CENTRAL COAST REGION, Calif. – One of the most iconic insects on Earth and annual visitors to the Central Coast region, the Western Monarch Butterfly, may be receiving federal protection to help the species rebound from dramatically low numbers this year .
On Tuesday, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has proposed the inclusion of the monarch butterfly as a threatened species under section 4(d) of the Endangered Species Act .
The federal service agency is also proposing that 4,395 acres of critical habitat for the western migratory population be placed under a critical habitat designation …