The Center for Food Safety (CFS) has filed a notice of intent to sue the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) for violating the Endangered Species Act (ESA) by unlawfully withholding its decision on whether to protect the Iowa skipper butterfly, a once-common prairie species now on the verge of extinction.

"Pollinators like the Iowa skipper are vital to both environmental and public health. Trading their extinction for pesticide profits is both unlawful and unconscionable," said Suzannah Smith, legal counsel at CFS. "This butterfly is a warning sign in the broader extinction crisis driven by industrial monocultures and chemical overuse."

CFS initially petitioned FWS in March 2023 to grant ESA protection for the Iowa skipper, submitting a 100-page document backed by over 250 scientific sources detailing how industrial agriculture, monoculture crop systems, and pesticide spraying are the primary drivers of its collapse. In October 2024, under legal pressure from CFS, FWS acknowledged that protection "may be warranted"-but has since missed the legally required one-year deadline to make a final determination.

The bright amber-colored Iowa skipper is an indicator species, often signaling the health of grassland ecosystems. Its decline mirrors the destruction of the tallgrass prairie, more than 99% of which has been lost to development and agriculture in the U.S. As a prairie-specialist butterfly, the skipper is especially vulnerable to fragmented habitats and chemical exposure from widespread pesticide use.

Beyond habitat loss, toxic pesticides, including herbicides and insecticides, are directly harming the butterfly and degrading its remaining habitat. Climate change, invasive species, and the isolated nature of the skipper's few surviving colonies further amplify its risk of extinction.

CFS's lawsuit is part of its extinction crisis program, which also advocates for protections for monarch butterflies and other species impacted by toxic agrochemical practices. The group is urging FWS to act immediately and avoid further legal delays.

"The agency is legally and morally obligated to protect species like the Iowa skipper from preventable extinction," Smith added. "Time is running out."