On June 3, 2026 the U.S. Department of Agriculture confirmed the presence of screwworm larvae in the United States. The first specimens were found in cattle in several counties in southern Texas, and later in goats and sheep elsewhere in the state. A dog in New Mexico was confirmed infected less than a week later. This is the first outbreak in the U.S. since 2016, when endangered deer were infected in the Florida Keys, and the first in domestic animals since a major outbreak in Texas in the 1970s.
For the most current information, please refer to the USDA’s outbreak dashboard.