SENATE MEMORIAL

57th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2026

INTRODUCED BY

Heather Berghmans and Kristina Ortez

 

 

 

 

 

A MEMORIAL

REQUESTING CERTAIN STATE AGENCIES TO PARTICIPATE IN A WORKSHOP ABOUT INSECT IDENTIFICATION, ECOLOGY, MONITORING AND MANAGEMENT AND TO EDUCATE THE PUBLIC ABOUT INSECTS.

 

     WHEREAS, New Mexico is a beautiful state that is rich in natural resources and filled with a wide variety of plants and animals, including insects, which make up over one-half of the more than one million five hundred thousand identified animal species on the planet; and

     WHEREAS, insects, such as butterflies, bees, ants and beetles, are six-legged invertebrates with three body segments, antennae, compound eyes and an exoskeleton; and

     WHEREAS, insects provide vital functions in ecosystems, including being the primary pollinators of one-third of food for global crop production, decomposing waste, eliminating pests, protecting soil health, especially in arid regions where decomposition is slow, and serving as food for many species; as one student said, "Bugs help the earth by helping the flowers and our food grow"; and

     WHEREAS, many people misunderstand insects and see insects as pests, even though most are harmless and play an important ecological role; as one student said, "[Sometimes] people are fearful and disgusted with insects because they are uneducated about their importance", and as another student said, "Insects are misunderstood because they look gross and scary"; and

     WHEREAS, insects are important to New Mexico's communities, including indigenous communities, for everything from ecosystem health to healthy soil for farming; as one class said, "Insects are used to help our people [Navajo] with protein and medicine", and another student emphasized that "Without insects, the food chain could start to crumble and have a lasting effect on humans"; and

     WHEREAS, insects play critical ecological roles in every ecosystem, and in the words of two students, "Insects weave life through New Mexico's wild places", and "Insects make our world a better place by maintaining balance in nature"; and

     WHEREAS, scientists are worried about decreasing insect populations due to habitat loss, pollution, pesticides, invasive species and climate change, which threaten the functioning and health of natural ecosystems; and

     WHEREAS, in 2025, a law amended the statutory definition of "wildlife" to include invertebrates such as insects; and

     WHEREAS, state land management agencies manage over nine million acres of land in New Mexico and should have staff who are knowledgeable about insects in the state; and

     WHEREAS, it is important for state land management agencies to study insects, which will enable the agencies to make informed decisions about land management and wildlife and to share their knowledge with the public so that, as one student said, "people understand the value of insects and how everyday actions can help protect them". Another student added that "knowing more about insects might help people make better choices about how they treat the environment"; and

     WHEREAS, the wild friends program, a civics and science education program for youth housed at the university of New Mexico school of law; the university of New Mexico museum of southwestern biology, a research and teaching facility about biological diversity and the natural environment; and the Xerces society, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the conservation of invertebrates and their habitats, have offered to sponsor a workshop for interested agencies about insect identification, ecology, monitoring and management in the spring of 2026; and

     WHEREAS, education is important, in the words of some students, "to show how cool insects are and why people should protect them instead of assuming insects are gross", and because "teaching others helps reduce fear and misinformation about insects and most people are more likely to protect what they understand"; and

     WHEREAS, education can help the public learn how to protect beneficial insects by taking actions such as avoiding harmful pesticides, planting native plants of different heights for food and shelter, providing water, turning off artificial lights at night and leaving some leaves on the ground in the fall and through the winter; and

     WHEREAS, education can help, as a student eloquently stated, "to protect all the creatures big and small that make this the land of enchantment while at the same time ensuring that many future generations are able to enjoy the beauty that comes to us thanks to these tiny creatures who work diligently behind the scenes"; and

     WHEREAS, the importance of insects in ecosystems across New Mexico and the role that the public and state agencies can play in helping to protect them is widely recognized;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the department of game and fish, the state land office, the state parks division and the forestry division of the energy, minerals and natural resources department, the New Mexico department of agriculture, the department of transportation and other interested agencies be requested to participate in a workshop about insect identification, ecology, monitoring and management, sponsored by the wild friends program in conjunction with the museum of southwestern biology and the Xerces society; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that these state agencies be encouraged to disseminate educational information about insects, including materials designed by students in the wild friends program; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the department of game and fish, the state land office, the state parks division and the forestry division of the energy, minerals and natural resources department, the New Mexico department of agriculture and the department of transportation for appropriate distribution.

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