MEXICO CITY - Authorities have found the body of a missing farm leader who was active in protecting the wintering grounds of the monarch butterfly in Mexico, prosecutors said Wednesday. Investigators in Michoacan state said the body had been identified as Homero Gómez González, who had not been seen since Jan. 14. Activists said his death could be related to disputes over illegal logging, water or income from visitors’ fees. Gómez González was a former communal land officer who led efforts to preserve the pine and fir mountaintop forests where the butterflies spend the winter. Mexico has clamped down on illegal logging, which was once a major threat to the reserves but which has fallen to about one-third last year’s level.

Source: thestar January 30, 2020 00:45 UTC