AboutEd Saugstad Expertise Will accept most questions in general entomology, including those related to medical entomology, taxonomy, ecology, arthropod surveillance, and pest management.
Experience 21 years in the U.S. Army as a medical entomologist; duties varied from surveillance of pest populations (including mosquitoes, cockroaches, ticks, and stored products pests) to conducting research on mosquito-virus ecological relationships and mosquito faunal studies. Ten years as a civilian analyst for the Department of Defense, primarily on distribution of vector-borne diseases worldwide. Limited experience on surveillance of agricultural insects in North Dakota and Indiana.
Organizations Entomological Society of America, West Virginia Entomological Society, Society for Vector Ecology, National Speleological Society, West Virginia Association for Cave Studies.
Publications American Journal of Public Health, Contributions of the American Entomological Institute, Japanese Journal of Sanitary Zoology, Journal of Economic Entomology, Mosquito News, and Mosquito Systematics.
Education/Credentials B.S. in entomology from North Dakota State University in 1963, M.S. in entomology from Purdue University in 1967.
Question Like all my intro's are to every question i ask, i hail you for your contributions to making our world a more educated place, may God bless you and your's. I would like to know the various ways mosquitoes and bees (in general)help balance the ecosystem. What are their benefits to balancing the ecosysytem, in other words without these two highly underated insects, what impact (negatively) would it have on the balance of planet Earth?
Than you very much
Answer Dear Ibrahim - To answer your question fully would require an encyclopaedia; I can only attempt to summarize. Suffice it to say, mankind and bees have been linked for as long as humans have existed, with most of the benefits derived thereof falling to the humans. Honey as a foodstuff for humans (as well as for numerous animals and birds) perhaps is the most obvious, but the primary service that bees provide is that of pollination (see http://www.uga.edu/caes/insectlab/agimpact.html). Also, if it were not for bees, the evolution of flowering plants would have had a far different course, and the landscape thus would appear much different (and less diverse) than it does now. Bee-assisted plant evolution has resulted in ecosystems that support a far richer species spectrum than otherwise would exist. See http://oregonstate.edu/dept/ncs/newsarch/2006/Oct06/bee.html, http://www.entomology.cornell.edu/BeePhylogeny/fossils.html, and http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-10/osu-rdo102406.php for much more detailed information.
The situation with mosquitoes is less clear. Most people think only of the negative impact mosquitoes have through vectoring diseases of humans and animals - did you know that creatures as diverse as frogs, lizards, and birds have their own versions of mosquito-borne malaria? However, mosquitoes, both as larvae and adults, can serve as a food source for a variety of animals from birds and bats to other arthropods and birds, but none of these predators that I know of are dependent on mosquitoes as a food source. Also, both male and female (but mostly male) mosquitoes can pollinate some plants, but with the possible exception of some small bog orchids (see http://www.borealforest.org/herbs/herb28.htm), I am unaware of any plant species that are dependent on mosquitoes for pollination. A world without mosquitoes therefor would not appear much different than what we see today. In my opinion, the biggest likely difference would be an increase in human and other mammal populations in areas currently ‘off limits’ because of mosquito-borne diseases.
