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My understanding is that mosquitoes (in general, not limited to the human-biting species) aren't a critical link in any ecosystem. They are pollinators, but all
by PhasmaFelis 9y ago
My understanding is that mosquitoes (in general, not limited to the human-biting species) aren't a critical link in any ecosystem. They are pollinators, but all mosquito-pollinated species are also pollinated by other insects; they are prey for insectivores, but aren't the primary food source for anything.
There still could be knock-on effects from removing them, but restricting it to the human-biting species might mitigate that.
- kbutler 9y agoHmm. They're a pretty major food source for bats. https://www.myutahparks.com/things-to-do/bats https://www.myutahparks.com/things-to-do/bats
- PhasmaFelis 9y agoI've only done a bit of research, but my understand was that while bats eat a lot of mosquitoes, they're so tiny that even a bat doesn't get much out of each one. The stomach contents of a tropical bat are less than 25% mosquitoes by mass after a night of feeding, IIRC. I admit I don't know if that's true of all species or in all locations.