It might not sound like good news, but the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has determined that the monarch butterfly, a once common insect across much of the Midwest, is endangered. While it’s worrisome that the population has declined by 80 percent in recent years, the announcement this week is welcome to many of those who want to help the butterfly survive, as it could expand protection efforts.
Monarchs are well known to many people, the brilliant orange and black creatures can usually be spotted just about anywhere flowers are found, fluttering between blooms. They are also renowned for their annual migration between a broad area of the eastern and northern United States where they spend the summer, and forests in Mexico where they winter. The trip can be as long as 3,000 miles — for a butterfly that weighs less than one gram, lighter than a paperclip.
“The iconic monarch butterfly is cherished across North America, captivating children and adults throughout its fascinating lifecycle. Despite its fragility, it is remarkably resilient, like many things in nature when we just give them a chance,” said U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Martha Williams.
The proposal comes 10 years after environmental groups and scientists first petitioned the government to considered endangered species protections for monarchs. The agency decided the species was likely qualified in 2020 but did not have the resources to complete the review until now.
The proposal to list monarchs as threatened is currently open for public comment until March 12, 2025. Online public meetings will be held Jan. 14 and 15. More information about commenting is available here. Officials stress that comments simply in support or opposition to the proposal are not very helpful, as the agency must rely on scientific information to make its decision. Anyone with data regarding the species and its conservation is asked to comment.
One local pollinator advocate says the announcement is a big opportunity to take action, but the butterfly’s fate is far from secure. Laurie Schneider, executive director of the St. Croix Valley-based Pollinator Friendly Alliance, told St. Croix 360 that it’s an important step because monarchs don’t currently have any federal protections.
“People are really excited about the possibility of federal protections for the monarch. It’s important for folks to understand that monarchs are not currently protected under the ESA,” Schneider said. “We hope the proposed listing will be implemented in time to actually save this beautiful iconic butterfly from continued decline.”
Pollinator Friendly Alliance’s work is an example of the kind of projects that scientists and policy-makers say is needed to save monarchs. The organization has partnered with land managers to replant former agriculture fields with prairie plants that provide habitat for monarchs and many other species, among advocacy and other activities.
On their breeding range, monarchs require milkweed plants to successfully reproduce, which have been eliminated from much of the landscape by humans over the past several decades. While herbicides have reduced the milkweed availability, the increasing use of insecticides by farmers and others is also believed to have hurt monarchs themselves.
“Their initial decline was driven by widespread loss of milkweed, the caterpillar’s sole food source, due to increased herbicide use on genetically engineered corn and soybean crops — most notably, Monsanto’s Roundup. All stages of monarchs are harmed by neonicotinoid insecticides used in crop seed coatings and on ornamental plants.
“Grasslands and other green spaces that provide wildflowers for nectar-seeking adult monarchs continue to be lost to sprawl development. Millions of monarchs are killed by vehicles annually as they migrate across the continent. In their winter habitat in Mexico, forests and streams are being lost at record rates to grow avocados for unsustainable avocado demand in the United States.”
As things are currently going, experts estimate that the primary eastern population of monarchs, which includes the St. Croix River region, has a greater than 50 percent chance of going extinct in the next 50 years.
The Fish and Wildlife Service says in its proposal that increasing food and breeding habitat with more milkweed and nectar plants is a key priority. It also points to the need to protect and enhance winter habitat in Mexico, minimize impacts from pesticides, and keep the public invested in the conservation effort.
“Providing monarchs with enough milkweed and nectar plants, even in small areas, can help put them on the road to recovery,” said USFWS director Williams. “Working together, we can help make this extraordinary species a legacy for our children and generations to come.”
The federal agency also says average citizens can take important actions to help monarchs. While raising monarch larvae in captivity and then releasing the butterflies has become popular in recent years, the USFWS says it does not recommend the activity as a means to restore the population. Captive-reared monarchs have been found to be less successful at making their migration journey, as well as having a higher risk of genetic problems and disease.
Instead, the officials say individuals can plant milkweed and other plants to provide important resources for monarchs.
“This is a call to action for everyone to proactively conserve and protect monarchs and their habitats to support population recovery,” says the Pollinator Friendly Alliance’s Schneider. “It’s time for an all-hands-on-deck approach. Diverse land management strategies across public and private lands are essential to protecting and sustaining monarch populations.”
More information:
- Endangered and Threatened Species: Species Status with Section 4(d) Rule for Monarch Butterfly and Designation of Critical Habitat – U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services
- Fish and Wildlife Service Proposes Endangered Species Act Protection for Monarch Butterfly; Urges Increased Public Engagement to Help Save the Species
- Pollinator Friendly Alliance
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