Changes in the dynamics of functional groups in communities of dung beetles in Atlantic forest fragments adjacent to transgenic maize crops

Campos, Renata Calixto; Hernández, Malva Isabel Medina

doi:10.1016/j.ecolind.2014.09.043

Cited by 45 publications

(43 citation statements)

References 56 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Dung beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeinae) are well-represented insects in tropical regions and have been used in biodiversity monitoring studies (Nichols et al, 2007(Nichols et al, , 2013Audino et al, 2014;Campos and Hernández, 2015). These beetles are very sensitive to habitat alterations and have distinct organization patterns when studied in tropical forest fragments (Klein, 1989;Filgueiras et al, 2011) or in areas that have deteriorated due to human activities (Gardner et al, 2008;Barlow et al, 2010a;Korasaki et al, 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dung beetle persistence in human-modified landscapes: Combining indicator species with anthropogenic land use and fragmentation-related effects

Filgueiras

Tabarelli

Leal

et al. 2015

Ecological Indicators

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dung beetle persistence in human-modified landscapes: Combining indicator species with anthropogenic land use and fragmentation-related effects

Filgueiras

Tabarelli

Leal

et al. 2015

Ecological Indicators

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

“…In an agroecosystem, such disruptions or shifts in preferences and behavior can cause significant shifts in arthropod community structures possibly favoring non-target pest species and giving rise to secondary pests (e.g., Lumbierres et al, 2004;Lu et al, 2010;Qui, 2010;Cantarino et al, 2015). Just recently, Campos and Hernandez (2015) observed adverse impacts of transgenic Cry toxin producing GM maize in Brazilian fields on the functional group dynamics within dung beetle communities. Furthermore, sublethal effects may substantiate only after several generations.…”

Section: Sublethal and Chronic Effects Bound To Be Overlookedmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The latter produce and release Bt toxins at an unprecedented spatio-temporal magnitude in agroecosystems. We argue that this can and probably has already lead to shifts in community structures and alterations in ecosystem services that may become particularly noticable outside of highly disturbed industrial agricultural areas (Axelsson et al, 2011;Campos and Hernandez, 2015). Agroecosystems in industrial agricultural areas are highly degraded and subject to multiple, persistent anthropogenic stressors, like chemical fertilizer, and massive pesticide inputs (Benbrook, 2012;Douglas and Tooker, 2015).…”

Section: Narrow Specificity Narrative Depends On Definition Of Efficamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, Campos and Hernandez (2015) reported significant differences in dung beetle species composition-an important functional group-possibly leading to impaired ecosystems services such as feces removal, seed dispersal, edaphic aeration, and incorporation of organic matter. For aquatic habitats, Axelsson et al (2011) reported that the composition of aquatic insect communities colonizing the litter from Cry3Aa expressing GM trees was significantly affected in unanticipated ways.…”

Section: Significant Effects Of Single Cry Toxins On Non-target Organmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Specificity and Combinatorial Effects of Bacillus Thuringiensis Cry Toxins in the Context of GMO Environmental Risk Assessment

Hilbeck

Otto

2015

Front. Environ. Sci.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Stacked GM crops expressing up to six Cry toxins from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) are today replacing the formerly grown single-transgene GM crop varieties. Stacking of multiple Cry toxins not only increase the environmental load of toxins but also raise the question on how possible interactions of the toxins can be assessed for risk assessment, which is mandatory for GM crops. However, no operational guidelines for a testing strategy or testing procedures exist. From the developers point of view, little data testing for combinatorial effects of Cry toxins is necessary as the range of possibly affected organisms focuses on pest species and no evidence is claimed to exist pointing to combinatorial effects on non-target organisms. We have examined this rationale critically using information reported in the scientific literature. To do so, we address the hypothesis of narrow specificity of Cry toxins subdivided into three underlying different conceptual conditions (i) "efficacy" in target pests as indicator for "narrow specificity," (ii) lack of reported adverse effects of Cry toxins on non-target organisms, and (iii) proposed modes of action of Cry toxins (or the lack thereof) as mechanisms underlying the reported activity/efficacy/specificity of Cry toxins. Complementary to this information, we evaluate reports about outcomes of combinatorial effect testing of Cry toxins in the scientific literature and relate those findings to the practice of environmental risk assessment of Bt-crops in general and of stacked Bt-events in particular.

show abstract

“…Negatives effects have also been found in dung beetles (Campos & Hernández, ,b ), which are detritivorous organisms that use mainly faeces of mammals as food resource and are strongly associated to food chain (Halffter & Matthews, ; Estrada, Anzures, & Coates‐Estrada, , Andresen & Laurance, ). The effects observed in dung beetles may be related to the presence of transgenic DNA or proteins in mammals’ faeces used as resource, because transgenic Bt DNA and proteins can pass intact or as biologically significant fragments through the gastrointestinal tracts of mammals or birds (Guertler et al., ; Lutz, Wiedemann, Einspanier, Mayer, & Albrecht, ; Paul, Guertler, Wiedemann, & Meyer, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Indirect exposure to Bt maize through pig faeces causes behavioural changes in dung beetles

Campos

Holderbaum

Nodari

et al. 2018

J Applied Entomology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Genetically modified (GM) Bt plants currently represent a highly adopted alternative for pest control in agricultural crops. However, their safety to non‐target organisms has been an unsolved issue. Non‐target organisms associated to nutrient cycling in natural and agricultural systems, such as dung beetles, use faeces of mammals as a food resource and could be exposed to Bt‐plant material through faeces of livestock fed with Bt‐crops. The aim of this study was to assess whether indirect exposure to transgenic Bt maize MON810 can reduce fitness in dung beetles. Four dung beetles species, Canthon angularis, Canthon rutilans cyanescens, Coprophanaeus saphirinus and Phanaeus splendidulus, were reared under laboratory conditions and fed with pig faeces using two treatments/diets: faeces of pigs fed transgenic maize and of pigs fed conventional maize. The behaviour of insects was tested by experiments on the incorporation of organic matter in the soil and nesting, and experiments of foraging behaviour with olfactometry measures. Organic matter incorporation in the soil per male–female pairs of C. rutilans was similar between GM and conventional treatments, as was their reproductive success, but beetles fed with faeces from transgenic maize produced more brood balls. In another trial regarding the incorporation of organic matter in the soil, C. saphirinus fed with faeces derived from conventional maize showed greater ability to bury food resource in comparison with GM fed ones. In an olfactometer test, the time to reach the food source was longer for individuals of C. rutilans, previously fed with transgenic faeces during 1 month, than individuals fed with conventional faeces. Our results suggest that differences found in dung beetles’ ability represent potential indirect effects of transgenic maize through the food chain and may also affect ecological functions of these organisms in natural habitats, by means of reduced beetle efficiency in removal and burial of faecal masses.

show abstract

Changes in the dynamics of functional groups in communities of dung beetles in Atlantic forest fragments adjacent to transgenic maize crops

Cited by 45 publications

References 56 publications

Dung beetle persistence in human-modified landscapes: Combining indicator species with anthropogenic land use and fragmentation-related effects

Dung beetle persistence in human-modified landscapes: Combining indicator species with anthropogenic land use and fragmentation-related effects

Specificity and Combinatorial Effects of Bacillus Thuringiensis Cry Toxins in the Context of GMO Environmental Risk Assessment

Indirect exposure to Bt maize through pig faeces causes behavioural changes in dung beetles

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About