manatee •

Monarch butterflies are on the rise but still endangered.

The list of endangered animal species is very long, and it seems like every day, another new species is put on the list. However, there are also animals which manage to have a good comeback and may be cut from the infamous list.

Recently, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officially announced that the monarch butterfly population has increased by 255 percent after being protected in a special reserve in Mexico. Another report also claims that the manatee population in Florida is also on the rise for the second year in a row. This is why manatees are no longer on the endangered species list but on the threatened one.

When it comes to monarch butterflies, their situation has improved compared to last year when they populated only a 2.8-acre area in the reserve especially created for them. This year, they already occupy about 10 acres of the reserve which is a great improvement.

Seeing the monarch butterflies are truly endangered, authorities started planting milkweed last year. Milkweed is used by monarch butterflies for both food and shelter. Moreover, authorities asked homeowners to cut down on the use of insecticides to keep the risk for the butterflies to a minimum.

Although the population has seen an increase in numbers, it’s still a long way to go before they could reach their “usual” numbers. Back in the ‘90s, monarch butterflies were at their highest numbers. Since then, the population decreased by 90 percent. The main reason was the loss of habitat.

The habitat of monarch butterflies has been destroyed due to weather conditions and climate change as well because of heavy use of pesticides. Therefore, it is advised that farmers find more natural ways of protecting their crops, without harming the environment and insects or animals nearby.

Plus, as climate change is also an issue, researchers will be keeping an eye on changes happening to environments, which could be blamed on global warming. If CO2 emissions will indeed be cut as it was planned and promised in the climate talks happening in Paris, vegetation should recover, which means the natural habitat of monarch butterflies could be restored.

Image source: www.bing.com

The manatee is also called a “sea-cow” because of its gentle nature and vegetarian diet.

STATES CHRONICLE – According to the US Wildlife and Fish Service, manatees and green sea turtles are out of immediate extinction danger. This is due to the fact that their numbers have slightly increased, but it doesn’t mean that they are entirely safe, they just made a step back from being declared endangered to being categorized as being threatened. There is still a lot of work and time needed for them to be completely out of danger.

It appears that the good news is not that good at all, and many believe that this change in status will only hurt the manatee and green sea turtle population. Activists in Belize say that the “threatened” status is not relevant at all, since the population increased in only some parts of the world, in others they remain endangered but treated as threatened.

What does that mean? It means that although manatees and green sea turtles are out of immediate extinction danger, there are areas in which the population is still at very low levels, but their status being that of “threatened”, poachers will make them a target once more, and they could eradicate an entire habitat.

A good example of how humans can interfere directly with the population of an endangered species is the fact that last year an alarming number of 40 manatees died because of human interference factors. What is more frightening is that even though 2016 began a couple of weeks ago, there have already been 4 manatee deaths recorded.

The manatees are gentle creatures that can grow up to 13 feet long. They are docile, curious and even friendly. There even are parts in Florida when people can swim with the manatees. Other regions have banned this not because the animal posed a threat to humans, but on the contrary, because humans disturb them too much.

The main reason for their low numbers is the increase in boat population, especially boats with a propeller system. Studies showed that the manatee can hear sounds that are of a higher frequency than the noise made by an engine, this makes the sea creature unaware of the dangers of a ship until it is too late. If we also take into account their natural curiosity we can see why the manatee population is decreasing rapidly.

Marine wildlife researchers fear that the fact that both manatees and green sea turtles are out of immediate extinction danger, fundraisers for the protection of the animals will not have the same success and the whole population that took so much effort to increase might decrease back in a few years.

Image source: www.wikimedia.org

Monarch Butterfly and Manatee Populations Rising

Manatees and Green Sea Turtles Are Out of Immediate Extinction Danger

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