With over 3,000 different species and sub species, mosquitoes are by far the world's deadliest insect. As of this week, five people have died from the mosquito-borne West Nile Virus in the U.S., most all in the New York City area, and there have been over 50 confirmed cases. However, there are many more infected people than those who have obvious symptoms, typically a fever and a severe headache. Encephalitis, swelling of the brain, may also occur in more serious cases. With the outbreak of West Nile Fever in the New York City area, we've been made aware of the many dangerous diseases transmitted by insects, especially mosquitoes.
Malaria is the most common, and therefore the most deadly of the mosquito-borne diseases.
What makes this disease so egregious is that most of the deaths are children. For the rest of the world, an estimated 150,00 people die annually from malaria. Though death rates have declined over the last several decades due to the development of anti-malarial drugs and spraying with DDT and Malathion, malaria is far from being eradicated. Indeed, in some places in central Africa it has experienced a resurgence since the parasite transmitted by the mosquitoes has become resistant to anti-malarial drugs, and also spraying campaigns have been often interrupted by tribal and civil wars. Aside from malaria, yellow fever and dengue fever are two other well known diseases transmitted by mosquitoes.