“If we know what habitat mosquitoes thrive in, we can design our
A team of scientists studied the presence of pesticides,water quality, livestock density and pasture pressure or “desertification”. It turned out that the density of disease-carrying mosquitoes was higher in places where people had adapted the landscape. This is the first time that humans have been scientifically proven to make their environments extremely suitable for their own disease vectors and their livestock.
And this is useful information:“If we know the conditions in which mosquitoes thrive, we can design our own habitats to minimize the risk of outbreaks of mosquito-borne infectious diseases,” the scientists emphasize. In other words, disease prevention at the level of territorial planning.
Although many types of insects do not feelwell as a result of human activity, the opposite seems to be true for mosquitoes. “Mosquitoes often thrive in an environment of anxiety,” explains Scrama. “Many other insects, such as butterflies, need stable and undisturbed ecosystems. When vulnerable insects disappear, competition for mosquitoes diminishes. ” The scientist gives an example: “Many insects have disappeared in the Netherlands in recent years due to drought, but it may well be that mosquitoes will benefit from this. If the water, which usually never dries out, suddenly disappears, mosquitoes can settle in such an area very quickly. Due to this kind of periodic droughts, fish, amphibians and other types of insects that usually attack mosquitoes disappear. "
Understanding the role of our own habitat and how mosquitoes respond to it is critical to the spread of infections.
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