United States officials now announced that the rusty patched bumblebee is now officially listed as an endangered species. This also means that this is the first bee species to receive federal protection from the US government.

This week, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service announced this after a series of delays spanning a month. This endangered species listing is apparently delayed due to an executive order by President Donald Trump.

Initially, the rusty patched bumblebee was scheduled to be listed as endangered last February 10 after an announcement by the US Fish and Wildlife Service from January. Since Trump entered a new administration, he signed an executive order to halt all pending regulations to review everything. This also meant that the listing for the rusty patched bumblebee was put off an extra month from receiving protection from the government.

Apparently, this executive order can be common following a new administration, but wildlife scientists warn how any delays regarding providing protection for the species can result in grave consequences. This can also inflict more damage to the already decreasing bee populations.

 

According to the NRDC (National Resources Defense Council), this delay in pushing forward conservation and protection efforts due to the executive order is arbitrary, capricious and a direct abuse of discretion. The NRDC considered this delay as illegal and sued the US Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Interior Department for this.

The rusty patched bumblebee plays a vital role in crop pollination across the United States. The species is often found in the midwestern states and over the last 20 years, bee populations are now disappearing to a deadly threshold of up to 90 percent.

Researchers and scientists say that the major causes of this bee population declines are harmful pesticides and the effects of climate change and global warming. In a recent study, about 44 percent of all bee colonies in the United States have died out in 2015.