Signs of carnivorous worms are broken from the ground in Texas, frightening locals.
The invasive hammerworms that can grow to a foot for a long time came to the surface in the Dallas-Forth Worth and Houston area after heavy rainfall, which encouraged a barrage of posts on social media.
A user announced that the worms were “demonic,” while a second said “Houston, we have a problem!”
The worms are generally not dangerous for people, although their skin contains a toxin called tetrodotoxin that can cause a rash if they are touched.
But they pose a significant risk for local plants and animals, where the gigantic worms are predators who parties on native earthworms, nude snails and snails.
Pets are also in danger, warn experts, with dogs that eat the worms that surrender shortly afterwards because of the toxins.
The worms have been in the US for decades after arrival from Southeast Asia, but only began to appear in Texas in recent decades.
Hammerhead worms have been cleaned up again in areas of Texas in the midst of heavy rainfall. Adam Ingle is shown above, who said that the worms were ‘demonic’. Credit: Tiktok / @KeenanWillardv
Adam Ingle, a resident of Keller, said outside of Fort Worth, told Local Station NBC5: “I noticed that the head had a hammer form, and that was frightening, like, these are really end times, even the worms are demonic.”
Another Texan, Elle who lives in Houston, posted a video of one of the worms sliding over a screen in her house and saying that it was ‘scary’.
Bev Bar, a resident of Texas, has also posted: ‘Bad news. This morning I found a hammerworm on a sidewalk. Quite thoroughly superfluous.
“It’s small, but his little hammerhead is unmistakable. Keep an eye on the eye for these noise. Especially for the safety of pets. ‘
Austin Local Chris Girard said: ‘I found three of these hammerheads worms on my veranda!
‘They are toxic to touch and are harmful to both people and pets. I killed this with salt … They shrunk quickly. Eyes open! ‘
The Texas Invasive Species Institute advises to kill these worms immediately to protect the local animals in the wild.
But it advises them to cut them in two and say that the sections can survive and form two new worms – with one a new head.
Instead, they say that people have to spray them with vinegar, place them in a plastic bag of salt or vinegar or put them in the freezer.
They advise people to ensure that they use gloves or a paper towel before they try to move the worms to prevent skin irritation.
The agricultural commissioner of Texas Sid Miller said: ‘If you see one, you will not confuse it – it is more than a foot long, about 12 to 15 inches.
Displayed above is one of the worms that came to the surface in the midst of the rainfall
A hammerworm is shown above that came to the surface in Austin and was then quickly covered with salt
‘It is a large, wide head on it, like a hammer, just as it says.
‘The thing that people need to know is not killing, it doesn’t squash, don’t cut it because it makes three or four worms. It is asexual reproduction. Tear it in two, now you have two worms. ‘
Hammerhead -Worms have been reported in Texas, especially in warm and moist areas such as the Gulf Coast and Southeast -Texas. It is not clear how many of them are in the state.
Heavy rainfall can ‘flush’ the worms if it ensures that the soil is logged with water, making it difficult for the worms to breathe or to move effectively they are forced to the surface.
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