Fish and Wildlife Service to assess status of four species for consideration of 'endangered' status

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says it will assess the status of the northern bog lemming, the wood turtle, the rusty-patched bumble bee and the regal butterfly to determine whether any of the species warrant protection under the Endangered Species Act, reports Agri-Pulse. 

"The northern bog lemming is found in sphagnum bogs, wet subalpine meadows and mossy forests in northern states including Minnesota, Maine, New Hampshire, New York, Washington, Idaho, Montana and Alaska," reports Agri-Pulse. "Wood turtles occur in Minnesota, Iowa, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware, Virginia and West Virginia. They inhabit streams, woodland bogs and marshy pastures."

The rusty-patched bumble bee, which is found in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Maryland, Connecticut, Massachusetts, North Carolina, New Jersey, Ohio, Tennessee and Wisconsin, "needs a supply of flowers that bloom from April to September," reports Agri-Pulse. "A large orange and black butterfly, the regal fritillary is sometimes mistaken for a monarch butterfly if seen from a distance. It is found in grasslands and prairies from eastern Colorado to the East Coast, including the Midwest states of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio and Wisconsin. As a caterpillar, the fritillary eats only violets."