... issue. Environmentally, the most common concerns have to do with the unintended effects on insect populations, like the well-known example of the effects Bt corn pollen has on monarch butterfly larvae. Other environmentalists are concerned with the potential detrimental effects GM crops could have on the environment, like the potential for increased herbicide usage or long-lived residues in the ... ...

• Word Count: 1644
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... the targeted species, disrupting the natural food chain ("Food-). In 1999 a laboratory study was published in the magazine Nature showing that pollen from B.t. corn caused high mortality rates in monarch butterfly caterpillars. Monarch caterpillars consume milkweed plants, not corn, but the fear is that if pollen from B.t. corn is blown by the wind onto milkweed plants in neighboring fields, the caterpillars ... ...

• Word Count: 3593
• Approx Pages: 14
• Grade Level: Undergraduate