John,

When the rusty patched bumblebee was added to the endangered species list in 2017, it was a wake-up call.1 Bee-killing pesticides have driven these vital pollinators to the brink of extinction.

But there's hope.

The Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) has just proposed protecting 1.6 million acres of rusty patched bumblebee habitat.2 That might be exactly the lifeline this bumblebee needs.

Tell the FWS to protect the bumblebees.

Bumblebees might not be the most graceful of fliers, but the delightful sight of them blundering from flower to flower used to be a common feature of life throughout much of the United States.

Today, however, bumblebees have grown rarer than ever before. That's partly because of bee-killing pesticides called neonicotinoids, which turned many flowers' pollen into a deadly toxin.3

The bumblebees have been the hardest hit.

The rusty patched bumblebee population has declined by nearly 90% in the last few decades.4 That's a horrific decline, especially since the bumblebees' only crime is trying to help the flowers grow.

Bumblebees need protection. Tell the FWS to act.

If we can all tell the FWS to protect bumblebee habitat before the comment period ends on Jan. 27, the rusty patched bumblebee might have a second chance at survival.

To survive, rusty patched bumblebees require nectar from a variety of flowers, but these flowers are increasingly difficult to access in the bumblebee's largely urban and suburban habitat.5

If the FWS designates more land as critical habitat for the rusty patched bumblebees, it could enable the bees to roam more freely and help the species thrive.

Make your voice heard by the FWS before the comment period ends.

Thank you,

Ellen Montgomery

1. "U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service seeks public comment on proposed critical habitat for rusty patched bumble bee," Fish and Wildlife Service, November 25, 2024.
2. "U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service seeks public comment on proposed critical habitat for rusty patched bumble bee," Fish and Wildlife Service, November 25, 2024.
3. Steve Blackledge, "3 ways neonic pesticides are harming bees," Environment America, April 19, 2024.
4. Steve Blackledge, "Saving the rusty patched bumblebee means saving its habitat," Environment America, November 16, 2022.
5. "U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service seeks public comment on proposed critical habitat for rusty patched bumble bee," Fish and Wildlife Service, November 25, 2024.