The endangered Western Monarch butterflies are getting a boost from more than 100 conservation organizations.
The environmentalist's hope to convince Congress to spend $100 million a year to rebuild habitat critical to the survival of the colorful pollinator. The western population of Monarchs has fallen by 99 percent over the past 30 years.
The money would be used to replant butterfly habitat.
“Milkweed is their sole host plant. It’s the caterpillar’s sole host plant, the only plant that they eat. So, if we don’t have milkweed then caterpillars can’t survive,” said Stephanie Kurose of the Center for Biological Diversity.
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More also needs to be done to protect native trees that the butterflies rely on.
"None of those overwintering sites are protected. It's legal to cut down those trees for development. Parks can cut them down if they identify those trees as hazardous. Many of the trees are reaching the end of their lifespan so there really needs to be a push to replant native trees and give them time to mature before cutting down the aging trees,” Kurose said.
Urbanization and pesticides are two other threats that have pushed the colorful insect's population to the brink.
Kurose admitted that $100 million is a lot of money, but she said it is far less than the billions the government spends supporting the oil industry.
