Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Determination of Endangered Status for the American Burying Beetle

Document Type Article

Published by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Abstract

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service determines the American burying beetle (Nicrophorus americanus) to be an endangered species under the authority of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (Act), as amended, Once widely distributed throughout eastern North America, this species has disappeared from most of its former range. Two known populations currently exist, one In eastern Oklahoma and the other on an Island off the coast of New England. Despite extensive efforts to locate additional populations, only two specimens have been found elsewhere in more than ten years. The cause of the species’ decline is unknown. Critical habitat is not being determined. This action implements Federal protection provided by the Act for the American burying beetle.