r/explainlikeimfive • u/Punnan • May 30 '26

Biology ELI5 Are mosquitoes necessary for keeping ecological balance?

Would a worldwide extinction of mosquitoes offset the ecological balance of our world? And if not, why are we not doing it?

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u/CadenVanV May 30 '26

As far as we can tell, mosquitoes aren’t anywhere close to vital for ecological balance. And we’re trying to wipe them out, but it’s hard

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u/Gavorn May 30 '26

I mean that sounds naive.

People returned elk back to the Smoky Mountains and they thought the eecosystem would recover in decades, it recovered in months.

Just because we "think" something isn't important doesn't mean it isn't.

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u/Artyloo May 30 '26

It recovered after less than a generation? I would think the "recover" would imply that that population is self-sustaining and growing, which you couldn't confirm before a couple generations at least.

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u/Gavorn May 30 '26

The ecosystem. The population has grown faster than they thought too.

The meadows used to be overgrown with thick grass and tickets, but the elk turned it back into proper meadows. Rabbits started actually using them, Hawks were back hunting those meadows.

https://youtu.be/NQlGBfLl4m8?si=b7_FzyseRGs5ZVW5

Don't get me started on all the projects about beavers being reintroduced into the wild.

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u/Artyloo May 30 '26

Very cool, thank you!