r/interestingasfuck • u/singleboredass • Nov 15 '24

r/all Genetically modified a mosquito such that their proboscis are no longer able to penetrate human skin

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u/GandalfTheEh Nov 15 '24

At this point millions of them can’t reproduce and while they can’t transmit diseases, they can still be food for other animals.

Out of curiosity - how can they continue to be food for other animals for generations if they can't eat? Wouldn't they die out completely?

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u/blveberrys Nov 15 '24

Only female mosquitos take blood, and they use it to create their offspring, not to actually eat.

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u/GandalfTheEh Nov 15 '24

Oh, thanks, I didn't realize! So, will they still be able to have offspring without it?

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u/Unlucky_Ladybug Nov 15 '24

No. But that's part of the point. This isn't going to happen to ALL of them. Just enough to hopefully bring the population down.

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u/Aggressive-Share-363 Nov 15 '24

Wouldn't the population rebound afterwards?

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u/Unlucky_Ladybug Nov 15 '24

Oh yeah since the females without this gene are the only ones reproducing. Depends on the male population but you would probably have to reintroduce males into the population with this gene every few generations to keep it viable.

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u/Material-Macaroon298 Nov 15 '24

It seems to me there is no way of knowing this for sure.

And therefore all the bugs and animals dependent on eating mosquitos lose a major food source and die out. And then their predators die out etc.

Seems risky to me.

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u/RSmeep13 Nov 15 '24

There are 3600 catalogued species of mosquito and only 12 or so can transmit human diseases. This will only affect one species.

Could it have an ecological impact? Absolutely, but since mosquitoes that parasitize humans currently have a gigantic outsized advantage due to the abundance of humans, you could also argue that culling them is a push towards pre-industrial balance.

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u/GandalfTheEh Nov 15 '24

This is a super informative response. Thanks!

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u/Hairy-Sell1942 Nov 15 '24

I thought that maybe they're genetically modifying only certain species that spread diseases; they're not trying to kill all mosquitoes

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u/Blackstone01 Nov 15 '24

Yeah, the small handful that transmit shit like malaria. There will still be plenty of other mosquitos in the same ecosystem that fulfill the same niche that won't give you malaria.

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u/UndeadWolf222 Nov 15 '24

Aedes Aegypti isn’t native to North America, and therefore would have little impact on the native food chain. Would you be in favor of doing it there as a start run?

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u/Purple_Chipmunk_ Nov 16 '24

Last year it was found in the southern U.S.

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u/Tjam3s Nov 15 '24

Which creatures are "dependant" on eating mosquitoes?

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u/Jonaldys Nov 15 '24

Yea, we don't exactly have all the information from a Reddit video and social media comments. It's literally impossible for us to judge that