What is the purpose of a mosquito?

Question

I know there is a purpose for everything but what about a mosquito?

Answer 1

To answer this question you need to readjust your thinking. A mosquito, just like any other living thing, is adapted to survive and reproduce. I suppose the question you are really asking is 'what good is a mosquito to humans'. The answer is, of course, that they are not 'good' or 'useful' in our eyes... but then why should they be? What 'purpose' do humans serve?

If your question is instead 'how are they beneficial to ecosystems or other organisms' then they are indead 'useful' in this sense as they are preyed upon by many things, both as adults and larvae/pupae (dragonflies, birds amphibians and fish to name a few).

Answer 2

Here is my theory on "What is the purpose of the mosquito?" Long story short, and besides the typical "food source/chain" response, I think that they help/aid the evolution of life over long periods of time. As small as they are (and annoying), they may have a huge purpose...I tried submitting a full answer, but I went WAY over the word limit lol...Think about it...I might be onto something. The Santiago Mosquito Theory

Answer 3

To stop overpopulation. Mosquito's are a highly efficient means of spreading germs. If you look at the places where mosquito's live you will see that the since Northern European peoples reduced the mosquito populations there is an overpopulation problem. So they won't die from a disease, they will starve to death.

Answer 4

This is an incorrect assumption. Mosquitoes play a role in the food chain and a vector for various pathogens but this is not its "purpose" because evolution does not have purposes other than adaption to survive.

Answer 5

Mosquitoes function nutrition for different beings. in addition they serve to transmit viruses and the such. That final section is probably no longer good for us, although this is nice for nature. What people do? I fairly have attain the tip that the Human function in nature is to act as a device for cleansing up the species. by using that I mean the only objective of the human sort is strictly to make species extinct to bypass away way for the greater species to flourish as quickly as we extinct ourselves.

Answer 6

Why does everything have to have a purpose?

A mosquito exists for itself. It evolved to have a life using the blood of other creatures to feed its' young. Unfortunately they are very effective at transmitting diseases that cause problems for many other creatures.

Maybe someday we will invent a cure for the cold or flu and we will find a way to transmit it from creature to creature by may of mosquito. Maybe someday they will be useful to people. For now they are just nasty pests.

What is the purpose of a black widow spider or rattlesnake?

Answer 7

They are a natural part of the ecosystem, and serve more than one purpose:

1) Food for predatory animals, like frogs and spiders

2) Population check by spreading diseases like malaria and west nile.

Doesn't seem all that glamorous but everything works together.

Answer 8

Theleologically speaking, it conributes to the persistance and existence of very many viruses, and protozoa, by transmitting such (yellow fever, malaria etc) from one warm blooded (homeothermic) vertebrate, to another.....
Its useless to say, they are part of the food chain of fish on lakes and ponds, where still water is found....as well as other reptilian members of the planet (frogs, iguanas, chameleons and so on)
They are also a nuisance to man. and other mammals...(that is quite obvious of course)------its theoretical function, would be to be a real pest.....for us..

Answer 9

It takes food (as blood) from stronger organisms like cows and the human being and it feeds it (by being eaten) to weaker organisms such as frogs, lizards and bigger bugs

Why the thumbs down? it is one of the things they do! think about it, there must be some circles in the food chain, otherwise there wouldnt be so many primary meat-eaters!

Answer 10

To provide food for those species that eat them. And of course to aggravate us. That's my take on it. Hopefully someone will have a more scientic answer.