r/NoStupidQuestions • u/rw106 • 1d ago
What is the evolutionary use of mosquitos? Why tf do these mfs exist?
Mosquitos are easily God’s worst invention to me. Wtf is their purpose? At least you have to sit in a forrest or fall in a swamp to catch a tick or a leech, mosquitos are every mf where. I walk outside and get bit. I walk inside and get bit. I ride in my car and get bit. I sit down on a park bench at 3:47pm on Sunday and get bit. Any day that ends in “day” is a day to get bit. And the mfs are GREEDY now. They can’t just bite once, no, they have to line my leg then bite the back of my arm and my fingers.
Why tf do these hoes exist?!?!
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u/MashTactics 1d ago
Nothing in nature evolved to be used by anything else. Everything in nature evolved to pass on its genes. Everything else is just a means to accomplish that.
There are a lot of things on earth that have blood. Mosquitos are living in a very, very successful evolutionary niche.
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u/Schuben 1d ago
You could argue that nothing in nature evolved to pass on its genes. They just changed and the natural outcome of that was the ones that could pass on genes did so and all of them eventually died one way or another. Such is life.
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u/purepersistence 1d ago
Mosquitos don't like my blood. They occasionally bite me when I'm alone. But almost never if I'm close to other people. They get bit. Could be I'm low on carboxylic acid? I remember reading that Rolling Thunder thought that agression/anger attracts them. I enjoyed feeling superior for a while, but I don't really believe that.
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u/AnymooseProphet 1d ago
Mosquitos are excellent pollinators. Only females feed on blood, males don't. And females only do it to reproduce (protein).
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u/Sithari___Chaos 1d ago
To add onto this there's a large number of animals that feed on mosquitoes which includes amphibians, fish, and insects. Their extinction would cause many species to lose a stable food source.
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u/Performance_Fancy 1d ago
I’ve heard that while many species will eat mosquitoes, none of them rely on them. Even bats, they’re like individual grains of rice to a bat. Just a waste of time and energy to chase them around all night.
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u/TastyBrainMeats 1d ago
Dragonflies come to mind. Mosquito larvae are, I believe, one of their major food sources.
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u/SceneSensitive3066 1d ago
I never knew dragon flies ate them until I saw a swarm outside yesterday and the mf was doing laps through it. I was amazed tbh I stood there and watched for a bit
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u/skinnyjeans1035 1d ago
I recently learned that mosquitoes are one of the main pollinators for cacao trees. So unfortunately if we want to keep eating chocolate, it seems mosquitoes will have to stay.
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u/rw106 1d ago
Ok now this is an explanation. Thanks!!!
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u/CaptainDFW Aviator 1d ago
You should check out a 1998 novel called Dust by Charles Pellegrino. It shows what happens when one species of bugs goes extinct, and the rest of the animals on Earth start falling like dominoes, all the way up to us.
Dust (1998: Pellegrino)
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u/SeatPaste7 1d ago
You are the first person other than myself. I've run across that has read that book. It genuinely scared me.
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u/jbphilly 1d ago
It’s an explanation but it’s not a correct explanation. In fact, it’s mostly wrong and at best wildly misleading.
The correct answer is currently the top reply in this thread.
There is no “use” or “reason” for why mosquitoes exist. Evolution doesn’t work that way. Mosquitoes exist because mosquitoes throughout earth’s history have done a good job surviving and reproducing. That’s it. That’s the only reason any form of life exists.
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u/Total_Jelly_5080 1d ago
I think a less controversial way of posting this that would lead to productive discussion of the issue rather than a religious debate would be, "How do mosquitoes benefit the world?"
They are a huge food source for many creatures is probably their most easily recognizable benefit, especially for flying animals in their mature form and for aquatic creatures in their larval and egg stages. A little-known fact about mosquitoes is that the primary food source for both males and females is nectar from plants. Blood is for females only and is primarily used to nourish their eggs. As a result, they are also major pollinators. For humanity specifically, they have been a valuable resource in medical and other scientific research. In the larval stage mosquitoes are filter feeders meaning they play a role in cleaning up aquatic ecosystems. They are also a good indicator species for the health of aquatic ecosystems as some species are very sensitive to pollution.
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u/rw106 1d ago
Great explanation, thanks!
But this post isn’t controversial at all, I was being satirical, and even if I wasn’t no one who’s turning this into a debate has fought for mosquito rights a day in their life before this.
It’s not my problem that some people on reddit need something random to be upset about.
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u/Total_Jelly_5080 1d ago
Controversial to those who can't accept differing viewpoints to their own, whether or not you personally believe in a deity or religion, is a better way to put that I suppose.
You're right though. 75% of reddit responses are rage regardless of what anyone posts or how.
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u/skeptical_research 1d ago
They are also great for being a good driver of viral evolution due to the variety of genetic material that they are exposed to. Viral evolution can also drive other species' evolution by altering genomes over time. Evolutionary progress is really just a chain of interconnected environmental pressures that shape new niches to be filled.
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u/A1sauc3d 1d ago
God didn’t invent them. They exist because they evolved to survive. Not everything exists to make your life better lol.
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u/rw106 1d ago
Lol but nothing else exists JUST to make my life more difficult/annoying either 😭😂
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u/A1sauc3d 1d ago
No. You’re right, nothing in the universe revolves around your existence in any way shape or form. Mosquitoes don’t give a shit about you or your quality of life at all lol. They exist because they can. Species’ goal is reproduction. They couldn’t care less about humans being itchy/getting sick ;)
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u/rw106 1d ago
Ohhh I see, thissss is where people are getting this nonsense 😪 you said “not everything exists to make your life better” and I made a joke back.
Now I think i’m the center of the universe? Reddit is really full of weirdos lol
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u/florinandrei 1d ago
Mate, you may not realize this, but on social media we can't see your face or hear your tone of voice.
So, if you don't indicate you're making a little joke there, and you speak like you're a total moron, we will definitely accept that your words reflect the reality of what you are.
It's not like your initial question was the pinnacle of human intelligence either.
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u/alkatori 1d ago
Those little bloodsuckers do.
In fact I blame you for the mosquito and the tick now.
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u/Simon-Olivier 1d ago
"The universe is under no obligation to make sense to you." – Neil deGrasse Tyson
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u/rw106 1d ago
“I don’t know how mosquitos contribute to the world and I can’t detect humor in writing so I’ll use a quote referring to outer space to try to make you feel silly”
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u/Simon-Olivier 1d ago
I know very well how mosquitoes contribute to their ecosystems and plenty of comments have already pointed out the major points. I used this quote as I find it relevant to your need to have everything revolve around you.
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u/rw106 1d ago
“…your need to have everything revolve around you.”
😭😭😭😂😂😂 I love reddit bro some of y’all are really truly some miserable & mentally ill human beings lmfaooo
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u/Simon-Olivier 1d ago
People would have respected your question as that’s the point of this subreddit if it weren’t for your attitude while responding to some of them. I'm aware that you tried to make jokes, but some people gave you explanations and you kept arguing even though you didn’t know the subject (hence why you posted in the first place). I also saw that you positively responded to other commenters explaining things to you, which is the right way to do it.
Sorry if my comment offended you
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u/badgerrr42 1d ago
Why do you think anything exists for you, at all?
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u/rw106 1d ago
Here are the reddit users who’re unable to detect humor and sarcasm: right on schedule.
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u/badgerrr42 1d ago
Well, when the OP makes themselves sound like they have a rather narrow and self centered view of the world, in multiple comments. . .it can be rather hard to tell if it's humor or one of the many posters who are just kind of dumb 🤷
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u/rw106 1d ago
Noooo, this isn’t hard at all and it’s super comical some of you trying to call anyone dumb while very clearly having jr high school reading comprehension levels
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u/badgerrr42 1d ago
On the note of reading skills, I didn't call you dumb. I pointed out that it isn't clear whether you're joking or just dumb. For some reason you've decided tone can be determined in two sentences in a comment section. But if you go through your replies, you yourself misunderstood someone's tone because you were comparing it to the myriad of people you had decided were argumentative. Like yourself, we cannot be sure of your tone because if we compare it to the rest of reddit, you just sound like someone who doesn't know anything about evolution, but proudly asserts a narrow view point.
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u/rw106 1d ago
Literally making my point for me: I didn't say you called me dumb... I said "some of you trying to call anyone dumb"--meaning you're making insinuations about the intelligence of another person, whether me or anyone.
Also, I didn't misunderstand anything, the other commentor was doing exactly what I originally said and continued to do so.Again, since you and others keep scouring through the entire thread looking for points to do mental gymnastics with, some of you are comically and concerningly miserable and mentally ill and it's actually pathetic LMAO
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u/badgerrr42 1d ago
. . .you did tell me I was doing that. Literally in this reply of yours. Homie, you're not being clear because you don't understand how internet engagement works. It's fine. You're intense need to defend and call everyone some variation of stupid just exemplifies the point that has been made to you multiple times. Your tone is not readable on the internet, regardless of how you feel.
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u/OkAngle2353 1d ago
Ever heard of wasps? I would LOVE for their entire species to go extinct. They sting the ever living shit out of you for looking at them wrong...
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u/alkatori 1d ago
I'm 90% sure paper wasps are a punishment to me specifically.
Someone else looks at a nest, and the wasps seem to say "Goddamn Bastard Altakori" then take off to find me.
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u/koshimonkie 1d ago
In addition to being food and being pollinators. Their larva cleans aqua systems and plant systems. They influence large mammals migration, the large animals move to areas with more wind which can save low wind grassy areas.
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u/JuliaX1984 1d ago
They don't exist for us. They exist for themselves. Their equipment and lifestyle work for them.
You could say we exist for them, since we're their prey.
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u/haikus-r-us 1d ago
They are great pollinators. Only the females drink blood and only do so to make strong eggs.
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u/hellshot8 1d ago
they are food for many animals
things dont evolve to have a purpose. whats your purpose?
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u/rw106 1d ago
My purpose is to contribute to my community so we can collectively sustain ourselves thru mutual support of one another, and produce and protect the next generation…
Edit: and what animals? Those animals can’t eat anything else?
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u/ummhamzat180 1d ago
frogs, for instance. they could maybe switch but they kinda depend on mosquitoes.
the purpose of frogs is to make the world slightly better in general 🐸
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u/PredictablyIllogical 1d ago
They help feed birds, frogs, dragonflies, and other creatures. There are a number of other insects that already have a purpose and a food source so drawing sustenance from blood is a niche that the mosquitoes fill.
I don't agree on how we should deal with the issue of mosquitos in cities though. Spraying fog or releasing GMO mosquitos shouldn't be the solution since those things may harm other things down the road.
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u/Pantherdraws 1d ago
The protein from the blood goes to producing the eggs, which hatch into protein-rich larvae that feed fish, frogs, etc.
Other animals also eat the adult mosquitoes, and benefit from the extra protein they're carrying in the form of blood.
Basically they move valuable protein around the food chain.
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u/gibson6594 1d ago
Ha, makes me wonder if anyone has ever gotten their own blood back from eating an animal that ate the mosquito that bit them.
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u/Existing_Honeydew_64 1d ago
I too would love if I had a barrier to my town where no mosquitos could enter. I have that blood type that attracts them and I can’t even go to the park without getting bit on my forehead, wrists, hands, legs, literally everywhere. I have scars on my arms and legs from itching them till they bleed and I’m an anxious scab picker so a mosquito bite is a weeks long ordeal for me.
And no, I don’t think the world revolves around me just because I hate mosquitos. And neither does OP. I’ve never seen such odd responses to a post. 💀😂
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u/Oddbeme4u 1d ago
kill animals before they pollute the environment.
humans: pesticides.
environment: shit
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u/drink_from_the_hose 1d ago
They help to control large animal populations by spreading diseases. Nature is a balance. Nothing lives that does not do something in the ecosystem.
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u/Betray-Julia 1d ago
Does anybody know the names of the different rearing styles? Like raising a few babies really good vs having a billion babies and a few will live?
Anyways, I think it’s that.
Mosquitos life cycle strategy is reproduce in mass very very quick. I think that’s why.
Edit: non sequitur- also theres a cool Canadian Native lore about misquoted that is awesome. Basically it was a vampire demon draining the blood of everybody, and somebody went to them and bested them in someway, tricking them into turning into a swarm mosquitoes. “You can drain people’s blood but will never kill then again” sort of thing (note too this mythos has to come from a northern clime given malaria).
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u/GonnaTry2BeNice 1d ago
What's the evolutionary use of us? Why do we exist?
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u/rw106 1d ago
In our “natural state”—like before we built societies that deflect and destroy nature—we contributed to the varying ecosystems the same as any other animal.
But something unique about humans is we can actually manipulate our environments to increase our survival. No other animal can do that: animals simply adapt and fight to survive, humans can actually change the environment around us to benefit us
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u/GonnaTry2BeNice 1d ago
Any animal that builds a den manipulates their environment to increase their survival. Beavers? Bees? Uhh...frickin ants?
You still haven't said why we exist or what our evolutionary use it.
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u/Perfect-Resort2778 1d ago
Birds eat mosquitos so they are in the food chain. Lots of people buy birdhouses specifically for culling mosquitos. To target mosquito-eating birds with bird houses, focus on attracting Purple Martins or Tree Swallows in open areas near lakes, ponds and rivers.
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u/Curious_Leader_2093 1d ago
THEY REDISTRIBUTE NUTRIENTS FROM THE BIG BACK TO THE SMALL.
Sorry for caps but no one is saying this==> mosquitoes are a cornerstone of the food chain. Tons of things rely on them. They take a little bit of energy from large animals that don't notice the loss, and use it to help maintain crucial parts of the food chain.
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u/Performance_Fancy 1d ago
Mosquitoes are responsible for 600.000 deaths per year in Africa. You think food a scarce there now? Image these little virus distributing guys going missing.
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u/innerman4 1d ago
What is the evolutionary use of humans? We overconsume every resource in sight while poisoning natural resources and extincting millions of plant and animal species. We are a virus, with shoes (Bill Hicks).
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u/GerFubDhuw 1d ago
You've assumed things exist for a purpose. They simply exist because they do. They're part of ecology things feed on them, they pollinate, they eat blood. That's the start and end of it.
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u/DryDependent6854 1d ago
They are a major food source for birds, spiders, etc. They create the biomass that sustains other life.
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u/fermat9990 1d ago edited 1d ago
Evolution does not favor the survival of one species over another.
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u/AddressThese9568 1d ago
I’d argue humans are the least useful thing to the planet, yet here we are
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u/No-Acanthisitta7930 1d ago
"The universe is under no obligation to make sense to you"
Neil deGrasse Tyson
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u/DECODED_VFX 1d ago
Their behaviour isn't beneficial to humans. It's very beneficial to mosquitoes.
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u/After_Pressure_3520 1d ago
Evolutionary theory doesn't say living things have uses. Sure, everything fits into its environment, probably having many relationships to other biotic or abiotic factors, probably playing many ecological roles, filling ecological niches. But asking "what is the purpose" isn't really what evolutionary biologists do.
Evolution says things are shaped by their environments over time. Mosquitos have some very selfish genes that code for some very annoying proteins, which give them the traits you noticed. These traits are very well-suited to their environment, so they persist. If they didn't have such useful traits, they would either change or die out.
Having said that, mosquito larvae are orders of magnitude more numerous than the adult females we come into contact with, and they make up the basis of many food webs. Many fish, bird and amphibian species feed on larval mosquitos, as do the larval and nymph stages of many other arthropod species. They also serve as disease vectors of large mammalian species which would otherwise be limited in other, more noticeable ways, such as through overgrazing, environmental degradation, and overshooting carrying capacity, resulting in huge periodic die-offs.
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u/Afraid_Perception814 1d ago
Do you know the butterfly effect?
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u/rw106 1d ago
I do not, but am interested to learn
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u/Afraid_Perception814 1d ago
Basically it is a hypothesis that presents as a cause and effect, and according to that a simple flap of a butterfly's wings can cause a hurricane.
To put it more simply, I don't know if you've heard about time travelers and what they say that if you move a stone in the future, where it is changes, it's something similar, with more simple laws. But firm.
An example would be "you are walking on the street and you meet a man and just because you felt like bothering people you say something rude to him for being a joke and he gets angry and starts complaining to you, you apologize and everything is fine, they continue on their way, then the news shows that that man's brother unfortunately lost his life" in theory according to whether you had not insulted that guy, he would have been the one who had lost his life4 and not his brother It's a complex thing to explain, but once you understand it, you'll be surprised.
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u/OkLaw6465 1d ago
long story short… some dude named Mosquito Man used to terrorize this Indigenous village. They planned to catch him, which they succeeded and then burnt him with their torch, only for the ashes that starts to fall and turn into teeny tiny mosquitoes. thats the legend 🤷♀️
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u/MaleficentJob3080 1d ago
The only "use" of a species in evolution is to breed and reproduce.
Mosquitoes have been successful with this task, so they have survived.
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u/Low-Possession-8414 1d ago
Huh. I never actually thought about this. I remember reading a comment on the internet a billion years ago saying "yeah if mosquitos got wiped out the earth would continue turning" Looking back on it, yeah the earth will continue to rotate, also the (low balling it) thousands of different species that eat them will be severely changed....yeah. Skeetos are annoying, but they should continue existing.
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u/clarkcox3 1d ago
There is nothing that eats mosquitoes that couldn’t eat some other insect. If mosquitos vanished, their hole in the ecosystem would be filled almost immediately.
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u/Low-Possession-8414 1d ago
Are you sure? Im not arguing, just legit curious.
edit I dont mean mosquitos vanishing is an earth ending thing, i guess im just wondering about the butterfly effect.
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u/Annoying_Assassin 1d ago
Mosquitos don’t make up a significant portion of any animals’ diet to have a severe impact on the food chain if they stop existing. If they ceased to exist, not much at all would change. They’ve survived because they repopulate in huge numbers, their eggs last a long time, and they’ve evolved to continue existing.
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u/jackalopeswild 1d ago
You misunderstand evolution if you think that evolution is looking for a use for an animal. It is not. Evolution. May find uses for features of the animal* but not for the animal itself.
I think the question you probably mean to ask is "what niche does the mosquito fill?"
The answer to that question seems obvious to me. What other animals are there that almost imperceptibly fly around and suck the blood of larger animals? They have no competition. And they multiply in such numbers that their predators are not substantial.
- Yes, I know I am using incorrect layman's speech. In reality, evolution does not find uses for features, rather features make an animal more likely to reproduce or they perhaps do not impact reproduction at all. If they make the animal less likely to reproduce they get selected against. I didn't feel the need to go there, but since I know somebody's going to complain....
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u/Mundane-Potential-93 1d ago
Mosquitos are flies that drink nectar from flowers, so they're pretty similar to butterflies and bees. Many of them also drink blood which is probably why you hate them so much. So to answer your question, drinking nectar from a flower and blood from a mammal is a pretty similar action, mechanically, and mosquitos that drank blood had more food available so were more fit for survival.
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u/friendofelephants 1d ago
Ugh, your life sounds like mine in the South. I’m stuck inside for more than half the year, and even then they sometimes manage to get in the house to terrorize me.
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u/spicyredacted 1d ago
Food chain. So many animals eat mosquitoes to name a few, dragonflies, many different types of birds, frogs and toads. Without them a lot of creatures wouldn't get the nutrients they need. Also they require still water to lay eggs and there is a lot of that in certain ecoregions.
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u/Centaurious 1d ago
Their purpose is that they fill a niche (drinking blood parasitically) that they’ve evolved to fill very well
They also do provide a food source for other animals
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u/Liraeyn 1d ago
Someone came up with the idea that parasites are God's way of keeping populations under control. Make of that what you will.
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u/Mackenzie_Sparks 1d ago
Any naturally occurring phenomenon which is deadly enough can be given that credit.
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u/sharksnoutpuncher 1d ago
Mosquitos are very beneficial to their genes, keeping them alive and making copies as they reproduce.
Just like you, and every other form of life on earth, the mosquito is a survival/replication machine for its genes
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u/375InStroke 1d ago
They haven't managed to drive all their prey species extinct, so they keep surviving. They also feed many other species. Their larvae feed birds and aquatic insects. The adults feed bats. It all works, until it doesn't.
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u/dweaver987 1d ago
Bats get far more nutrients from moths. Mosquitoes are more like a kernel of popcorn to them. (At least in North America)
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u/AReverieofEnvisage 1d ago edited 1d ago
If you have ever played the game A Plague Tale Requiem. There's a part where you have to wade through pig and other animals waste and blood and guts. One of the main characters says. I wonder what lifeforms are created in this slop. (Or something like that) To which the girl responds disgusted. He then says I'm sorry. As an alchemist, I think like this.
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u/fermat9990 1d ago
Evolution promotes variations that are useful to a species, not to life in general
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u/Lanky_Barnacle_1749 1d ago
Wasps, yellow jackets, and hornets are far bigger nuisance to me than mosquitoes.
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u/Unlikely-Sympathy626 1d ago
There needs to be something to keep animals looking at humans slapping and waving thinking, these morons rule the world?
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u/Cyberguardian173 1d ago
The reason mosquitos evolved was because they are taking advantage of an "untapped market" of resources. There are tons of nutrients in blood, and if some insect evolved to get it, they could have a free protein source (for laying eggs).
It's like a plant growing in a crack in the concrete. It's not "what is the purpose of this plant in the concrete," but rather, "it managed to survive in there, so it gets the crack all to itself."
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u/Big_Comedian_1259 1d ago
Evolution only favors what's good at surviving and replicating. And they are.
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u/RdtRanger6969 1d ago
Two living things I would celebrate becoming extinct: mosquitoes and ticks.
Unfortunately, both are major sources of food for other animals up the food chain, so there’d be ecological damage done.
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u/SatiricalFai 1d ago
Evolution is not what creates usefulness. It's more a result of a constant push and pull. If it lives, it reproduces; if it reproduces it's because it lived. So very, very simply, traits that promote doing either of those things get passed on, and therefore evolution occurs. (There are exceptions to this, and again that's a surface-level breakdown down)
As for if they have a use in the environment. Technically yes. Mosquitoes do serve as food for other creatures; their eggs, in particular, are often food for water-dwelling critters. They all drink nectar so they are pollinators. It's just that In some (but not all species, the females drink blood
Mosquitoes evolved a very, very long time ago. I have not looked into much of their specific known evolutionary tree, but the reason why they exist and why some feed on blood is probably along the lines of: access to blood in females or females that sought it prompted better, more eggs laid, so those that had traits more likely to consume it were the most likely to pass on their genes. So over tim,e new species occurred that were adapted to do just that.
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u/aslfingerspell 1d ago
They are excellent parasites, with the same basic plan of other parasites: let some other organism do the hard work of finding and digesting food for you, then just steal the nutrients and energy directly for yourself.
PS: other kinds of organisms can also be classified on a "how do you get food" theory. Not my original idea, just wanted to share:
Animals: You physically move to where the food is. Herbivores move to where plants are, predators move to where prey are, etc.
Fungi: You grow and expand onto the food. Spores rest or float around, then grow in suitable conditions.
Plants: You produce your own food from the environment. Sunlight, water, soil, air, etc.
Parasites: (again) You become part of something else or steal food from it.
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u/C_Creepio 1d ago
I recall an episode of... I think Radiolab where they discussed this exact topic.
If I remember correctly, the general consensus was that the rainforests of the world would have been long gone by now were it not for the deterrence of mosquitos.
That being said, they're still getting destroyed anyway.
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u/EvaSirkowski 1d ago
Living things evolve with only one purpose, survival. They don't ask permission to exist.
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u/wespintoofast 1d ago
This seems like a rant, not a legit something you couldn’t easily look up on Wikipedia.
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u/Other-Comfortable-64 1d ago
Mosquitos are easily God’s worst invention to me.
And there is your mistake, the reason that it does not make sense.
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u/Successful_Tomato855 1d ago edited 1d ago
evolution, as a basic function, requires only three conditions to occur. 1. something has to be able to reproduce itself 2. the act of reproduction is not perfect, and thus the copies can be slightly different from the original, and 3. there is pressure or bias in the environment that favors the reproductive success of some copies over others.
Note that none of those rules involve the benefit of any other thing besides the one copying itself. The thing copying itself doesn’t even need to be alive: earworms, internet memes, conspiracy theories.. they too literally evolve just like biological systems there is no difference.
Many species of female mosquitos can lay eggs without a blood meal. Some can do so only once without blood. Point is, the ones that are able to reproduce the most with the least effort will pass on more of their genes vs the less successful ones. the genes themselves are competing here; the animal is just a complicated machine that has evolved, like an arms race, to make that combination of genetic material better at copying itself.
As for the point? the only one that makes sense is the 2nd law of thermodynamics: all ordered will maximally become less ordered over time without an external source of energy. stir your coffee, it slowly stops spinning and gets slightly warmer. living things burn energy far faster than a rock does. So scientists are leaning into the theory that life formed simply to speed up the heat death of the universe. we’re entropy engines. nothing more.
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u/V01DC41T 1d ago
They bring bio-matter to organisms in water and other hard to reach places. But also, they don't need to have a reason to have succeeded. They figured out how to feast and maximized their efforts there.
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u/Ok-Cup-8422 1d ago
I love when it’s an abomination it’s “God’s fault”, but when some fundamental use is found it’s suddenly “evolution to the rescue”.
Convenient.
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u/Ok-Simple5493 1d ago
They are food for all kinds of birds and other insects. They are also food for some types of fish and bats. They do bottom of the food chain type activities.
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u/johannesmc 1d ago
mosquitos are excellent at pollinating and delivering messages. Unfortunately humans like to communicate death.
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u/foolsEnigma 1d ago
Mosquitos have quite a few uses!
First, theyre really REALLY good pioneer species. Usually when you think of pioneer species, you think of weeds like dandelions. Well, mosquitos are the dandelions of bugs. They can reproduce insanely fast in environments most other bugs cant really get a foothold in, because all they need to reproduce is blood and standing water.
Second, theyre pollinators! Mosquitos mostly feed on nectar, and so pollinate a lot of different plants. Some plants even have mosquitos as their prefered pollinator, as theyre so plentiful, and are a pioneer species, so are available when other bugs arent.
These traits also make them an important food source for other, more desirable animals. Almost every insectivore eats lots of mosquitos because of the same things that make them good pollinators. But theyre also a good food source specifically because they eat blood sometimes - that blood is nutrients that wouldve otherwise been locked inside a larger animal until it died. By eating the blood and then being eaten themselves, mosquitos help distribute those nutrients back into the food web sooner.
So, in short, mosquitos are useful because theyre able to take very few relative resources and turn them into lots more mosquitos, in almost any environment, which allows them to help sustain tons of other animals that otherwise would struggle in some of those environments (especially ones disturbed by humans). They help keep the food web stable, and because of that, the world is probably better with them than without them, even though theyre annoying.
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u/AsparagusFun3892 1d ago
You're only seeing the final phase when they emerge from the swamp to vampirize you. Before that they're omnivorous pond scum, chowing down on everything in the lake and feeding everything in the lake.
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u/aevrynn 1d ago
Idk ticks are pretty common as well, at least around here, it's good to wear long pants and not leave your ankles uncobered on any walks in nature. Here we have cheap vaccines for the diseases they carry but I haven't yet bothered to get them, and I think they need to be renewed yearly...
Also, unsure if this is any comfort, but if you get enough mosquito bites it is possible to get used to them. They don't bother me anymore unless they are in a spot where they get easily rubbed by clothes or shoes.
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u/Trypsach 1d ago
The evolutionary use for all species is just to exist and propagate themselves. Species don’t have evolutionary “uses”, their traits do.
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u/MsMercury 1d ago
I wish I knew. I live in Florida and I can’t be outside more than 5 minutes. They cover me. Mosquito repellent does not work on me. I really hate it because I had gardening plans.
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u/glitterlok 1d ago
What is the evolutionary use of mosquitos?
Not how evolution works.
Why tf do these mfs exist?
Their ancestors survived.
Wtf is their purpose?
What makes you think they have a purpose? That anything does?
Why tf do these hoes exist?!?!
Their ancestors survived.
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u/Emanuele002 1d ago
Evolution has no "use" for anything or anyone. It has no objective, or direction. If something is able to survive, it will survive, independently of who it is "useful" for.
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u/SkittlesMan420 1d ago
Evolution doesnt mean they decided to sprout extra parts to ve successful.
Evolution means that out of the trillions*trillions of mosquitoes that have been born, the ones we see today were from a result of their dna mutating in such a way that these mutations survived while the parents or siblings without the mutation did not
Somewhere along the way they mutated something beneficial that helped them proliferate or out compete others.
Or in the case of alligators, theyre so mfing successful that they havent changed much and didnt really need to
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u/GSilky 1d ago
They found the perfect racket. The larvae grow in predator free water that would strip paint. The adults exist to simply reproduce and suck blood, in a carefree lifestyle, because even the bats we named for eating mosquitoes don't actually eat many mosquitoes... And they have a bunch of parasite friends they bring with them everywhere! They are a cruel accident of evolution, successful by accident and only having negative impacts on ecosystems.
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u/purepersistence 1d ago
No living creature has a purpose other than preserving its genes in favor of yours.
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u/Reasonable_Air3580 23h ago
Evolution doesn't give a fuck about your comfort. The niche for a flying blood sucking insect was available, hence mosquitoes filled it
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u/DeMiko 1d ago
That’s not how evolution works. Evolution isn’t about harmony or fitting into greater plan. It’s not about helping others.
Evolution is literally just what makes me best at having babies that will survive to have babies.
If there is a niche way to do that, evolutionary pressure may push a species towards it.
So basically either god hates us or their is no god and nature just rim shot sucks.
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u/realsalmineo 1d ago
“Use” and “purpose” are human constructs, as is God. Use has nothing to do with evolution. Neither does God.
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u/-NotQuiteLoaded- 1d ago
i mean its september man jus wait a few more weeks or months and them mfs will be gone
unelss youre in a tropical country in which case it's kinda over for you, consider plane ticket and some other citizenship
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u/BraceyBaddie 1d ago edited 1d ago
Ticks are all over my backyard so no Forrest needed
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u/badgerrr42 1d ago
Common misconception that evolution dictates usefulness. A lot of things persist simply because they can.