scholarly journals Monarch butterfly and milkweed declines substantially predate the use of genetically modified crops

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
JH Boyle ◽  
HJ Dalgleish ◽  
JR Puzey
Keyword(s):  
Genetically Modified ◽  
Danaus Plexippus ◽  
Genetically Modified Crops ◽  
Monarch Butterfly ◽  
The United States ◽  
Gm Crops ◽  
Herbicide Resistant ◽  
The Past ◽  
Scientific Attention ◽  
Herbicide Use

AbstractMonarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) decline over the past 25 years has received considerable public and scientific attention, in large part because its decline, and that of its milkweed (Asclepias spp.) host plant, have been linked to genetically modified (GM) crops and the associated herbicide use. Therefore, the monarch has emerged as a poster child for the anti-GM movement. Here we use museum and herbaria specimens to extend our knowledge of the dynamics of both monarchs and milkweeds in the United States to more than a century, from 1900-2016. We show that monarch population trends closely follow those of their milkweed hosts; that both monarchs and milkweeds increased during the early 20th century, and that recent declines are actually part of a much longer term decline in both monarchs and milkweed beginning around 1950. Herbicide resistant crops, therefore, are clearly not the only culprit, and likely not even the primary culprit, as these declines began decades before GM crops were introduced.

scholarly journals Monarch butterfly and milkweed declines substantially predate the use of genetically modified crops

2019 ◽  
Vol 116 (8) ◽  
pp. 3006-3011 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. H. Boyle ◽  
H. J. Dalgleish ◽  
J. R. Puzey
Keyword(s):  
Genetically Modified ◽  
Danaus Plexippus ◽  
Genetically Modified Crops ◽  
Monarch Butterfly ◽  
The United States ◽  
Gm Crops ◽  
Herbicide Resistant ◽  
The Past ◽  
Scientific Attention ◽  
Herbicide Use

Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) decline over the past 25 years has received considerable public and scientific attention, in large part because its decline, and that of its milkweed (Asclepias spp.) host plant, have been linked to genetically modified (GM) crops and associated herbicide use. Here, we use museum and herbaria specimens to extend our knowledge of the dynamics of both monarchs and milkweeds in the United States to more than a century, from 1900 to 2016. We show that both monarchs and milkweeds increased during the early 20th century and that recent declines are actually part of a much longer-term decline in both monarchs and milkweed beginning around 1950. Herbicide-resistant crops, therefore, are clearly not the only culprit and, likely, not even the primary culprit: Not only did monarch and milkweed declines begin decades before GM crops were introduced, but other variables, particularly a decline in the number of farms, predict common milkweed trends more strongly over the period studied here.

scholarly journals Predators of monarch butterfly eggs and neonate larvae are more diverse than previously recognised

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara L. Hermann ◽  
Carissa Blackledge ◽  
Nathan L. Haan ◽  
Andrew T. Myers ◽  
Douglas A. Landis
Keyword(s):  
Danaus Plexippus ◽  
Monarch Butterfly ◽  
The United States ◽  
Field Observations ◽  
Primary Host ◽  
The Past ◽  
Conservation Concern ◽  
Neonate Larvae ◽  
Choice Feeding ◽  
Predator Community

Abstract Conserving threatened organisms requires knowledge of the factors impacting their populations. The Eastern monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus L.) has declined by as much as 80% in the past two decades and conservation biologists are actively seeking to understand and reverse this decline. While it is well known that most monarchs die as eggs and young larvae, few studies have focused on identifying what arthropod taxa contribute to these losses. The aim of our study was to identify previously undocumented predators of immature monarchs in their summer breeding range in the United States. Using no-choice feeding assays augmented with field observations, we evaluated 75 arthropod taxa commonly found on the primary host plant for their propensity to consume immature monarchs. Here we report 36 previously unreported monarch predators, including representatives from 4 new orders (Orthoptera, Dermaptera, Lepidoptera and Opiliones) and 11 taxa (Acrididae, Gryllidae, Tettigoniidae, Forficulidae, Anthocoridae, Geocoridae, Lygaeidae, Miridae, Nabidae, Erebidae and Opilliones). Surprisingly, several putative herbivores were found to readily consume immature monarchs, both in a targeted fashion or incidentally as a result of herbivory. This work expands our understanding of the monarch predator community and highlights the importance of unrecognized predation on insects of conservation concern.

Genetically modified crops: Broader environmental issues

10.5912/jcb78 ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alan Gray
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Agricultural Landscape ◽  
Genetically Modified ◽  
Genetically Modified Crops ◽  
Monarch Butterfly ◽  
Assessment Process ◽  
Gm Crops ◽  
Commercial Scale ◽  
The Usa ◽  
The Impact

Looking back over the five years since a similar review of the field, this paper considers some of the research designed to address those uncertainties that, in part, led to the delay in the commercial-scale release of genetically modified (GM) crops in the UK. This research has included studies of the impact of transgenes on crop biology and invasiveness, the frequency and consequences of hybridisation between crops and their wild relatives and, in two costly large-scale investigations in the USA and UK respectively, attempts to assess the environmental impact of GM crops grown on a commercial scale. The first, on the effects of Bt corn on the Monarch butterfly, has important lessons for the risk assessment process. The second, farm-scale evaluations of GM herbicide-tolerant crops, should provide a blueprint for the management of the crops within an agricultural landscape delivering both food and biodiversity.

scholarly journals Use of genetically modified crops and pesticides in Brazil: growing hazards

2017 ◽  
Vol 22 (10) ◽  
pp. 3333-3339 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vicente Eduardo Soares de Almeida ◽  
Karen Friedrich ◽  
Alan Freihof Tygel ◽  
Leonardo Melgarejo ◽  
Fernando Ferreira Carneiro
Keyword(s):  
Human Exposure ◽  
Genetically Modified ◽  
Genetically Modified Crops ◽  
Gm Crops ◽  
Pesticide Use ◽  
Per Capita ◽  
Negative Impacts ◽  
Herbicide Use

Abstract Genetically modified (GM) crops were officially authorized in Brazil in 2003. In this documentary study, we aimed to identify possible changes in the patterns of pesticide use after the adoption of this technology over a span of 13 years (2000 to 2012). The following variables were analyzed: Pesticide use (kg), Pesticide use per capita (kg/inhab), Pesticide and herbicide use per area (kg/ha) and productivity (kg/ha). Contrary to the initial expectations of decreasing pesticide use following the adoption of GM crops, overall pesticide use in Brazil increased 1.6-fold between the years 2000 and 2012. During the same period, pesticide use for soybean increased 3-fold. This study shows that the adoption of GM crops in Brazil has led to an increase in pesticide use with possible increases in environmental and human exposure and associated negative impacts.

Environment and its Forms of Knowledge: The Regulation of Genetically Modified Crops in India

2021 ◽  
Vol 37 (2) ◽  
pp. 167-183
Author(s):  
Aniket Aga
Keyword(s):  
Power Relations ◽  
Genetically Modified ◽  
Genetically Modified Crops ◽  
Gm Crops ◽  
Regulatory Regime ◽  
Democratic Participation ◽  
Environment Protection ◽  
Policy Decisions ◽  
Inherent Ambiguity ◽  
Forms Of Knowledge

A fierce controversy over genetically modified (GM) crops has been raging in India for over two decades. Analyzing India’s regulatory regime for GM crops, this article focuses on the modes through which state bureaucracies know the environment. It argues that two epistemologies - scientific and legal-administrative – underpin environment protection. By unraveling the course of regulatory disputes, I demonstrate that bureaucracies are not just hierarchically divided but are also segmented by horizontal, functional specializations. There is thus an inherent ambiguity lodged between environment as a technical discourse and as statecraft. This ambiguity both fosters and constrains democratic participation in policy decisions and can even partially disrupt power relations in unanticipated ways.

BRAZILIAN GMO REGULATION: DOES IT HAVE AN ENVIRONMENTAL APPROACH?

2012 ◽  
Vol 14 (02) ◽  
pp. 1250013 ◽  
Author(s):  
DENISE GALLO PIZELLA ◽  
MARCELO PEREIRA DE SOUZA
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Risk Analysis ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Genetically Modified ◽  
Genetically Modified Crops ◽  
Gm Crops ◽  
Gm Crop ◽  
Institutional Issues ◽  
Institutional Aspects ◽  
Biosafety Evaluation

Brazil is the second largest producer of genetically modified crops (GM crops) and the National Technical Commission on Biosafety (CTNBio) the decision making agency on this matter. The country uses Risk Analysis (RA) and project EIA as tools for biosafety evaluation. This paper aims to review the appropriateness of these tools for evaluating the environmental impacts of GM crops, also considering institutional aspects. An overview of the process of release of GM crops in Brazil along with important operational and institutional aspects is provided. The results indicate that project EIA could be applied to GM crops in specific sites and RA could give support to the evaluation of GM crop itself. Regarding institutional issues, it is concluded that decisions should be made by the environmental bodies, and not by the CTNBio.

Farmers prevailing perception profiles regarding GM crops: A classification proposal

2018 ◽  
Vol 27 (8) ◽  
pp. 952-966 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carla Almeida ◽  
Luisa Massarani
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Genetically Modified Organisms ◽  
Genetically Modified ◽  
Genetically Modified Crops ◽  
Stakeholder Group ◽  
Gm Crops ◽  
Genetically Modified Food ◽  
Public Controversy ◽  
Complex Variety

Genetically modified organisms have been at the centre of a major public controversy, involving different interests and actors. While much attention has been devoted to consumer views on genetically modified food, there have been few attempts to understand the perceptions of genetically modified technology among farmers. By investigating perceptions of genetically modified organisms among Brazilian farmers, we intend to contribute towards filling this gap and thereby add the views of this stakeholder group to the genetically modified debate. A comparative analysis of our data and data from other studies indicate there is a complex variety of views on genetically modified organisms among farmers. Despite this diversity, we found variations in such views occur within limited parameters, concerned principally with expectations or concrete experiences regarding the advantages of genetically modified crops, perceptions of risks associated with them, and ethical questions they raise. We then propose a classification of prevailing profiles to represent the spectrum of perceptions of genetically modified organisms among farmers.

Modeling gene flow from genetically modified plants.

2021 ◽  
pp. 103-117
Author(s):  
Wei Wei ◽  
Jun-Ming Wang ◽  
Xiang-Cheng Mi ◽  
Yan-Da Li ◽  
Yan-Ming Zhu
Keyword(s):  
Gene Flow ◽  
Genetically Modified ◽  
Predictive Ability ◽  
Crop Wild Relatives ◽  
Gm Crops ◽  
Wild Plants ◽  
Experimental Conditions ◽  
Flow Models ◽  
Herbicide Resistant ◽  
Gm Plants

Abstract Gene flow from genetically modified (GM) plants is concerning because of its ecological risks. In modeling studies, these risks may be reduced by altering crop management while taking environmental conditions into account. Gene flow modeling should consider many field aspects, both biological and physical. For example, empirical statistical models deduced from experimental data simulate gene flow well only under limited conditions (similar to experimental conditions). Mechanistic models, however, offer a potentially greater predictive ability. Gene flow models from GM crops to non-GM crops are used to simulate field conditions and minimize the adventitious presence of transgenes to meet certain threshold levels. These models can be adapted to simulate gene flow from GM crops to crop wild relatives using parameters of sexual compatibility and growth characteristics of the wild plants. Currently, modeling gene flow from herbicide-resistant weeds has become very important in light of the increased application of herbicides and widely evolved resistance in weeds.

Genetically Modified Crops

2021 ◽  
pp. 112-133
Author(s):  
Alasdair R. Young
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Member State ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Decision Rule ◽  
Genetically Modified ◽  
Decision Rules ◽  
Genetically Modified Crops ◽  
The United States ◽  
State Governments ◽  
The Eu

This chapter presents the EU’s responses with respect to three closely related policies: the approval of genetically modified (GM) crops for sale and (separately) for cultivation and efforts to lift member state bans on EU-approved GM varieties. These most similar cases differ in outcome; with the EU resuming approvals for sale (a change sufficient to placate Argentina and Canada, but not the United States), but not for cultivation and failing to address member state bans despite very permissive decision rules. In these cases, no tariffs were threatened and there was no exporter mobilization. Commission trade officials did push to accelerate approvals. The Commission, which was more favorably disposed toward biotechnology than most of the member states, was able, with the help of very a permissive decision rule, to overcome opposition to approvals for sale, but not for cultivation, reflecting greater concern among regulators about the environmental impacts of GM cultivation than about the safety of GM varieties. The member state governments also balked at forcing their peers to change their policies. There is little evidence that the WTO’s adverse ruling affected any of the protagonists’ preferences.

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