Staff Scientist Center for Biological Diversity Portland, Oregon
The US Endangered Species Act (ESA) is the gold standard for species conservation laws, but insects are very underrepresented among protected species. Many more pollinating insects could warrant protection under the ESA. Protections for declining, habitat-generalist bumble bees could have wide-ranging benefits to environmental health. Currently, the US ESA protects only two bee species and 30 butterfly species in the lower 48 states. Conservation groups have relied on a listing petition process to spur the protection of declining bumble bees and butterflies in the United States. Unfortunately, delays and underfunding at the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) have left a backlog of five listing petitions for bumble bees and an eight-year-old petition to list the monarch butterfly. Additionally, a lack of basic scientific research and population trend data for most bee and butterfly species in North America hinders the identification of species that need protection. ESA listing decisions especially for the monarch butterfly and other wide-ranging bumble bees in the coming years will have large implications for grassland conservation and pesticide regulation, as well as help fund basic research into the biology and conservation of imperiled species.
