The high mountain meadows of native flowering plants outside the Village of Cloudcroft in southern New Mexico are the only place to find Sacramento Mountains checkerspot butterflies in the wild. Their limited range is just one reason the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) is proposing the butterfly with unique dark brown, red, orange and white checked wings be protected by the Endangered Species Act.
The Service announced today that it will propose the Sacramento Mountains checkerspot butterfly be listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act (Act). The proposal will be published in the Federal Register in early September. The public will have 60 days from the publication date to comment on any aspect of the proposal, which also includes a proposed designation of 5,000 acres of critical habitat in Otero County. Today
