Would there be any downside

[Painman]

Yep it's all a very finely balanced system. It would probably cause major disruptions. I would guess aside from population control, it's a major food source for a lot of animals.

No shit. Mosquito larvae are part of the food chain for freshwater carnivores.

 

[thebestMAX]

What would the bats and fish eat?

Chicken or egg here. Bats are good for keeping down the mosquito population and mosquitos are good for feeding bats.

 

[BudAshes]

What if your wife or girlfriend decided she didn't want you burrowing into her flesh?

Did you learn sex ed from Isis? Cause that's not how it works, dude. You're supposed to use the holes that are already there.

 

[SKORPI0]

Ecology: A world without mosquitoes July 21 2010

Would it be wrong to eradicate mosquitoes? Jan 28 2016.

Why can't we just kill all mosquitoes? Feb 5 2016

Should we wipe mosquitoes off the face of the Earth? Feb 10 2016

Here's Why It's a Very Bad Idea to Wipe Mosquitoes Off the Face of the Earth Feb 23 2016.

 

[destrekor]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0NT9i4Qnak

Exactly what I mentioned earlier: we have no need to -- and there would be tremendous downside if we did -- eradicate all mosquitoes from the planet.

The vast majority of mosquitoes are very beneficial to the ecosystem, as they pollinate, are a food source, and never bite humans. Keep those, most definitely.

But a lot of science does suggest we could absolutely kill off the biting species with minimal ecological impact. There might be some issues, but more often than not, other non-biting species would fill in the gaps. So we'd kill off some mosquitoes, and welcome in possibly large populations of other mosquitoes, but those ones wouldn't bite us. They might annoy the hell out of us in summer like many other insects, but they would be harmless.

I would also argue that eradicating those species is 100% better than infecting them with diseases that would prevent them from carrying those that can harm us. When we start messing with the viral and bacterial world, there could be far too much downside in the long run.

 

[destrekor]

Ecology: A world without mosquitoes July 21 2010

Would it be wrong to eradicate mosquitoes? Jan 28 2016.

Why can't we just kill all mosquitoes? Feb 5 2016

Should we wipe mosquitoes off the face of the Earth? Feb 10 2016

Here's Why It's a Very Bad Idea to Wipe Mosquitoes Off the Face of the Earth Feb 23 2016.

Honestly I haven't read these pieces, but I've seen many like them, and unfortunately, most of these take the wrong focus: they start with the suggestion we kill ALL mosquitoes, and then inform the reader that most species are in fact harmless to humans and do not bite us (or other animals for that matter).

The real answer, according to science, is to just kill off the blood-sucking pests and leave the rest alone.

 

[BudAshes]

I'm adding poison oak to this list.

 

[destrekor]

I'm adding poison oak to this list.

Just run into some?


But yes, ivy/oak/sumac serves zero purpose except to protect themselves so they can grow more. Burn them all! (well well away from population on second thought, don't even do that anyway)

 

[JEDI]

to eliminating all mosquitoes and ticks on earth?

what if Nixon won the Vietnam war?
would he be re-elected to 4 terms?

 

[Ruptga]

what if Nixon won the Vietnam war?
would he be re-elected to 4 terms?

 

[BudAshes]

what if Nixon won the Vietnam war?
would he be re-elected to 4 terms?

 

[MongGrel]

The little nano bots to kill all the mosquitos and ticks will be a real PITA in the future when they start injecting non conforming people with poison in the future and they just flop over.

"what was that ?"

*starts working on nanobot repellent*

 

[SparkyJJO]

There would be, certainly. We don't have to eliminate them, though. Just modify them so they can't carry the diseases anymore. Both are options that we could carry out right now, if there weren't checks and balances in place to prevent it. Which admittedly is probably a good thing, since eliminating them would be the easiest thing to do.

I am all for this type of intervention. I do think we should be careful, but this isn't much of a slippery slope. Mosquitoes in particular cause immense human suffering. We've already done untold damage to our ecosystems, why stop now. Nobody would miss the mosquito even if we did decide to wipe it out, and the few species specifically dependent on them would just be the casualties of war I guess.

Diseases aside, mosquitoes are still some of the most annoying insects and their bites are irritating. I could actually get more done outside if they weren't out there chewing on my skin