With its notable orange and black markings, the monarch butterfly is one of the most recognizable insects in the world. Now, with some populations plummeting, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is proposing to list the species as threatened.
In North America, monarchs are grouped into two long-distance migratory populations. The eastern migratory population is the largest and overwinters in the mountains of central Mexico. The western migratory population primarily overwinters in coastal California.
In the 1980s, over 4.5 million western monarchs flocked to overwintering grounds in coastal California. In the mid-1990s, an estimated 380 million eastern monarchs made the long-distance journey to overwintering grounds in Mexico, completing one of the longest insect migrations in the world.
Today, the eastern migratory population is estimated to have declined by approximately 80%. The western migratory population has declined by more than 95% since the 1980s, putting the western populations at greater than 99% chance of extinction by 2080.
During this same period, the probability of extinction for eastern monarchs ranges from 56 to 74%, according to the Service’s most recent species status assessment.
Threats to monarchs include loss and degradation of breeding, migratory and overwintering habitat; exposure to insecticides; and the effects of climate change. Although many people have already helped conserve the butterfly, additional habitat and protections are needed to ensure the species is conserved for future generations.
The Service is seeking public input on a proposal to list the species as threatened with species-specific protections and flexibilities to encourage conservation under section 4(d) of the Endangered Species Act (ESA).
Public comments will be accepted on the proposal until March 12, 2025. The Service will then determine whether to list the monarch butterfly.
“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.
“Science shows that the monarch needs that chance, and this proposed listing invites and builds on unprecedented public participation in shaping monarch conservation efforts. Providing monarchs with enough milkweed and nectar plants, even in small areas, can help put them on the road to recovery. Working together, we can help make this extraordinary species a legacy for our children and generations to come.”
For more than 50 years, the Endangered Species Act has been a catalyst for conservation, promoting the recovery of wildlife and conserving the habitats upon which they depend.
“This proposed rule will help build on and enhance monarch conservation efforts while balancing activities in support of economic growth,” a press released issued by the Fish and Wildlife Service said.
To assist with monarch conservation efforts, the Service is also proposing conserving critical habitat for the species at a portion of its overwintering sites in coastal California.
Overwintering habitat provides an essential resting place for monarchs during the cold winter months and helps them prepare for breeding in the early spring.
In total, the Service is proposing 4,395 acres of critical habitat for the western migratory monarch population across Alameda, Marin, Monterey, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz and Ventura counties in California. A critical habitat designation imposes no requirements on state or private land unless the action involves federal funding, permits or approvals.
The proposal to list the monarch butterfly, and designate critical habitat, was published in the Federal Register on December 12, 2024. The 90-day comment period opened December 12, 2024 and will close on March 12, 2025.
Information about how to submit comments can be found on regulations.gov by searching for docket number FWS-R3-ES-2024-0137. This docket also includes information about how to attend two virtual public information meetings, and associated public hearings, about this listing proposal.
For more information about the monarch listing proposal, and how to help conserve monarch butterflies visit the Fish and Wildlife Service’s monarch webpage here.
Read more about Butterflies in New York State.
Photo: A monarch butterfly on swamp milkweed (Jim Hudgins, USFWS).
Wow, I had no idea, with percentages like 80 and 95 thrown around, in terms of wintering areas in CA and points SW, stopover spots on their amazing migration routes, and then our northern habitat where they feed when they make it up N. How does a butterfly fly cross-country in the first place? That’s amazing to me. Pictures of where they winter is pretty amazing. And then in the Adirondacks were we summer we have a Naturalist who tracks the Monarch, and has shown Twitchell Lakers the stages of the Monarch in the Milkweed patches along our dirt roads, eggs, caterpillars, larva, the hatchlings, and then the butterflies emerged, drying out, and getting ready to fly. Totally in favor of this amazing butterfly being placed on the endangered list, glad to hear SW locations will be designated as winter habitat- what is involved in that? planting milkweed? Not sure. I guess we can try to spread milkweed seed pods with the seeds along our ADK roads to increase areas for them to feed, etc. I never would have known they were in danger except by an article and stats like this.
It has been known what the problem has been for YEARS, when things could have been turned around. F&W did NOTHING to help, nor did other agencies that should have helped, like the EPA.
Monarch butterfly populations are mostly declining due to the significant loss of milkweed, their main diet, and this has been caused by massive herbicide use in agriculture, primarily the increasingly rampant use of glyphosate used in conjunction with Monsanto’s Roundup Ready crops (glyphosate is the active ingredient in Roundup herbicide). This is harmful to a number of species but has been the worst for the Monarchs. It should have been banned years ago.
Other problems are habitat loss from urban development and climate change impacting their migration patterns, but the glyphosate issue is the main cause.
I was surprised to learn, just this past weekend, that the Monarch’s overwintering in Mexico is in jeopardy. Drug cartels are cutting down trees to fuel their drug processing. These are the very trees where Monarch’s gather to breed and survive for their next generation to head back north.