Many things threaten butterflies and moths. None is more deadly than habitat alteration and destruction.
These delicate creatures can only eat certain plants and live in certain areas. Insecticides and pollution kill millions of them every year. If a mall is built in their feeding and breeding grounds, that can be a disaster. One California species, the Xerces (ZER-seez) blue, has already become extinct. Its habitat was so changed, it had nowhere to live. So it died out. More than 20 other butterfly and moth species are on the U.S. government’s endangered species list.
Fortunately, there are things we can all do to help. So let’s do our best to keep butterflies and moths fluttering through our lives.
