:
John,
Few insects can bring a smile to one's face like the humble bumblebee.
But these buzzy fuzzballs are in trouble. No matter where you are in the U.S., you're about 50% less likely to see a bumblebee than you were in 1974.[1]
Though the threats they face are myriad (including loss of habitat, pesticide use and climate change), the fates of these beloved bumblebees are far from sealed.
Environment Colorado and our national network are actively calling on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to extend Endangered Species Act (ESA) protections for several species of threatened bumblebees before they're lost forever.
Meet three species of bumblebees that are threatened and need protection.
These large bees were once among the most common bumblebees in North America, acting as critical pollinators for a wide variety of native plants and crops alike. But over the past 25 years, their population has fallen by 90% and they've disappeared from eight states.[2]
While many factors play into this decline, American bumblebees have experienced the greatest losses in states that have had the largest increase in pesticide usage, indicating a relationship between bumblebee deaths and neonicotinoids.[3]
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced that ESA protections may be warranted for the American bumblebee.[4] Now, we need to get these bumblebees officially added to the endangered species list.
With their glossy black wings, short velvety hairs and distinctive black and yellow banding, Southern Plains bumblebees are among North America's most distinguished bees.
They once pollinated flowers across much of the Midwest and mid-Atlantic, buzzing from the grasslands of North Dakota to the pine savannas of Florida. But like so many of their fellow pollinators, Southern Plains bumblebees have become increasingly rare as their native plains habitat is replaced by farmland laden with toxic neonicotinoid pesticides.[5]
Last year, supporters like you spoke up in support of extending ESA protections for these charming bumblebees. But the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has yet to take action. Environment Colorado and our national network will continue advocating for endangered species protections.[6]
The landscape of western North America has been transforming. Average temperatures are rising, droughts are lasting longer and forests and grasslands are slashed in favor of farmland where pesticides are used liberally. Few species have felt these changes more acutely than the Western bumblebee.
Western bumblebees -- with their round, fuzzy bodies and distinctive white rumps -- once charmed Westerners from Alaska to New Mexico.[7] But climate change and pesticides have forced these bees to flee to more remote, higher elevation regions. You're now 57% less likely to see one of these charismatic bees in their historic range today.
If nothing changes, Western bumblebee populations are projected to fall by as much as 97% by 2050.[8]
It's hard to imagine a world without bumblebees, and we shouldn't have to.
Bumblebees are stewards of both nature and agriculture -- they pollinate many of the wildflowers that produce food for wild animals, and are crucial pollinators of the fruits and vegetables we eat on the daily.[9]
After Environment Colorado and our allies launched an extensive campaign collecting thousands of signatures, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service officially added the rusty patched bumblebee to the endangered species list, making it the first bumblebee to receive federal protections.[10]
We're working to extend the protections that have helped conserve rusty patched bumblebees to American bumblebees, Southern Plains bumblebees and Western bumblebees as well.
In addition to campaigning for endangered species protections, we're working to phase out the worst uses of toxic neonicotinoid pesticides and secure more wild bee habitat.
Many native bees may be on the brink today, but our hive at Environment Colorado is working to ensure these threatened bees will have a brighter, buzzier future.
Thank you,
Ellen Montgomery
P.S. Whether it's campaigning for endangered species protections, working to conserve habitat or organizing to get the worst neonics off the shelves, everything we do to save the bees is fueled by generous donations from supporters like you. Will you give today to help save the bees?
[link removed]
1. Steve Blackledge, "Bumblebees are disappearing before our eyes," Environment America, December 20, 2024.
[link removed]
2. Steve Blackledge, "The American bumblebee needs endangered species protection," Environment America, April 13, 2025.
[link removed]
3. Elizabeth Gamillo, "The American Bumblebee Has Nearly Vanished From Eight States," Smithsonian Magazine, October 6, 2021.
[link removed]
4. Steve Blackledge, "The American bumblebee needs endangered species protection," Environment America, April 13, 2025.
[link removed]
5. Brandon Girod, "Southern Plains bumble bee, found in Florida, could soon become an endangered species," Pensacola News Journal, January 25, 2024.
[link removed]
6. Steve Blackledge, "Southern plains bumblebee in need of help," Environment America, March 11, 2024.
[link removed]
7. John Ryan, "Keeping the Northwest's buzz alive: saving the western bumblebee," KUOW, July 31, 2025.
[link removed]
8. "Climate change and pesticides imperil a once common pollinator," USGS, January 23, 2023.
[link removed]
9. "Western Bumblebee and Native Pollinator Research," USGS, July 21, 2019.
[link removed]
10. Michael Greshko, "First U.S. Bumblebee Officially Listed as Endangered," National Geographic, March 22, 2017.
[link removed]
-----------------------------------------------------------
Your donation will be used to support all of our campaigns to protect the environment, from saving the bees and protecting public lands, to standing up for clean water and fighting climate change. None of our work would be possible without supporters like you. Environment Colorado may transfer up to $50 per dues-paying member per year into the Environment Colorado Small Donor Committee.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Join us on Facebook: [link removed]
Follow us on Twitter: [link removed]
Environment Colorado, Inc.
1543 Wazee St., Suite 400, Denver, CO 80202, (303) 573-3871
Member questions or requests call 1-800-401-6511.
If you want us to stop sending you email then follow this link: [link removed]
