Genetically Modified Birds

 
V. 
Issues In Biotechnology 
5.1 Other Possibilities In Genetic Engineering Of Birds 
The making of a Libird: it is still a fiction to make a Libird. Below is a plan of how the bird will look 
like. The purpose has not been discussed, but we can conclude that the teeth will at least help the bird to tear 
flesh. 
Fig.9. The Plan of a bird to be modified. Source: Wikipedia. 
Secondly, it is possible to modify a precocious bird to an altricial bird. As explained above, it seems 
that precocious young has all the advantage, with their greater ability to find food and to escape predation. 
However, altricial birds have the advantage of laying relatively small eggs with minimal yolk supplies. This 
makes the mother invest a little in her eggs and can easily replace eggs lost to predation or extreme weather 
condition. Furthermore, altricial young also grow faster due to the growth potential of immature tissue [3]. 
 
5.2. Issues In Biotechnology 
So many concerns have been raised about genetic engineering and biotechnology. people are afraid
and still not convinced to eat and them. There are a lot of ethical, environmental, health and safety issues in
biotechnology. also, people are concerned with loss of natural species and biodiversity. Below are the issues that 
have been raised in biotechnology.  
 
 
 

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Genetically Modified Birds 
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(1). Environmental hazards:
Unintended harm is done to other organisms: Last year a laboratory study was published in Nature showing 
that pollen from biotechnology (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 neighbouring fields, the caterpillars could eat the pollen and perish. Although the 
Nature study was not conducted under natural field conditions, the results seemed to support this viewpoint. 
Unfortunately, B.t. toxins kill many species of insect larvae indiscriminately; it is not possible to design a B.t. 
toxin that would only kill crop-damaging pests and remain harmless to all other insects. This study is being re-
examined by the U.S Department on Agriculture (USDA), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 
and other non-government research groups, and preliminary data from new studies suggests that the original 
study may have been flawed. This topic is the subject of acrimonious debate, and both sides of the argument are 
defending their data vigorously. Currently, there is no agreement about the results of these studies, and the 
potential risk of harm to non-target organisms will need to be evaluated further.