Effekter på nyttoinsekter: Finns det en skillnad i diversitet hos parasitoida steklar mellan GMO och konventionell majs, i Borgeby, Skåne?

Sammanfattning: Genetically modified plants (GM-plants) have been controversial since they began being cultivated, especially within the European Union (EU). It is not well known how their unique properties affect both humans’ health and natural ecosystems and therefore lawmaking in EU has been very restrictive around cultivation of the plants. The AMIGA-project (Assessing and Monitoring the Impacts of Genetically modified plants on Agro-ecosystems) is a project within the union with the goal to decrease the uncertainty concerning these potential risks. In this project insect samples from AMIGA have been studied, focusing on parasitoid insects from the order Hymenoptera. The insects have been collected from plots with maize of two different kinds, one conventional kind and one genetically modified. The samples came from the months of June and August and a total of 649 individuals were categorized into 44 different taxa. Parasitoid Hymenoptera parasitize on other insects, eventually killing them, and therefore function as a biological pest control. The projects goal was to determine if the diversity of these insects was affected by the kind of maize that was grown in the plot were they were collected. Hymenoptera were sorted out from other insects in the samples and then the genera were determined using an assemblage of literary works. No difference in either species richness, Shannon-index or abundance, could be found between GM and non-GM plots. Time of the year, in this case the month, was a more important variable than plant variant as both species richness and abundance differed between June and August