Land use change is a global threat to biodiversity. Besides converting natural landscapes into monocultures, the use of genetically modified organisms is increasing, even though their effects on natural assemblages are still poorly known. The possible effects of transgenic crops on ecosystems can be studied using ecological indicators, such as dung beetles. We assessed the effect of creole, conventional, and transgenic maize crops on dung beetle assemblages in a landscape that also contained forest fragments in southern Brazil. We established 15 blocks, five on each type of maize fields. Each block consisted of a landscape with native forests and maize fields. A total of 2126 dung beetles were captured, belonging to 38 species. The forest-crop landscape associated with creole maize had a greater richness of dung beetle species. Conversely, an impoverished assemblage was detected in the transgenic maize crop landscape. The reduction of indicator insect diversity in landscapes influenced by transgenic crops suggests that the type of maize fields influences biodiversity conservation. In addition, the negative effects of transgenic crops went beyond maize fields, reaching native forest fragments adjacent to crops.

土地利用变化是对生物多样性的全球威胁。除了将自然景观转变为单一文化外，转基因生物的使用也在增加，尽管人们对其自然组合的影响仍然知之甚少。转基因作物对生态系统的可能影响可以使用生态指标，例如虫来研究。我们评估了克里奥尔，常规和转基因玉米作物对巴西甲虫森林景观中粪甲虫组合的影响。我们建立了15个区块，每种玉米田中有5个。每个街区都包括一个带有原生森林和玉米田的景观。总共捕获了2126头虫，属于38种。与克里奥尔人玉米相关的森林作物景观中的甲虫物种丰富度更高。反过来，在转基因玉米的农作物景观中检测到了一个贫穷的组合。受转基因作物影响的景观中指示性昆虫多样性的减少表明，玉米田的类型会影响生物多样性的保护。此外，转基因作物的负面影响已经超出了玉米田，达到了与作物相邻的原生森林碎片。