GMO crops killing monarch butterflies

e360.yale.edu...
I came upon this the other day and I find it to be sad. there has been a decline in the population of monarch butterflies and well there are other causes like pesticides and habitat loss it appears that the herbicide resistant gmo crops may also contribute. The increase in the planting of these crops has also increased herbicide use and has lead to killing several other plant species including the milkweed which the caterpillers eat thus killing the species

The first ones were introduced in 1997, soybeans first, then corn. By 2003, 2004, the adoption rate was approaching 50 percent,and then we really began to see a decline in monarchs. And the reason is that the most productive habitat for monarch butterflies in the Midwest, in the Corn Belt, was the corn and soybean fields [where milkweed, which monarchs feed on, grew]

So now they are harming other animals further proving the unknown effects of gmos. Though Monsanto will probably try to say this study is wrong as well.

if you play monsanto backwards is says poison
too bad the butterflies dont know that

reply to post by grey9438


So sad. All of us are being poisoned with gmo, our water, our air... The bees are afflicted and now butterflies. Yet we have a president that just appointed a Monsanto creep to the FDA.

Maybe we need to move to South America where they are still fighting the good fight.

I love monarch butterflies. I hate eating poison, and don't understand why we don't all stand up against them, not go to work and not budge until the world is sane again.

Ode to beauty.

reply to post by GrantedBail


Its unfortunate that they control the fda, epa, and usda. So they can call what ever they safe and unaware people will agree, so its a challenge. I hope that the south americans are able to win against the and the same movements come to america and canada and one gmo will go away

reply to post by grey9438


Just listened to great interview by Linda Mouton Howe the other night on coasttocoastam :

GMO Herbicides Threaten Monarch Butterfly Migration

© 2013 by Linda Moulton Howe

— “Less than three acres of trees in Mexico were occupied
by Monarch butterflies this winter - about 1/20th of what it has been in the past.
...The scale of the loss of habitat is so big that unless we compensate for it
in some way, the Monarch population will decline to the point where it will disappear.”

- Chip Taylor, Ph.D., Prof. of Biology, Univ. of Kansas;
Founder and Director of Monarch Watch, Lawrence, Kansas

Here is a link to her site and you can listen to the report for yourself. Scroll down a few stories for the full report.
www.earthfiles.com...

This makes sense. I know of a field full of milkweed and every year growing up tons of monarch butterfly's would come to lay their eggs and you would find a bunch of caterpillars a few weeks later. Several years ago they stopped showing up. I am guessing this is right around the time Monsanto poisons became more popular in the rural farming area where this field was.
It makes me want to cry, because going out into this field with all the butterfly's was one of my favorite childhood memories and my children have never been able to experience it, even though I have taken them there during the time of year the butterflies were supposed to be there.

reply to post by calstorm


either the ones going there died out or they had to move where the food was

reply to post by grey9438


The food is there, there is a 1/2 acre of nothing but milkweed. So yes, they are most likely dead.

reply to post by calstorm

Thats too bad, hopefully they will find a way to save them and they will be back there one day

Among them, Taylor said, is the increased planting of genetically modified corn in the U.S. Midwest, which has led to greater use of herbicides, which in turn kills the milkweed that is a prime food source for the butterflies.

The crops arnt directly killing butterflies. It sounds like they've switched to herbicides from pesticides (since the pesticide gene is in the crop). That, in turn, is killing the weeds that the butterflies like. Why the sudden use of herbicides at all? Why weren't they using thm before and suddenly need to?

Humans just need to quit playing God

I'm thinking butterflies and bees aren't THAT different, are they?

Greens Blame EPA for Honeybee Colony Collapse Disorder

It's something I came across and thought about doing a thread on but skipped it. Maybe someone else did from another place the story appeared? Wouldn't surprise me.. Anyway, maybe it's related across species of insect?

reply to post by Wrabbit2000


they are somewhat differnent, I read in a book once (I probably cant produce a link) that gmos appear to have little to do with bees die offs because in tests it took large amounts of bt toxin to kill a bee ) far more than in most gmo crops or pollen). but they do have far weaker immune systems and are affected by other pesticides which is why bayer gets far more blame than monsanto for bee die offs but it seems that pollenators are the unintended victims of gmos and pesticides.

reply to post by TheOtter


It is a more sociably acceptable way of saying pesticide.

Originally posted by antar
reply to post by TheOtter

 

It is a more sociably acceptable way of saying pesticide.

Oh, wonderful. So the genetically modified supercrop is so great that they have had to use STRONGER pesticides?? This makes no sense whatsoever to me.

reply to post by TheOtter


well the weeds either become resistant to the herbicides or the bugs become resistant to the pesticides enginered in the crop. there have been some articles in the past on the "super weeds"

Here in Austin all the gardening shows on the radio and other media have been promoting planting milkweed to provide habitat for the monarch even though "experts" say it would make no difference.

www.statesman.com...

Here's an article from last year that claims that saving even one of these makes a difference and I agree!

www.kvue.com...

I hope all the people planting wildflowers on their land will start including milkweed into the mix from now on

Originally posted by GrantedBail
reply to post by grey9438

 

Maybe we need to move to South America where they are still fighting the good fight.

edit on 2-4-2013 by GrantedBail because: (no reason given)

You shouldn't have to move...just plow a small rectangle in your backyard and grow your own veggies organically.

reply to post by seentoomuch


The natural milkweed is getting genetically modified by the gmo. Bee's dont just land on a gmo plant and die instantly, they first spread the gmo disease to other healthy plants. It is next to impossible for me to grow without a tent anymore... I am so sad at the state of our reality. I love bees and Butterflies so much and do all I can to help them. Generally they are here on the property before now, where are they? I am beyond concerned. The more people eat the gmo the less they care or want to think about the difficult state we are in.

GMO crops are killing everything, let's face it. It isn't killing just the bees, butterflies, birds etc. It is destroying everything in it's path.

You don't need scientific studies to conclude that eating pesticides and RoundUp will be detrimental to your health.