A fast-spreading invasive insect is raising new concerns for Texas ranchers as experts warn it could threaten millions of acres of pastureland that support the state\u2019s cattle industry.<\/p>\n
The pasture mealybug, first confirmed in Texas in 2025, has now been found in 70 counties and continues spreading rapidly, according to the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service.<\/p>\n
The tiny insect feeds on common warm-season grasses, including Bermuda grass, Bahia grass, bluestems and johnsongrass, all of which are critical food sources for cattle and other grazing livestock. As the insects feed, they weaken plants by sucking out sap and injecting toxins, which can cause large patches of grass to die, a condition known as pasture dieback.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt seems like we add new counties every week, sometimes every day,\u201d said Dr. David Kerns, Texas A&M AgriLife\u2019s statewide integrated pest management coordinator. \u201cI get up to a dozen calls every day from producers who think they have them in their pastures.\u201d<\/p>\n
Why Texans should care<\/p>\n
Texas has the nation\u2019s largest cattle industry, valued at approximately $15.5 billion. Experts estimate the pasture mealybug could cause anywhere from $100 million to more than $1 billion in annual forage and grazing losses, depending on how widespread infestations become.<\/p>\n
If damaged pastures need to be replanted, statewide costs could reach $1 billion to $2 billion.<\/p>\n
Reduced pasture also means ranchers may have to spend more on supplemental feed, reduce herd sizes or face lower hay production.<\/p>\n
Control options are limited<\/p>\n
Researchers say there are currently no approved pesticides that effectively eliminate the pest. One product has shown limited success at suppressing smaller infestations, while Texas A&M is seeking emergency approval from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for additional treatment options.<\/p>\n
For now, experts recommend:<\/p>\n
Regularly inspecting pastures for signs of damage.<\/p>\n
Cutting and baling tall grass if an infestation is suspected.<\/p>\n
Cleaning livestock and equipment before moving them between pastures to reduce the spread.<\/p>\n
Researchers are also investigating whether young mealybugs can travel long distances on the wind, which could help explain how quickly the insect has spread across Texas.<\/p>\n
Several regions already reporting damage<\/p>\n
Pasture mealybugs have become a growing concern across multiple parts of Texas, including Central, Southeast, Southwest and Coastal Bend regions, where producers are reporting forage losses and dying pastures. In some areas, insecticide treatments have had little success.<\/p>\n
The pest is also appearing alongside another major concern for ranchers, the New World screwworm, creating what agricultural economists describe as a potential \u201cone-two punch\u201d for the livestock industry.<\/p>\n
Texas A&M encourages producers who suspect an infestation to contact their local AgriLife Extension office for assistance with identification and management recommendations.<\/p>\n
Copyright 2026 by KPRC Click2Houston – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A fast-spreading invasive insect is raising new concerns for Texas ranchers as experts warn it could threaten millions…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":369575,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[130940,130941,130939,130938,27,29,28],"class_list":["post-369574","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-texas","tag-invasive-pest-texas","tag-livestock-pest","tag-livestock-pest-control","tag-mealybug-infestation","tag-texas","tag-texas-headlines","tag-texas-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/369574","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=369574"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/369574\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/369575"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=369574"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=369574"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=369574"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}