Associated Press
MOUNT VERNON — Wildlife officials propose listing a butterfly found in a northern Washington island as an endangered species.
The Skagit Valley Herald reported San Juan Island’s marble butterfly could be the 10th endangered species in the state.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is proposing designating 1.3 square miles on the island as a critical habitat for the species.
The butterfly has wings about the size of a quarter and are white on top with a marbled yellow and green on the bottom.
It was discovered in the islands in 1998, but has since disappeared from four of its five local habitats.
Today, they are found in the American Camp portion of the San Juan Island National Historic Park.
Wildlife officials say the butterfly’s population is down the hundreds.
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