The monarch butterfly fluttered a step closer to extinction Thursday, as scientists put the iconic orange-and-black insect on the endangered list because of its fast dwindling numbers.
"It's just a devastating decline," said Stuart Pimm, an ecologist at Duke University who was not involved in the new listing."This is one of the most recognizable butterflies in the world."
"What we're worried about is the rate of decline," said Nick Haddad, a conservation biologist at Michigan State University."It's very easy to imagine how very quickly this butterfly could become even more imperiled." After wintering in the mountains of central Mexico, the butterflies migrate to the north, breeding multiple generations along the way for thousands of miles. The offspring that reach southern Canada then begin the trip back to Mexico at the end of summer.
Emma Pelton of the nonprofit Xerces Society, which monitors the western butterflies, said the butterflies are imperiled by loss of habitat and increased use of herbicides and pesticides for agriculture, as well as climate change.
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