There are differing views on evolution, between slow and gradual and punctual equilibrium( a sudden breakthrough that triggers a biological arms race), this article is looking more at the very short term and saying if a species goes extinct another species does not immediately or fully occupy the space...which I guess needs to be stated but I would think that it was already understood...
replyThe article is more focused on oceanic and coastal diversity but I agree about the mosquitoes.
Yeah the news for me here is that people thought nature could "bounce back" on a human timescale. Any human lifespan is just the blink of an eye to nature
reply> All that said I still think we should just extinct disease carrying mosquitoes.
replyThe modern version of Carthage should be destroyed.
Carthage MUST be destroyed.
replyI always find the silver fox domestication experiment[0] an interesting point about how much smaller evolutionary timescales can be than expected.
reply> All that said I still think we should just extinct disease carrying mosquitoes.
replyI'm doing my part
Spaceship Trooper or Helldiver? :)
replyNature is not harmonious, it is in constant flux. Saying it can bounce back implies there some state of equilibrium for it to bounce back to. I guess there's no reason why it can't bounce forward.
replyRight, we know deserts weren't always deserts, systems collapse.
replyThe earth isn't split up into separate "ecosystems" split by continent and land mass you realise? It's one big system that isn't even sealed off from outer space. And in terms of a truly barren planet, the Sahara is teeming with life
replyThe earth is a system of many systems, individual systems within it can collapse and desertification is one of the ways it happens. Runaway collapse of smaller systems can lead to primary system collapse.
replyThe Sahara is teeming with life compared to Mars, but we also know it once hosted significantly more life before it was a desert. That old system collapsed.
What about the animals that feed on those mosquitoes
replyMentioned recently was the use of the wolbachia parasite that reduces the ability of a mosquito to transmit disease.
replyIt's an invasive pathogen to a mosquito population, but it benefits humans.
There are more than 3000 mosquitoes species. I assume the answer is: nothing.
replyYes, we often see the history of earth's ecosystem through a geological timescale... human scale is almost light speed by comparison.
reply"Saving the Planet" (George Carlin)
replyhttps://youtu.be/7W33HRc1A6c?si=HqyW8mys0uNBuFdW&t=147
Humorous, but not inaccurate about what climate change means to primates. =3
what is "=3"?
replycat face long eyes, an amused cat, the person has some disassociation issues
replyDon't worry about it =3
replySure we should get rid of the diseases, but what about the niche mosquitos serve as food for birds, bats, etc?
replyThere's thousands of species of mosquitoes, and we could get rid of the small number of disease carrying ones at least - https://worksinprogress.co/issue/mosquitoes-are-a-choice/
replyDetails, bro. Just kill stuff until we feel better about our situation
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