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Scientists: Go ahead, kill all the mosquitoes.

Slartibartfast

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http://blogs.chron.com/sciguy/archi..._go_ahead_kill_all_the_mosquitoes_the_wo.html
In a revealing analysis, Nature magazine put this very question to ecologists, asking them whether removing the some 3,500 species of mosquitoes from the planet would irreparably harm the world's fragile ecosystems.
The story's conclusion? No:
Scientists acknowledge that the ecological scar left by a missing mosquito would heal quickly as the niche was filled by other organisms. Life would continue as before -- or even better.

I say we kill em all!
 
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I suppose this would be good news, if we actually followed through with it.
 
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Pardon me if I'm skeptical. Anytime scientists have thought that the introduction or elimination of a species was a good thing, it has always brought disastrous results.

I know mosquitoes are annoying but most humans just don't know how to deal with them. First of all, don't eat high sugar fruits, especially bananas. Second, real vanilla extract will repel them better than any DEET spray. Make sure it's real though, and not the fake stuff; unlike us, mosquitoes can tell the difference.
 
Pardon me if I'm skeptical. Anytime scientists have thought that the introduction or elimination of a species was a good thing, it has always brought disastrous results.

I know mosquitoes are annoying but most humans just don't know how to deal with them. First of all, don't eat high sugar fruits, especially bananas. Second, real vanilla extract will repel them better than any DEET spray. Make sure it's real though, and not the fake stuff; unlike us, mosquitoes can tell the difference.

I think the idea is more about the millions of people who die from maleria and other mosquitoe borne diseases, its not as simple as buying bug spray for some people.
 
'cause of it's ability to spread disease, the mosquito is the worlds deadliest animal, it has killed more people than any other, in a lot of countries, it's not simply a matter of an annoying bite.
 
Wouldnt some sortof superstrain of mosquito survive and make us all pay?
 

Even if the scientists' speculations were accurate, how can we do that, without destroying other, more necessary life forms?

I agree that a mosquito-free world would be a boon for humanity; here, they're only a nuisance problem, but in other parts of the world they're loathsome disease carriers, with malaria, of course, being the most common. How many millions of human lives lost to mosquitoes, since the dawn of humanity?
But how can we obliterate them, without doing irreparable harm to other, useful insect species?
 
By all means, let's drive the mosquito to extinction! While we're at it, let's do the same with houseflies, cockroaches, and suicide bombers. All we need to do is find a practical way to do so. I, for one, would be more than willing to put up with any unforeseen consequences.
 
Even if the scientists' speculations were accurate, how can we do that, without destroying other, more necessary life forms?

I agree that a mosquito-free world would be a boon for humanity; here, they're only a nuisance problem, but in other parts of the world they're loathsome disease carriers, with malaria, of course, being the most common. How many millions of human lives lost to mosquitoes, since the dawn of humanity?
But how can we obliterate them, without doing irreparable harm to other, useful insect species?

Lasers. Automatic mosquito death laser turrets.

No, seriously. Some guys developed a laser that detects the frequency of the sound mosquitos make, it's unique or something. I want one.
 
Lasers. Automatic mosquito death laser turrets.

No, seriously. Some guys developed a laser that detects the frequency of the sound mosquitos make, it's unique or something. I want one.

But what if a sui- homicide mosquito landed between your eyes while the death laser turret was operational?
 
But what if a sui- homicide mosquito landed between your eyes while the death laser turret was operational?

Obituary:

Poor Joe Jones died today at the tender age of only 45. It seems a laser turret intended to kill mosquitos turned and fired while the critter was on Poor Joe's forehead.

On the bright side, Joe hasn't been bitten by mosquitos in nearly a year now.

In leu of flowers, donations are being accepted to the anti mosquito foundation.
 
Lasers. Automatic mosquito death laser turrets.

No, seriously. Some guys developed a laser that detects the frequency of the sound mosquitos make, it's unique or something. I want one.

I linked to an article about this way back there on page 1. It can even discern between a male mosquito and a female.

There are DIY instructions to build one floating around out there as well, I don't know if they are thorough enough to implement it, or rather just a rough outline, I did not look close enough to find out, but the initial working model of the laser was supposedly built with parts attained from Ebay
 
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God Damn MFSOB Wall St. Journal site always does something
to hang up my old computer. The forum architecture here
isn't so hot either- let's see if this reply can be posted.

Since I can't access what these scientific geniuses said,
can someone else here tell me how the several dozen to
several hundred to several thousand species of birds, bats
and other bebeficial species which feed on mosquitos are
going to survive?
 
Since I can't access what these scientific geniuses said,
can someone else here tell me how the several dozen to
several hundred to several thousand species of birds, bats
and other bebeficial species which feed on mosquitos are
going to survive?

I don't think there are any species that feed solely on mosquitoes, and the ecological niches would soon be filled.

Scientists acknowledge that the ecological scar left by a missing mosquito would heal quickly as the niche was filled by other organisms. Life would continue as before -- or even better.

When it comes to the major disease vectors, "it's difficult to see what the downside would be to removal, except for collateral damage", says insect ecologist Steven Juliano, of Illinois State University in Normal.

A world without mosquitoes would be "more secure for us", says medical entomologist Carlos Brisola Marcondes from the Federal University of Santa Catarina in Brazil. "The elimination of Anopheles would be very significant for mankind."
 
God Damn MFSOB Wall St. Journal site always does something
to hang up my old computer. The forum architecture here
isn't so hot either- let's see if this reply can be posted.

Since I can't access what these scientific geniuses said,
can someone else here tell me how the several dozen to
several hundred to several thousand species of birds, bats
and other bebeficial species which feed on mosquitos are
going to survive?

Time to get rid of that Apple IIe:mrgreen:

A mosquito is an insect of the order diptera. There are hundreds of examples of similar insects, none of which need that crucial drop of mammalian blood to reproduce. Here are a few examples. Other species would quickly fill in the niche left by mosquitoes.

The problem with eliminating mosquitoes is the difficulty of doing so, particularly without wiping out other species as well. DDT did a good job on them, but also caused the near extinction of Perigrine Falcons and bald eagles, for example. Is the idea of shooting mosquitoes with lasers suggested in seriousness? Hardly.
 
save the mosquitoes!! lol, PETA would not approve.
 
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