Slashdot Mirror
Fighting Mosquitoes With GM Mosquitoes
doug141 writes "Scientists are releasing genetically modified male mosquitoes that produce flightless female offspring. The male offspring go on to wipe out another generation of females. This is similar to the way screwworms were eradicated in the U.S., except with nature itself making more of the modified males. Field trials are already underway."
Or maybe not. Actually I would be more in favor of releasing wave after wave of bats. Fruit bats preferably, they're cute!
"Folks, the mosquito could get extinct in a few years. Scary indeed."
Well, A mosquito species could be come extinct. According to TFA, Aedes aegypti to be exact. This particular mosquito can carry several major human pathogens including dengue hemorrhagic fever, yellow fever, and chickungunya, which are all viral diseases. Ae. aegypti originated in Africa but is now found throughout tropical and subtropical regions including the USA, where it used to be in only Florida and the southeast but has since spread north to New York and Illinois. Especially alarming is the fact that there have been outbreaks of dengue recently (in 2010 at least) in Florida.
Eradication of Ae. aegypti might not necessarily be that big of a deal environmentally. While mosquitoes are an important part of the diet of many predators, there are over 40 genera comprising thousands of species of mosquitoes. Any reasonably sized chunk of land probably has more than one species of mosquito, for example here in Wisconsin we have not less than 58 species. Even tiny Rhode Island is home to at least 46 mosquito species!