USDA Confirms First Detection of Flesh-Eating Screwworm in US Wildlife, in a Texas Elk

The screwworm has reached US wildlife

The US Department of Agriculture has confirmed the first detection of the New World screwworm in US wildlife, in an elk in Pecos County, Texas.

The elk was on a game ranch and was reported after being harvested by a hunter, the USDA said. Separately, New Mexico animal health officials confirmed a case of the flesh-eating parasite in a beef cow in Otero County, and officials in both states are expanding surveillance and fly trapping to determine whether the pest has spread further.

A pest the US eliminated 60 years ago

The New World screwworm is a parasitic fly whose larvae burrow into open wounds and feed on the living tissue of livestock, wildlife, pets, and, less commonly, people. Untreated infestations can be deadly. The United States eradicated the pest in 1966 using the sterile insect technique, releasing sterile male flies to crash the population, and USDA estimates that eradication saves the US cattle industry about $2.3 billion a year. A comparable outbreak today could cost the Southwest more than $3 billion.

The pest has been surging north through Central America and Mexico since 2023. The first US cattle case in decades was confirmed on June 3, 2026, in a calf in Zavala County, Texas, and cases have since been confirmed in Texas and New Mexico. Around each detection, officials establish an infested zone with a minimum radius of 20 kilometers, about 12.4 miles, inside which animals must be inspected and, if necessary, treated before they can move.

Beef prices are already at record highs

Washington halted livestock imports from Mexico for more than a year to keep the screwworm out, and that ban tightened US cattle supplies and helped push beef prices to record highs for American consumers. Trade resumed in August at an Arizona port as part of a phased reopening plan. Detections inside US borders, first in cattle and now in wildlife, raise the risk that restrictions tighten again and that supply stays squeezed for longer.

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Options market and stocks to watch

The direct exposure sits with the big meatpackers and protein names, led by Tyson Foods and JBS, where cattle supply and beef prices feed straight into margins. Live cattle futures are the other obvious read: every new confirmed case argues for tighter supply and firmer prices, while a contained response argues the opposite. Watch for further USDA detections, any change to the Mexico import reopening, and movement controls spreading to new counties, and follow the story on the Unusual Whales news feed.

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