d0uble_h3lix t1_ixmmk22 wrote
Reply to comment by Orgot in How do we know that reducing mosquito populations (such as by introducing genetically engineered ones) won't end up collapsing an important part of the food chain? by BeefTeaser
I’ll add that the goal is not to reduce or eradicate these mosquito populations forever. The pathogens they carry have been transmitting through them so consistently for so long that they’ve evolved to require existing in the mosquitos at least temporarily as part of their life cycle. That requirement is a point of weakness. If transmission can be greatly reduced, or even completely broken, even for just 1 or 2 generations of mosquitos without completely eradicating the mosquitos, then they can be allowed to recover but the pathogen may be greatly reduced for much longer or even eliminated from the chain entirely.
BeefTeaser OP t1_ixtcqtl wrote
Thank you for the additional information!
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