Conservationists Plan Lawsuit Over Miami Blue Butterfly
MIAMI (CBS4) – A rare butterfly in the Florida Keys is the center of a major lawsuit. The Center for Biological Diversity is planning to sue the U.S. government for failing to extend federal protection to the butterfly.
The center on Wednesday filed its intent to sue the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for failing to provide emergency Endangered Species Act protection to the Miami blue butterfly.
The inch-long butterfly is only found in South Florida. It has lost habitat to urban sprawl, pesticides, changes in sea levels. Iguanas also are blamed for its habitat loss.
It was believed extinct after Hurricane Andrew in 1992. A small population was discovered in Bahia Honda State Park in 1999. Conservations say that population has disappeared and the species only survives now in the Key West National Wildlife Refuge.
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