The U-S Fish and Wildlife Service is asking for public comment from Iowans and others on a plan to save the rusty patched bumble bee, the first species of bee to be listed as endangered. Agency spokeswoman Georgia Parham says this species of insect used to be prevalent in Iowa and across the upper Midwest, but in the past two decades, the population has plummeted by nearly 90-percent. Parham says a large part of that is due to the widespread use of pesticides and the loss of habitat.

The U-S Fish and Wildlife Service is taking public comments on its plan through Monday at its website: https://www.fws.gov/midwest/Endangered/insects/rpbb/