A flesh-eating livestock parasite not seen in the United States for 60 years has crossed the Texas border, months after the federal programmes that might have slowed it were dismantled under Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficienc (DOGE).
On 3 June 2026, the US Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service confirmed the detection of the New World screwworm in a bovine in Zavala County, Texas. It was the first confirmed case in the US livestock herd since 1966. Within days, the situation had escalated. By 8 June 2026, USDA APHIS had confirmed two additional cases, a calf in La Salle County, Texas, and a dog in Andrews County, Texas.
