Cochliomyia hominivorax, the
New World screw-worm fly, or
screw-worm for short, is a species of
parasitic fly that is well known for the way in which its
larvae (maggots) eat the living tissue of
warm-blooded animals. It is present in the New World
tropics. There are five species of
Cochliomyia but only one species of screw-worm fly in the genus; there is also a single Old World species in a different genus (
Chrysomya bezziana). Infestation of a live vertebrate animal by a maggot is technically called
myiasis. While the maggots of many fly species eat dead flesh, and may occasionally infest an old and putrid wound, screw-worm maggots are unusual because they attack healthy tissue. Screw-worms are a reportable species to the state veterinarian in the United States if discovered on livestock.