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could_use_a_snack t1_ivfp3z8 wrote

Reply to comment by bossonhigs in English company Oxitec has released a simple, easy to distribute commercial product they say cuts Dengue Fever spreading mosquito populations by 96%. By just adding water, genetically modified mosquito eggs mature into males whose sperm cannot result in viable female larvae. by lughnasadh

Agreed. I've brought up similar concerns in the past, and once was told that bats don't eat mosquitoes. Just prepare for a lot of trolling. People really hate mosquitoes.

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strvgglecity t1_ivg343o wrote

Bats and birds both eat mosquitos. These people would rather all animals go extinct than have a chance at getting a mosquito disease.

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tlind1990 t1_ivgbm2g wrote

But the odds of killing off one mosquito species collapsing food chains seems unlikely. There are over 3000 species of mosquito globally and many likely fill similar niches and likely in at least semi overlapping ranges.

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RedditAcctSchfifty5 t1_ivhecmo wrote

It's been studied for decades, and the summary extinction of all species of mosquitoes would net zero negative effect of any kind in any ecosystem.

In fact, numerous studies have shown many ecosystems would improve in balance and stability if mosquitoes were eliminated.

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GimmickNG t1_ivge0yn wrote

that's like saying humans would go extinct if people stopped eating beef.

like...you DO realize that they eat OTHER things as well right?

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RedditAcctSchfifty5 t1_ivhel3d wrote

As Obligate Omnivores, Humans are a bad example (if you meant all red meat, of course - I see you specified beef, which leaves plenty of other options).

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GimmickNG t1_ivi3wch wrote

Yes, I wasn't referring to all red meat. That being said, there's not much I could find out about "obligate omnivores", so I'm not sure what you mean by that.

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strvgglecity t1_ivgqweu wrote

If you artificially remove a major component of a local ecosystem food chain, that is what happens. In your scenario, a human can replace the beef with other foods. That's not how nature works. If you walk in and kill half the deer, for instance, then the predator animals have less food. It's not complicated.

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GimmickNG t1_ivgt6wu wrote

> If you walk in and kill half the deer, for instance, then the predator animals have less food.

deer are far larger, just how many calories do you think this species of mosquito has?

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RedditAcctSchfifty5 t1_ivhf0pc wrote

Right, it's just that no local ecosystem exists, according to decades of scientific research, in which mosquitoes are a significant beneficial component.

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