWS) is a devastating pest in which larvae, or maggots, burrow into the flesh of living animals, causing serious and often deadly damage. NWS can infest livestock, pets, wildlife, and occasionally birds and, in rare cases, people.
NWS is currently endemic in Cuba, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and South American countries. For decades, the United States and Panama have collaborated through the Commission for the Eradication and Prevention of Screwworm (COPEG) to prevent the pest's northward movement. Their biological control technique, which uses sterilized insects, successfully eradicated NWS from the United States in 1966 and eliminated a small outbreak in the Florida Keys in 2017.
Preventing NWS from entering the United States is vital to protect our livestock industry, economy, and food supply chain.
