Pismo Beach’s Mounting Worries Over Declining Monarchs
PISMO BEACH, Calif. (KEYT) - The Pismo Beach Butterfly Grove may have more humans than butterflies visiting this year, further increasing concerns for scientists.
But they’re still not on the endangered species list.
The latest counts of monarch butterflies are the third lowest in recorded history.
But their addition to the endangered species list has been delayed.
“They said, ‘okay, things are postponed,’” says Isis Howard, a conservation biologist with the Xerxes Society. “Like, listings are postponed. Not just for the monarch butterfly, but for other species, too.”
Scientists with the Xerxes Society say the evidence showing the butterflies are a threatened species still holds.
“Fish and Wildlife Service agreed that monarchs should be listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act,” says Howard. “However, the listing has been postponed and we don't know when that will start up again.”
Studies reveal that in addition to environmental factors beyond control, such as weather patterns and wildfires, the use of herbicides and pesticides is one of the leading causes of the species’ decline in population.
“I think what's most striking and concerning from my perspective is that the three lowest counts have all occurred in the last five years,” says Howard. “And so this is kind of typical of what we see with species in decline.”
Butterflies give scientists indicators of overall ecological health.
They also serve as pollinators along with bees, and they provide food for birds and wildlife.
“There's an awesome website called CalScape, and you can just type in your address or zip code, type in milkweed and it’ll generate a list of all the milkweed that's native to you,” says Howard. “Then I think one of the top things people can do is also reduce or limit their reliance on pesticides.”
People can help the monarchs by gardening plants that yield nectar, and milkweed which is a host plant for caterpillars.
The Latest Breaking News, Weather Alerts, Sports and More Anytime On Our Mobile Apps. Keep Up With The Latest Articles by Signing Up for the News Channel 3-12 Newsletter.
