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(24-07) Field studies on arthropod communities in Bt-maize and not genetic modified maize in two different locations in Germany. Freier, Bernd*,1, Kreuter, Thomas1, Kalthoff, Nina1, 1 Federal Biological Research Centre for Agriculture and Forestry (BBA), Institute for Integrated Plant Protection, Kleinmachnow, Germany ABSTRACT- The arthropod communities in cultivated Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) maize (variety: Novelis 270), isogenic line and conventional maize (with insecticide treatment) were studied in field experiments at two locations near Halle (Central Germany) and in Oderbruch (East Germany) in the summer of 2000. In both sites the three fields covered approximately 2 ha each and were situated side by side. The following investigation methods were used: harvesting of total plants, countings, surveys by pitfall traps and yellow traps (placed on the ground) with subsequent determination in laboratory. The numerical analyses focused on taxa with the highest presence: thrips, aphids, bugs, spiders, lathridiids, leafhoppers, syrphids, coccinellids, chrysopids, carabids and predatory flies. There were data on more than 200 taxa of different trophic levels. Non-target lepidoptera larvae sensitive to Bt-toxin did not occur in fields. Statistic analyses, including 65 comparisons of different taxa showed that only seven significant differences between maize field were found. These findings did not show any tendency in favour of one of the maize fields, although effects of insecticide applications were established. Results and methods are discussed considering additional findings of an investigation in 2001. Key words: Bt-maize, arthropods, field study, Germany |
