SACRAMENTO — A California appeals court has ruled that, under certain circumstances, bees are now legally considered fish and can be protected as such under the state’s endangered species law.

The late May decision triggers protections for bumble bees and effectively prohibits actions that could kill, or “take,” some species without a permit or authorization.

Supporters of the ruling call it a win for bumble bees; critics say it might make farming activities, including grazing, growing crops and applying pesticides, more difficult.

In the ruling, Almond Alliance of California v. Fish and Game Commission, the California 3rd District Court of Appeals reversed an earlier judgment that had found that bumble bees could not be considered fish under the California Endangered Species Act.

In 2018, the Defenders of Wildlife, Xerxes Society for Invertebrate Conservation and Center for Food Safety petitioned the California Fish and Game Commission to list four bumble bee species — the Crotch, Franklin’s, Suckley cuckoo and Western bumble bees — for state Endangered Species Act protection.

The state Endangered Species Act, however, only protects “native species or subspecies of a bird, mammal, fish, amphibian, reptile or plant.” Insects are notably missing from the list.

The conservation groups argued that the definition of fish should be reinterpreted. Section 45 of the state Endangered Species Act defines a fish as a “wild fish, mollusk, crustacean, invertebrate, amphibian or part, spawn or ovum of any of those animals.” The groups argued that the word “invertebrate” should include all invertebrates, not just aquatic ones.

The California Fish and Game Commission responded by voting to begin the listing process in 2019 but was sued by seven agricultural groups, including the Almond Alliance of California and the California Farm Bureau Federation.

The California Superior Court ruled in favor of the farm groups in 2020, but last month the 3rd District Court of Appeals reversed the decision, allowing bumble bees to be classified as fish.

“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,” 3rd District Court of Appeals Associate Justice Ronald Robie wrote for the three-judge panel. “…Accordingly, a terrestrial invertebrate, like each of the four bumble bee species, may be listed as an endangered or threatened species under the act.”

Robie called the decision “a liberal interpretation of the act.”

“The court’s decision allows California to protect some of its most endangered pollinators,” Sarina Jepsen, Xerces Society’s director of endangered species, said in a statement.

The Xerxes Society said the decision could also pave the way for critical protections for other imperiled insects.

California Farm Bureau’s senior counsel, Kari Fisher, said the organization is troubled by the appeals court’s decision and is “evaluating potential next steps.”

Andony Melathopoulos, Oregon State University Extension Service’s pollinator health specialist and assistant professor, said that although the decision was intended to protect bumble bees, it may actually have some unintended negative consequences.

One downside of the ruling, he said, is that it could make it more difficult for scientists to study bumble bee populations because they’ll need to apply for permits to take endangered pollinators.

“Before this ruling, entomologists in California could collect a lot of data on bumble bee distribution, and now, it will be more closely scrutinized through permits,” he said.