The Xerces Society hereby formally petitions to list the Hawaiian yellow-faced bees Hylaeus anthracinus and Hylaeus longiceps as endangered pursuant to the Endangered Species Act, 16 U.S.C. § § 1531 et seq. This petition is filed under 5... more
The Xerces Society hereby formally petitions to list the Hawaiian yellow-faced bees Hylaeus anthracinus and Hylaeus longiceps as endangered pursuant to the Endangered Species Act, 16 U.S.C. § § 1531 et seq. This petition is filed under 5 U.S.C. § 553(e) and 50 C.F.R. § 424.14 (1990), which grants interested parties the right to petition for issue of a rule from the Secretary of the Interior. Petitioners also request that critical habitat be designated concurrent with the listing, as required by 16
The Xerces Society hereby formally petitions the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to list the island marble butterfly, Euchloe ausonides insulanus, as endangered pursuant to the Endangered Species Act (ESA), 16 U.S.C. § 1531 et seq.... more
The Xerces Society hereby formally petitions the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to list the island marble butterfly, Euchloe ausonides insulanus, as endangered pursuant to the Endangered Species Act (ESA), 16 U.S.C. § 1531 et seq. This petition is filed under 5 U.S.C. § 553(e), 16 U.S.C. § 1533(b)(3), and 50 C.F.R. § 424.14 (1990), which grants interested parties the right to petition for issuance of a rule from the Secretary of the Interior. Petitioners also request that critical habitat be designated concurrent with the listing, as required by 16 U.S.C. § 1533(b)(6)(C) and 50 C.F.R. § 424.12, and pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. § 553). Due to the threat of extinction and because of its small population size, restricted distribution, and the numerous factors threatening the species and its remaining habitat, we request an emergency listing and emergency critical habitat designation pursuant to 16 U.S.C. § 1533(b)(7) and 50 C.F.R. § 424.20. While the s...
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Creek and Young Gulch, constitute the entire historic and current known range of the Arapahoe snowfly.
Dear Mr. Salazar: Due to the threat of extinction and because of its small population size, restricted distribution, isolation, and the numerous factors threatening the species and its remaining habitat, the Xerces Society hereby formally... more
Dear Mr. Salazar: Due to the threat of extinction and because of its small population size, restricted distribution, isolation, and the numerous factors threatening the species and its remaining habitat, the Xerces Society hereby formally petitions to list the Hawaiian Yellow-faced bee Hylaeus hilaris as endangered pursuant to the Endangered Species Act, 16 U.S.C. § § 1531 et seq. This petition is filed under 5 U.S.C. § 553(e) and 50 C.F.R. § 424.14 (1990), which grants interested parties the right to petition for issue of a rule from the Secretary of the Interior. Petitioners also request that critical habitat be designated concurrent with the listing, as required by 16 U.S.C. § 1533(b)(6)(C) and 50 C.F.R. § 424.12, and pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. § 553). Multiple threats including habitat loss, the rarity of these species, and the natural instability of small populations of island endemics lead us to conclude, unequivocally, that Hylaeus hilaris is threa...
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hereby formally petition the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to list both the straight snowfly (Capnia lineata) and the Idaho snowfly (Capnia zukeli) as endangered pursuant to the Endangered Species Act, 16 U.S.C. § § 1531 et seq. This... more
hereby formally petition the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to list both the straight snowfly (Capnia lineata) and the Idaho snowfly (Capnia zukeli) as endangered pursuant to the Endangered Species Act, 16 U.S.C. § § 1531 et seq. This petition is filed under 5 U.S.C. § 553(e) and 50 C.F.R. § 424.14 (1990), which grants interested parties the right to petition for issue of a rule from the Secretary of the Interior. Petitioners also request that critical habitat be designated concurrent with the listing, as required by 16 U.S.C. § 1533(b)(6)(C) and 50 C.F.R. § 424.12, and pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. § 553). We are aware that this petition sets in motion a specific process placing definite response requirements on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and very specific time constraints upon those responses. 16 U.S.C. § 1533(b). Sincerely,
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Fireflies are a family of charismatic beetles known for their bioluminescent signals. Recent anecdotal reports suggest that firefly populations in North America may be in decline. However, prior to this work, no studies have undertaken a... more
Fireflies are a family of charismatic beetles known for their bioluminescent signals. Recent anecdotal reports suggest that firefly populations in North America may be in decline. However, prior to this work, no studies have undertaken a systematic compilation of geographic distribution, habitat specificity, and threats facing North American fireflies. To better understand their extinction risks, we conducted baseline assessments according to the categories and criteria of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List for 132 species from the United States and Canada (approximately 79% of described species in the region). We found at least 18 species (14%) are threatened with extinction (e.g. categorized as Critically Endangered, Endangered, or Vulnerable) due to various pressures, including habitat loss, light pollution, and climate change (sea level rise and drought). In addition, more than half of the species (53%) could not be evaluated against the assessmen...
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In June of 2013 an application of dinotefuran on an ornamental planting of European linden trees (Tilia cordata Mill. [Malvales: Malvalceae]) in a shopping mall parking lot in Wilsonville, Oregon provoked the largest documented pesticide... more
In June of 2013 an application of dinotefuran on an ornamental planting of European linden trees (Tilia cordata Mill. [Malvales: Malvalceae]) in a shopping mall parking lot in Wilsonville, Oregon provoked the largest documented pesticide kill of bumble bees in North America. Based on geographic information systems and population genetic analysis, we estimate that between 45,830 and 107,470 bumble bees originating from between 289 and 596 colonies were killed during this event. Dinotefuran is a neonicotinoid that is highly effective in exterminating and/or harming target pest insects and non-target beneficial insects. Analysis to detect the concentration of pesticides in flowers that received foliar application revealed that the minimum reported dinotefuran concentration of a sampled T. cordata flower was 7.4 ppm, or in excess of 737% above the LC50 of the beneficial pollinator, the honey bee (Apis mellifera Linnaeus, 1758 [Hymenoptera: Apidae]). Furthermore, sampled Vosnesensky bumb...
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Pollinators are undergoing a global decline. Although vital to pollinator conservation and ecological research, species-level identification is expensive, time consuming, and requires specialized taxonomic training. However, deep learning... more
Pollinators are undergoing a global decline. Although vital to pollinator conservation and ecological research, species-level identification is expensive, time consuming, and requires specialized taxonomic training. However, deep learning and computer vision are providing ways to open this methodological bottleneck through automated identification from images. Focusing on bumble bees, we compare four convolutional neural network classification models to evaluate prediction speed, accuracy, and the potential of this technology for automated bee identification. We gathered over 89,000 images of bumble bees, representing 36 species in North America, to train the ResNet, Wide ResNet, InceptionV3, and MnasNet models. Among these models, InceptionV3 presented a good balance of accuracy (91.6%) and average speed (3.34 ms). Species-level error rates were generally smaller for species represented by more training images. However, error rates also depended on the level of morphological variab...
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Insect declines and their drivers have attracted considerable recent attention. Fireflies and glowworms are iconic insects whose conspicuous bioluminescent courtship displays carry unique cultural significance, giving them economic value... more
Insect declines and their drivers have attracted considerable recent attention. Fireflies and glowworms are iconic insects whose conspicuous bioluminescent courtship displays carry unique cultural significance, giving them economic value as ecotourist attractions. Despite evidence of declines, a comprehensive review of the conservation status and threats facing the approximately 2000 firefly species worldwide is lacking. We conducted a survey of experts from diverse geographic regions to identify the most prominent perceived threats to firefly population and species persistence. Habitat loss, light pollution, and pesticide use were regarded as the most serious threats, although rankings differed substantially across regions. Our survey results accompany a comprehensive review of current evidence concerning the impact of these stressors on firefly populations. We also discuss risk factors likely to increase the vulnerability of certain species to particular threats. Finally, we highl...
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... EDunn), pp. 189198. Alan R. Liss Inc., New York, NY. Kaya HK (1990b) Soil ecology. Entomopathogenic Nematodes in Biological Control (ed. by RGaugler & HKaya), pp. 93115. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, USA. Lacey LA ...
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SUMMARY The western ridged mussel is sedentary as an adult and relatively long lived, and thus can be an important indicator of habitat quality. Like other freshwater mussels, this species is a filter feeder that consumes plankton; beds... more
SUMMARY The western ridged mussel is sedentary as an adult and relatively long lived, and thus can be an important indicator of habitat quality. Like other freshwater mussels, this species is a filter feeder that consumes plankton; beds of the western ridged mussel can filter and purify large quantities of water. The western ridged mussel inhabits cold creeks and streams