Hello Explorer,
Have you ever asked the question: can’t we just remove flies (or mosquitoes) from earth? Do they even serve a purpose what so ever?
We could easily remove them, but the main question we should ask ourselves before doing so is: What will the consequences of doing so be?
For flies the answer is simple. We will have a significant increase in slowly decaying animals and dung. As flies are great decomposers (organisms that break down rotting things) of carcasses, dung, and other rotting things. The removal of flies would thus increase the time it takes to decompose (or break down) rotting things, that could lead to disease outbreaks, a build-up of carcasses, dung and other rotting material and a unpleasant and unhealthy living environment for the rest of creation.
To answer whether we can remove mosquitoes from earth, is not as simple and straight forward. What ecological purpose do they serve? That is other than being a nuisance and irritation to all living vertebrates! I mean, they carry over (or transmit) multiple diseases such as Malaria (caused by Plasmodium parasites), Dengue Fever, West Nile Virus, Chikungunya Virus and Zika virus. Malaria to this day still claims hundreds of thousands of lives a year throughout the tropical and subtropical parts of the world! I mean surely, we can eradicate both the Malaria parasites and the Mosquitoes that transmit them? Or can we?
We are still unsure of what the ecological impact of mosquitoes are, and what purpose they serve in creation. Thus, just removing them could have severe consequences for the entire world. We do know that mosquitoes also bite and infect birds, bats, lizards, and antelopes with malaria. It could be that Mosquitoes along with their Malaria parasite associates are responsible for population control of all four of these groups, and possibly even more groups of animals. If they are indeed the population control agents, that keep the balance of creation in check, removing them would have catastrophic and severe impacts on all of creation.
A great example of this is how Wolves changed Rivers. Yes, that is right, wolves have such an impact on the ecosystem that they change rivers. A long term study done in Yellowstone national park, showed that the wolves that they released there did not only impact the obvious species like the deer they hunted, but that they had a massive cascading effect on the entire ecosystem across vast ranges. I can not explain this nearly as clearly or simply as they do in this four-and-a-half-minute video: How Wolves change Rivers.
So, the Answer is No. We cannot just remove a species, because they have a seemingly insignificant, negligible, or purposeless existence in creation. Just the fact that we are ignorant enough to even think they have no purpose or a negligible purpose, should be a great big warning sign that we do not yet know the intricate details of the species (or group for that matter) and we should rather research the species and examine what their purpose is and how they slot into creation, rather than seeking ways to eradicate them from the face of the earth.
Are there other annoying, irritating, or nuisance species that you have ever wondered about? Have you ever thought about Mosquitoes or Flies as having a great ecological impact? What species or group of species (that we often see as a nuisance) do you think we should study more to understand their importance and the role they play in creation?

If you would like to send me a message with your answers, feel free to do so on Instagram @abugmanslife or via email to [email protected].

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