Mosquito Fish

Mosquito Fish

Female

1. These fish are in the same family as guppies.

2. The Gambusia affinisis a small minnow-like fish originally from the Gulf Coast and Atlantic seaboard of the United States and Mexico. 

3. Gambusia are small fish with a greenish silvery sheen, a short body, upturned mouth and a flattened head. The back and sides are covered withdark spots and the mouth is upturned and there are no bars or bands on the sides.

4. Gambusia grow rapidly, reaching a maximum size of about three inches.

5. Mosquito fish have a large tolerance to unfavorable water conditions including low oxygen, saline, and pollutants.

Male

6. They are called mosquitofish because they eat mosquito larvae. An adult mosquitofish is capable of eating 100 to 500 mosquito larvae per day.  They also eat other insect larvae and fish fry. 

7. Experiments have shown that when mosquitofish are introduced into a fish-free pond at the height of the mosquito breeding season, they reduced mosquito larvae by 80% in just one week.

8. Mosquitofish can survive in standing water that is deep or shallow, muddy or clear, open or overgrown. This, coupled with their preference for mosquito larvae makes them and excellent choice for the biological control of mosquitoes.

9. Mosquito fish live 2-3 years and can tolerate a wide range of temperatures.

10. Once mosquitofish are introduced into a mosquito-breeding source, they can live up to two years. A female can bear young three to six times per summer. There are 40 to 60 live fry per brood.

11. They are very aggressive fish and will attack fishmuch larger than themselves. This has led to them being nicknamed "killer guppies". 

Mosquito Larvae

12. Mosquito fish can eat mosquito larvae as fast as the larvae hatch from eggs, as many as 100 per day. 

13. Because of their usefulness in controlling mosquito populations mosquito fish are often introduced or stocked in ponds and water bodies. They can compete with native fish species. 

14. Mosquito fish do not lay eggs, but rather give birth to live young. These fish, therefore, require no special environment, as most other fish do, for depositing and hatching their eggs. They breed throughout the summer and new broods are produced at intervals ofabout six weeks, with 50 to 100 young in a single brood. The young are approximately 1/4 inch in length when born.

15. Mosquitofish may not be compatible with goldfish and/or koi as they tend to nibble on the fins and tails.

16. Other fish such as bass, bluegill and trout may prey on mosquitofish, reducing their effectiveness as mosquito predators.

17. Other enemies of mosquitofish include wading birds, frogs, and snakes.