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Monarch ‘warranted’ for endangered list
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced that the monarch butterfly is deserving to be on the endangered species list.
Wayne Fredericks is the American Soybean Association’s representative for the National Monarch Collaborative.
“As we look at the decision, they felt that it is warranted but it’s been precluded because there’s a laundry list of a lot of other candidates that are more urgent,” he said.
The Iowa farmer tells Brownfield he doesn’t think this announcement is a threat to farmers fearing increased herbicide regulation.
“It’s going to be actually 2024 before they, let’s put it this way, where they look to put it on a listing at that time,” he said. “Between now and then, they will do annual reviews of what is happening.”
Fredericks said he thinks the best way for farmers to promote monarch butterfly populations is through voluntary and incentive based measures. He said there are several practices farmers can do to develop habitats for pollinators.
“Selective spraying, number two you can cut down on a lot of your mowing,” he said. “…I’ve always said that a freshly mowed strip of grass or road ditch or something is nothing more than a desert for a monarch butterfly.”
Fredericks said farmers can learn more about promoting habitats for pollinators by visiting the farmers for monarchs web page.