Question

Mosquitos are deadly & climate change is increasing the habitable areas for these flying insects.

Answer 1

The Environmental Protection Agency, a federal agency that protects the environment and human health, confirms that warmer temperatures accelerate mosquito development, biting rates, and the incubation of the Nile virus disease in mosquitoes. Additionally, the World Mosquito Program has reported that climate change has impacted weather patterns, causing more extreme droughts, heatwaves, and floods, which in turn creates ideal mosquito breeding grounds. This not only increases the reproduction rates, but also expands the area in which mosquitoes are able to live and reproduce. 

https://www.epa.gov/climate-indicators/climate-change-indicators-west-nile-virus#:~:text=Studies%20show%20that%20warmer%20temperatures,the%20disease%20within%20a%20mosquito.

https://www.worldmosquitoprogram.org/en/news-stories/stories/explainer-how-climate-change-amplifying-mosquito-borne-diseases#

Comments

Although the link between mosquito proliferation and climate change is well established in your response, there are a few ways to expand on the analysis.

The first is that although the World Mosquito Program and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are very reliable sources, it would be useful to provide particular information or instances. How much, for example, has the expansion of mosquitoes' livable range in recent years been caused by rising temperatures? You may strengthen your point by providing specific figures or case studies (such as the expansion of dengue illness into formerly colder locations).

The second point is that while it is important to discuss weather patterns like droughts and floods, you should elaborate on how these extremes have distinct effects on mosquito populations. For instance, floods' stagnant water produces breeding grounds, while droughts can concentrate mosquito larvae in smaller bodies of water, increasing their chances of surviving.

In order to show balanced reasoning, you might choose to include a limitation or counterpoint. For example, urbanization and deforestation enhance the range and spread of illnesses carried by mosquitoes, but climate change is a significant contributor.

Your analysis is strong and well-supported overall. These points would be strengthened if they were elaborated upon with more specificity and subtlety! Well done!

Answer 2

The World Mosquito Program— a generally reputable source on the subject— explains that climate change is, in fact, increasing not only the "geographical range" of mosquitoes, but also extending the "mosquito season," as extreme climate patterns bolster the insect population's ability to breed in favorable conditions.

Comments

When citing a source it is importantly to be confident in it as the researcher. Using the term “generally reputable” suggests that it may not be credible. Upon further research into the source used to support this claim, I feel as though they just restate the claim and an example of HOW the mosquito season is extended due to climate change would be supportive.

Answer 3

Based on my findings, this claim is correct. The Vector Disease Control International (VDCI) has a blog post explaining how climate control indeed will cause mosquitos to cover more land. In this post, they have a graphic shows the mosquito cover from 2019, and projected for 2050 and 2080. As the graphic switches in time, the land expands that mosquitos are inhabiting. The creators of the graphic, upon searching each name are credible, and range from a researcher at UF, professor at Yale, and more credible people.

https://www.vdci.net/blog/could-climate-change-be-causing-more-mosquitoes/#:~:text=Changes%20in%20temperature%2C%20precipitation%2C%20and,less%20favorable%20for%20mosquito%20breeding.

Answer 4

Though this claim is intriguing, the source of the information (a post on Bluesky) wasn’t highly reliable. To verify this claim, I started with a simple Google search that led me to information from the United Nations, National Library of Medicine, and a website that specializes in mosquitos (VDCI). This claim has two parts: the idea that mosquitoes are deadly and the idea that climate change is increasing their habitable areas. The first part is generally true, although too absolute. Not all mosquitoes are deadly, but the diseases that some mosquitoes carry can be deadly. The second claim needed more thorough research to confirm. The National Library of Medicine explains that “as temperatures are getting warmer, the range of disease-carrying mosquitoes is increasing” because the hotter temperatures make for quicker breeding, and increase the range of months they can breed in. This aligns with the original source’s claim. The United Nations website adds that increases in temperature, rainfall, and humidity can lead to malaria-carrying mosquitoes being able to live at higher altitudes, meaning their overall range is also increasing. VDCI confirms the claim once again when it describes that one of the outcomes of climate change is “the creation of more favorable conditions for mosquito populations to thrive.” In conclusion, the original claim was true, though it could have been edited for clarity/accuracy. 

United Nations website: https://www.un.org/en/chronicle/article/climate-change-and-malaria-complex-relationship#:~:text=An%20increase%20in%20temperature%2C%20rainfall,it%20was%20not%20reported%20earlier. 

National Library of Medicine website: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6747303/#:~:text=As%20the%20globe%20is%20continuously,year%2Dround%20in%20warm%20areas. 

VDCI website: https://www.vdci.net/blog/could-climate-change-be-causing-more-mosquitoes/#:~:text=Climate%20change%20affects%20ecosystems%20worldwide,cold%20for%20them%20to%20survive.