California Court of Appeals decides: Bees are legally a type of fish!

 A decision by a California appeals court has sparked controversy, after it ruled that bees can legally be classified as "fish".

The decision was issued on Tuesday, after agricultural groups sued officials in the state's wildlife department, in an attempt to include four types of so-called "bumblebees" on the list of endangered species.

This decision was made primarily because there is no insect category in the California Endangered Species Charter.

According to the British newspaper, The Independent, the judges overturned a lower court’s decision, deciding that bees at risk could be included in the “fish” family.

And the US judges took their controversial decision based on the opinion that the fish category includes invertebrates, meaning that do not have a backbone.

Pamela Flick, a wildlife advocate, said she was delighted with the decision. "This is a great day for California bumblebees," she said.

She added that the judicial decision confirmed the validity of the Endangered Species Charter on all species that make up the state's ecological diversity.

Under the California Endangered Species Charter, this species may be a bird or a mammal, along with amphibians and reptiles, but insects are not mentioned.

In California, the category of fish includes wild fish, mollusks, crustaceans, invertebrates and amphibians, a classification that may seem unusual, because crab, for example, is not considered a fish by most people.

The decision stressed that the category of fish should not be limited to animals that live in water, saying that it could include invertebrate animals such as bees.

Insects, including bees, face wholesale risks in California from the effects of climate and pesticide use, while environmental advocates say 28 percent of bumblebees in the state are threatened with extinction.

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