Question

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

Answer 1

The claim that mosquitoes are deadly is for the most part true. Several species of mosquitoes are known to spread several deadly viruses, and they are difficult to subdue as they are very adaptable. Climate change may increase their habitat as temperatures rise but research also shows higher temperatures may drive transmission down. It is difficult to know how climate change will affect the spread as there are several factors in virus transmission and mutations are difficult to predict. However, the general consensus is that with the rise in temperatures mosquitos will be able to habitat areas at higher elevations and unusual weather patterns will expand the regions they habit.

“The mosquito is the world’s deadliest animal. Spreading diseases like malaria, dengue, West Nile, yellow fever, Zika, chikungunya, and lymphatic filariasis, the mosquito kills more people than any other creature in the world.” (CDC) https://www.cdc.gov/global-health/impact/fighting-the-worlds-deadliest-animal.html

“McGraw and Thomas emphasized that more work is needed to test different mosquito species in a broad range of conditions that incorporate mosquito biology, human behavior and natural environment variation.” (NIH) https://nihrecord.nih.gov/2022/09/16/researchers-discuss-impact-climate-change-mosquito-borne-diseases

“Extreme climate and weather patterns such as droughts, heatwaves, floods, and rainfall are increasing in severity and regularity across the globe. These provide favourable conditions for mosquitoes to breed and could help spread their viruses to higher latitudes and altitudes.” (World Mosquito Program) https://www.worldmosquitoprogram.org/en/news-stories/stories/explainer-how-climate-change-amplifying-mosquito-borne-diseases

Answer 2

The claim that Mosquitoes are deadly & climate change is increasing their habitable areas has two parts. First, are mosquitoes deadly?, yes mosquitoes can carry deadly diseases like Dengue, Zika, Malaria and Chikungunya. All of these diseases can have severe symptoms and can be fatal. Yes mosquitoes can transmit viruses that can be deadly. Is climate change increasing habitable areas for mosquitoes? Yes, rising temperatures and a change in rainfall due to the effects of climate change are creating habitable areas for mosquitos. Mosquitos reproduce in small ponds and even puddle size areas of water. Mosquito populations are having to grow and move due to global warming; moving of mosquitos can put communities at risk of catching a mosquito borne disease.

https://www.lanl.gov/media/news/0508-mosquitoes

https://www.floridahealth.gov/diseases-and-conditions/mosquito-borne-diseases/

https://www.dshs.texas.gov/mosquito-borne-diseases/list-mosquito-borne-diseases

Answer 3

Mosquitoes are indeed one of the deadliest animals in the world because they spread diseases like malaria, dengue, and Zika virus. Climate change is making this problem worse by expanding the warm, humid areas where mosquitoes can survive and breed. Rising temperatures and increased rainfall create ideal conditions for mosquito populations to grow, leading to a higher risk of disease transmission in new regions. Scientists have already observed mosquito-borne illnesses appearing in places where they were previously rare.

Source: World Health Organization (WHO) – Climate Change and Vector-Borne Diseases

Answer 4

This claim isn't necessarily untrue but is somewhat exaggerated and could be misleading. Climate change is defined as long-term shifts in temperature and weather patterns according to the United Nations, this post implies that it may be talking more about global warming which is a rise in Earth's surface temperature. Additionally, not all mosquitoes are deadly, only certain species carry diseases that are harmful to humans (https://www.cdc.gov/mosquitoes/about/about-mosquitoes-in-the-united-states.html#:~:text=Only%20some%20types%20of%20mosquitoes,aegypti)). Rising temperatures do lead to increased reproduction among mosquitoes. Essentially, climate change does contribute to the increased population of mosquitoes, however, not all of them are deadly, so this claim is exaggerated.

Answer 5

This claim that mosquitos are deadly and climate change is increasing the habitable areas for them is true. In the original Blue Sky post a graphic is shown that claims that mosquitos are the deadliest animal in the world, and this claim is easily found to be true through checking the CDC website which contains an article about mosquitos titled "Fighting the World's Deadliest Animal" . The claim that mosquitos are deadly is addressed directly by this. The claim that mosquitos habitable land is expanding is also true and can be verified by the World Mosquito Program which speaks of a Japanese encephalitis outbreak in southern Australia which was a first for the area and typically affects more northern regions. Japanese encephalitis is a disease that is commonly spread by mosquitos, showing evidence that more mosquitos are living in larger areas.

Citations

https://www.cdc.gov/global-health/impact/fighting-the-worlds-deadliest-animal.html

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