Monarch butterflies rebound 69 percent in Mexico, but numbers still dangerously low

AP: The World Wildlife Fund says the number of Monarch butterflies that reached wintering grounds in Mexico has rebounded 69 percent from last year's lowest-on-record levels.

Last year, the Monarchs covered only 1.65 acres (0.67 hectares), the smallest area since record-keeping began in 1993. Read more. 

Monarch Butterflies Will Be Considered for Endangered Species List

NewsWeek: There was a time, not long ago, when monarch butterflies were widespread enough that it would’ve been crazy to think about listing them as endangered. In 1996, for example, 1 billion of these regal orange-and-black insects were estimated to have arrived at their wintering grounds in Mexico. Last year that number reached a record low of 33 million.

Due to this precipitous decline, several conservation groups petitioned the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in August to list the monarch butterfly as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. And on Monday the federal agency announced that it would indeed look into whether the monarch should be listed, saying in a release that the petition “presents substantial information indicating that listing may be warranted.” Read more.