Yep. Last week a court basically reclassified bumble bees as fish. Where else but California could one thing that is be called something it ain’t. Hehe, it’s the craziest, but not necessarily intentional, twist on identity politics yet. Someone tell me: What’s the appropriate pronoun, so I don’t offend anything that flies or swims?
The problem, if you can call California legislative narrowness anything less, is the definition of protected species used in the 1970 Endangered Species Act. Amphibia. Check. Bird. Check. Mammal. Check. Reptile. Check. But, whoops, somebody overlooked insects. Which is how through one court proceeding and appeal the definition of fish now applies to some bees.
You got to read the May 31, 2022 ruling for yourself. Quickie excerpt:
The issue presented here is whether the bumble bee, a terrestrial invertebrate, falls within the definition of fish, as that term is used in the definitions of endangered species…Although the term fish is colloquially and commonly understood to refer to aquatic species, the term of art employed by the Legislature in the definition of fish in section 45 is not so limited. We acknowledge the scope of the definition is ambiguous but also recognize we are not interpreting the definition on a blank slate.
Thanks to this ruling, some bees buzzing about California are classified as endangered—and therefore protected—species. So much for following the science about everything from climate change to pandemics. Bees are fish. It’s the law.
The Featured Image comes from Leica Q on June 19, 2017. Vitals, aperture manually set: f/2.8, ISO 100, 1/1000 sec, 28mm; 10:19 a.m. PDT.