Field studies were conducted to assess potential effects of transgenic rice expressing Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) CryIAc1 protein, which is highly effective the rice leafroller, Cnaphalocrocis medinalis, on the rice insect community in 2007 and 2008. Insects were sampled in non-Bt and Bt rice plots with a sweep net and a suction devise. A total of 64,256 individuals in 45 families and 11 orders (30,860 individuals in 43 families and 11 orders in the Bt-rice plots, and 33,396 individuals in 40 families and 11 order in the non-Bt rice plots) were captured and grouped by ecological functional guilds. Species diversity and richness were not significantly different between Bt-rice and non-Bt rice plots. The seasonal pattern of the insect community and the seasonal population fluctuation of insects were very similar between two plots. Collectively, the rice insect community was not influenced by the Bt-rice in the present study.

• Sue Yeon Lee(Entomology program, Department of Agricultural Biotechnology, Seoul National University)
• Seung Tae Kim(Research Institute for Agriculture and Life Sciences, Seoul National University)
• Jong-Kook Jung(Entomology program, Department of Agricultural Biotechnology, Seoul National University)
• Joon-Ho Lee(Entomology program, Department of Agricultural Biotechnology, Seoul National University, Research Institute for Agriculture and Life Sciences, Seoul National University)