Asit Kumar Sanyal - The Six Legged Enemy

Science made possible
to many impossible things
But could not destroy the mosquito
Though it is very essential
for human being
There are 3500 varieties of mosquito
on the planet
Of which, only couple of hundred bite us
Some are popular in names
and the carrier of
chikungunya, yellow fever,
West Nile virus, Dengue fever,
Encephalitis, Filariasis,
Elephantiasis, Zika virus
and Malaria.
These diseases infect
700 million people every year
in the planet
Only Malaria infects
about 247 million people a year
And kills nearly I million
Its cause a huge medical and
Financial burden for people
And the governments.

A mosquito is small in size
But brings anyone easily to its knees
by a simple viral infection
Despite burning mats, coils, cedar oil
spraying of strong insecticides
and swing of Chinese bat
Like a battle axe.
Mosquitoes made their population
greater than any other animal
except ants
Even nature failed to destroy
these little buggers
And they learned to survive
in any atmosphere, any habitat
In the world
Other than Antarctica, Iceland
and few polar and sub-polar islands.

Mosquitoes give no benefit to human
Only suck the blood
The female mosquitoes need blood
To get the necessary proteins
For laying eggs
We don't want anything from them
Except to go away

For few species
They are ‘food on the wings'
Specially for some kinds of birds,
frogs, lizards, salamanders, spiders
And their larva for fishes
There will be no ecological effect
If the planet becomes mosquito free
Mosquito eaters will change
Their food habits slowly.

But mosquitoes are not being defeated
They become resistant to current adulticides
Now science trying for
The RNA based insecticides, male sterilization
Improved chemicals and mosquito traps
RNA-based insecticides kill female mosquito
It basically tells mosquito
To commit suicide
Traps generate CO2 to lure mosquitoes
It's the war against the winged.
continuing from centuries.\n\nAsit Kumar Sanyal

https://www.poemhunter.com/poem/the-six-legged-enemy/