In December of 2024, the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) proposed to list the monarch butterfly as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) with a 4(d) rule and critical habitat consisting of key overwintering sites in California. The Department of the Interior is expected to finalize a listing within one year of proposing it. However, twelve months later, the agency has yet to issue a final rule for the monarch.
Recently, the Department of the Interior published an agency rule list which suggests delays in the timeline for monarchs and many other species awaiting listing and delisting actions. The final rule for the monarch and other threatened insects – including the Bethany beach firefly and regal fritillary – are now categorized as “long-term actions”, defined as an action that the agency does not expect to act on within the next twelve months. This timeline would push a final monarch listing into fall 2026 at the earliest.
This is a disappointing development. Delays in listing mean delays in recovery efforts, making the path more difficult and costly. Now, more than ever, monarch butterflies need our help. While we continue to wait for federal protections, monarchs need strong, collaborative conservation efforts from all of us. Western monarchs have declined by over 99% since the 1990s and have hovered near record lows for the last two years, and eastern monarchs have declined by 80%.
The Xerces Society will continue to push for a final rule for the monarch butterfly. And in the meantime, our work continues. The Xerces Society continues to fight for monarchs and other imperiled pollinators by working with farmers, ranchers, public land managers, tribes and communities to restore and protect monarchs and their habitats across North America.
You can help monarchs by planting pesticide-free native milkweeds and nectar plants, contributing to community science, standing up for a strong Endangered Species Act, and supporting organizations working to secure a future for the monarch and other imperiled insects.
As the Xerces Society's western monarch lead, Emma works on the western population of monarch butterflies, including adaptive management of overwintering habitat in California and breeding habitat throughout the western U.S. Emma completed a master's degree in agroecology and entomology at the University of Wisconsin–Madison where her research focused on landscape ecology and an invasive fly that affects fruit crops.
