Texas eliminated the screw worm back in the 1960's which allows Texas Whitetail deer populations to not only grow but explode in some areas. Back then I was selling guns and the quality of buck deer was pitiful. I heard stories of hunters using files to make a split on the tip of a spikes antler since a legally harvested buck had to have forked tines, no spike deer were allowed. Now another plague of screw worm threatens not only our deer population, but of course cattle. The effort to eradicate them back in the '60's was actually due to the decimating effect on cattle. Here is an article I received from The Texas Flyover.
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Screwworm Within 400 Miles of Texas
The parasitic New World screwworm has been reported less than 400 miles from McAllen, raising alarms that it could spread to Texas in as little as four months.
On Monday, U.S. Sen. John Cornyn told his colleagues that a screwworm outbreak could cost Texas livestock producers up to $1 billion and the general economy $3.7 billion. Consumers would likely see even higher beef prices.
Treatment remedies for infected cattle have jumped in price, prompting some Mexican ranchers to resort to pouring gasoline on their livestock to kill the larvae. An infection can kill a cow within a week. The screwworm also poses a threat to wildlife and has infected humans on occasion.
The federal government is building a facility for the production of sterile male flies at the former Moore Air Base in Hidalgo County and funding the expansion of a similar facility in Mexico. In May, the Screwworm Coalition of Texas was organized to provide information about efforts to combat the parasite's spread.
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The parasitic New World screwworm has been reported less than 400 miles from McAllen, raising alarms that it could spread to Texas in as little as four months.
On Monday, U.S. Sen. John Cornyn told his colleagues that a screwworm outbreak could cost Texas livestock producers up to $1 billion and the general economy $3.7 billion. Consumers would likely see even higher beef prices.
Treatment remedies for infected cattle have jumped in price, prompting some Mexican ranchers to resort to pouring gasoline on their livestock to kill the larvae. An infection can kill a cow within a week. The screwworm also poses a threat to wildlife and has infected humans on occasion.
The federal government is building a facility for the production of sterile male flies at the former Moore Air Base in Hidalgo County and funding the expansion of a similar facility in Mexico. In May, the Screwworm Coalition of Texas was organized to provide information about efforts to combat the parasite's spread.
