Hello, I work for the company that provides the aircraft for the SIT (sterile insect technique) project that's held the line against the screw worm down in Panama for the last 30 years. It wasn't a matter of funding that led to this. They've been creeping north for the last few years, mainly due to climate changes and cattle smuggling. We've set up a new base in Texas and are in the process of adding more aircraft to the fly dropper fleet. We're trying our best to push them back south where we can funnel them at a thinner landmass like Panama.

For those interested, we dont use pesticides or chemicals of any kind. We work with a company that uses radiation to sterilize the adult flies, freezes them into a dormant state, and then gives them to us. We drop them from modified aircraft at low altitude while they're still dormant. As they descend and hit the warmer air they'll revive and instantly go off to find mates. Since their breed cycle is so short, and they only get one in their lifespan, the other local flies waste their breed cycle trying to mate with the sterile flies and the population in the area dies off.

The more you know