Today, "scattered populations" remain in just 13 states and Ontario, reports the AP. Designating the bee, named for the red blotch on its abdomen, as endangered is likely "the best—and probably last—hope" for it to survive, says an NRDC senior attorney.
Even though wildlife officials say getting onto the endangered list can take years, President Obama has made the rusty patched bumblebee a priority, all part of the administration`s "flurry of last-minute efforts to protect the environment and preserve (his) legacy on climate change," per the Times.
It`s not a lightly made decision. "Without [pollinators], our forests, parks, meadows, and shrub lands, and the abundant, vibrant life they support, cannot survive, and our crops [would] require laborious, costly pollination by hand," says Tom Melius, a regional FWS director.
The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation notes bumblebees pollinate about one-third of all US crops. Meanwhile, a recovery plan must now be set up for B.
affinis. "Listing the bee as endangered will help us mobilize partners and focus resources on finding ways right now to stop the decline," Melius says, per CNN.
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