State tightens rules on bringing animals into Maine to keep away flesh-eating flies

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • July 1, 2026

Maine is adding new restrictions to bringing animals into the state in response to a parasitic, flesh-eating fly recently rediscovered in Texas, six decades after it was eradicated from the country. The New World screwworm can lay its eggs in open wounds or orifices of any warm-blooded animals, from livestock to wildlife to pets — and even people. Larvae then feed on the animal’s tissues, tearing into it with sharp hooks around their mouths, injuring and potentially killing the host. The larvae then drop to the ground and later grow into adult flies. That means infested animals moving to new areas bring a risk of spreading the fly.