Despite years of warnings from conservationists that the population is in decline, President Trump’s administration has postponed a decision on whether to extend federal protections for the monarch butterfly indefinitely.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced in December 2024, near the end of then-President Biden’s term, that it planned to add the insect, beloved by backyard pollinators, to the endangered species list by the end of 2025, calling it an “iconic” and “treasured insect across North America.”
But the Trump administration quietly described the effort as a “long-term effort” in a September report on the status of federal regulatory efforts by the Office of Management and Budget. This designation does not mean the government has blocked the Fish and Wildlife Service’s decision, only that it will not be designated before the end of the year, which began in September.
“The government remains committed to a regulatory approach that is transparent, predictable and based on sound science,” an agency spokesperson said in an email to The Associated Press on Friday. “Any listing must comply with the (Endangered Species Act) legal requirement that decisions be based on the best available scientific and commercial data. At the same time, the Administration continues to emphasize voluntary, locally-driven conservation as a proven tool to support species and reduce the need for additional federal regulation.”
None of the officials immediately responded to a follow-up email asking for the specific reason for the delay. The first Trump administration nominated King as a candidate for listing in December 2020. The second government focused on oil and gas production and worked to eliminate environmental regulations that hinder development.
In November, the administration announced a plan to rescind blanket protections for endangered plants and animals and instead require agencies to create species-specific rules, a potentially lengthy process. Other proposals call for logging on national forests and public lands to bypass species protections.
The Center for Biological Diversity and other conservation groups began pushing for federal protection for the butterfly in 2014, petitioning the Fish and Wildlife Service to list the insect. The center filed a lawsuit in 2022 to force the agency to make the listing decision.
Tierra Curry, co-director of the center’s endangered species, said Friday that she was not surprised that the Trump administration delayed the decision. She said it can take more than 10 years for a species to be listed. For example, the Miami blue butterfly has been on the candidate list since 1984, but was only designated as endangered in 2012, she said. He added that the Dakota skipper butterfly was nominated in 1984, but was only listed as endangered in 2014.
She said the long-term measure designation would not mean the end of monarch protection, but it would place it in “bureaucratic ambiguity.”
“This is really unfortunate because the monarchs need all the help they can get,” Curry said.
Monarchs are found throughout North America. Known for their distinctive orange and black plumage, they are a symbol of sunny summer days.
But environmentalists warn that monarch butterfly populations are declining due to climate change and rural development. Fish and Wildlife Service experts said in a December 2024 announcement that they plan to list butterflies east of the Rocky Mountains that have a 57 to 74 percent chance of extinction by 2080. Monarch butterflies west of the Rocky Mountains have a 95% chance of becoming extinct by then.
The monarch list proposal would generally ban the killing or transport of butterflies. People and farmers can continue to remove milkweed, an important food source for monarch butterflies, from yards, backyards and fields, but they will be prohibited from altering the land in a way that permanently renders it unavailable to the species.
People were able to continue transporting less than 250 monarchs and could continue to use them for educational purposes.
The proposal would also designate 4,395 acres (1,779 hectares) of critical habitat in seven California coastal counties where monarch butterflies west of the Rocky Mountains migrate in the winter. The designation would prohibit federal agencies from destroying or altering its habitat. The designation does not prohibit all development, but landowners who require federal licenses or permits for their projects must work with wildlife agencies to mitigate damage.
Richmond writes for The Associated Press.
