mongrel

I've been thinking some more about this, and I don't think it's right to be wiping out other species, just because they're an inconvenience(or even dangerous- nobody is trying to eliminate snakes, for example- in fact, they're protected here, and they're some of the deadliest in the world) to us. I know more people have died due to mosquito-born illnesses than any other creature has killed(directly, or indirectly), but does that give us the right to wipe out an entire species? It's not like humans are anything like an endangered species.

I live in a place where a species(thylacine- for those who don't know, a marsupial carnivore about the size of a wolf, also known as the Tasmanian tiger, marsupial wolf, and a few other names) was wiped out because it was thought to be a threat to sheep- a relative newcomer to the island- and now, less than 70 years after the last one known died, that extermination is seen as a major fuck-up. I'm not saying mosquitos are the same as thylacines, but the principle is, IMHO. What happens when the full impact on the eco-system becomes apparent?

As much as I hate mozzies, I think the more ethical position would be to aim at the diseases they carry. If we were to wipe out every species that's a threat(or just an annoyance), what would we be left with?

Mageth

Just because we have the technology to do something doesn't mean we should do it. We've virtually eradicated malaria in this country without eradicating all mosquitos.

I also question the science behind this - how can a genetic trait that, by its nature, produces sterile offspring, effectively spread through an entire population, eventually eradicating the population?

It reminds me of the joke, "Infertility is genetically heritable. If your parents were infertile, it's likely you will be too."

Maybe there's something I'm missing...

pz

The article is ridiculous. We do not have the ability to eradicate mosquitos, and anyone who tells you otherwise is seriously deluded.

And if we did somehow accomplish this feat of magic, the consequences would be dire. They're talking about knocking out a major component of the aquatic food chain. This would have catastrophic effects, and furthermore, all it would take is a few mosquito survivors to take advantage of an environment in which mosquito consumers have been demolished, and they'd come roaring back worse than ever before.

Seriously, I read that article and thought that either that quoted scientist was an utter idiot, or he'd been rather viciously misrepresented by a journalist who was an utter idiot.

Mageth

A little lesson in nature, mosquitos, and the problem of anticipating what our science and policies will actually cause in nature:

When I grew up in the '50s and '60s in wet, mosquito-prone east Harris County, Tx, mosquitos were an annoyance but rarely unbearable. Dragonflies and other creatures that preyed on, both in larval and adult stages (larval dragonfly diet includes mosquito larvae; adult dragonfly diet includes adult mosquitos) and thus naturally controlled mosquito populations were common.

Malaria had been virtually eradicated from the region (it was a problem in the South until the early-to-mid 1900s), along with yellow fever and some other mosquito-borne illnesses. Outbreaks of "sleeping sickness" (St. Louis Encephalitis) occasionally occurred, and still do today, but it is generally controlled through targeting the particular mosquito(s) that carry the disease (i.e. by making sure there's no standing water in your yard; mosquitos don't travel very far).

Then, I believe in the early 60s, along came the grand plan to broadcast fog entire counties with non-discriminating (at least among mosquito species) insecticides to control the number of mosquitos, as well as the occasional outbreak of mosquito-borne encephalitis. Along with this, pesticides were commonly dumped into ponds etc. in problem areas to attack the larval stages. This worked for a few years, of course, but had the unfortunate side effect of drastically reducing the numbers of mosquito predators (either through direct results of the insecticides or through reduction of the mosquito population). Dragonflies became a rare site around my house.

Lo and behold, some time in the 70s or early 80s, mosquito populations seemed to explode. It got to the point where there were times that you could not walk outside your house and stand still for more than a few seconds before you would be covered with the nasty little nippers. Opening the door at night would often let in a dozen or more at a time. I'd sometimes spend an hour or so hunting down and swatting dozens of the little critters throughout the house so I could sleep at night. Further, some of the worst infestations were, believe it or not, in the fall, winter, and very early spring, times that fogging was not performed, and times that mosquitos were previously uncommon. Mosquitos were far worse than they ever were before the onset of the fogging program. Another side effect was that the most common species appear to have been different species, and more agressive and painful, than the commonest species before fogging.

A few years back, Harris County fortunately decided to discontinue the agressive fogging program and only fog areas where the mosquito problem was getting out of hand or there was indications of an encephalitis outbreak. This was mainly due to budgetary constraints, but I at least hope some environmental ethics went into the decision.

Now, some ten years after suspension of the agressive fogging program, mosquitos seem to be less of a problem, or at least no more of a problem, than they were during the agressive fogging program. Predators such as dragonflies are making a comeback as well.

Moral of the story? Nature has a way of doing "end-arounds" on our efforts to control and master it. As long as protein-rich blood flows through our veins, mosquitos or some other creatures are gonna find a way to suck it out of us. "Nature abhors a vacuum", so to speak, with notable exceptions such as the vacuum attached to a mosquito's proboscis. (allow me the poetic license; I know there's not really a "vacuum" in a mosquito).

mongrel

Well, either way, it wouldn't be the first time. Perhaps an idiot posing as a scientist, quoted by an idiot posing as a journalist(Murdoch owns that particular paper)?

B34RZ0R

I say we make the mosquitos probe too small to penetrate the skin... No more worries..
OK that aside I think that man has done enough to thouroughly F**K up the planet. We need to stop altering nature not continue. If you don't like mosquitos go to the arctic or buy repellant.
Be Well
-=Bear=-

Mageth

If you don't like mosquitos go to the arctic or buy repellant.

The Arctic's not a particularly good choice. The mosquitos of the Arctic tundra are among the most pernicious and numerous on the planet.

This picture was take in the Arctic:

mike_decock

Why should the diseases be "worked" on at all? Aren't diseases just as much a part of nature as mosquitos?

-Mike...

simian

I think it is generally agreed on that humans should work to reduce human suffering in the world. We do, after all, work to cure the diseases once they are in people. I don't think it is a jump to assume we should also try to prevent the diseases from occuring in the first place.

simian

theyeti

Yes, but mosquito born illnesses like malaria are usually species specific. We won't be affecting the rest of the biosphere by detroying malaria the way we would by killing all mosquitos. Well, except for the possiblity that the human population might explode, which would lead to the destruction of much natural habitat... Mosquitos are food for lots of things and they feed on lots of things. Malaria is food for nothing, and it only feeds on us and our mosquito friends. Who needs parasites?

It would be much easier to wipe out malaria than it would be to wipe out the mosquito IMO. And I don't believe it's possible to render the mosquito extinct any more than it is the cockroach. The approach that this scientist in planning on taking will probably only work if he combines it with nuclear winter and an asteroid impact.

theyeti