Fish variety to fight mosquito menace

With mosquitoes giving sleepless nights to denizens in summer, GHMC officials have now decided to tackle the problem head-on by using Gambusia and Guppy fishes to control the mosquito menace.Apart from fogging and other sanitation measures, GHMC officials are also planning to release Gambusia and Guppy fishes into city water bodies to check breeding of mosquitoes. These fishes are known to eat up mosquito larvae.“It is not the first time we are making efforts to feed and nourish Gambusia and Guppy fishes to arrest the growth of mosquito population. Around 4 lakh Gambusia and Guppy fish are being maintained in 20 different nurseries in the twin cities,” informed T Ratna Joseph, chief entomologist, GHMC. According to him, summers are the time when mosquitoes breed in stagnant water. “We have taken up measures like fogging and sanitation but we are also planning to release thousands of Gambusia and Guppy fishes into ponds, lakes and other water bodies to kill mosquito larvae,” Ratna Joseph said.Both these fishes are normally found in most aquarium collections, whether in houses or in other locations. The Guppy is a small fish, whose females are six cm in size and males, 3.5 cm. The fish attacks mosquito larvae eradicating its breed. Gambusia, also called mosquito fish, is a natural predator of mosquito larvae. A large fish can eat more than 200 larvae in an hour. During the warm summer months, the female Gambusia is said to reach maturity in only 30 days and give birth to about 50 young ones every 20 days.However, officials are hesitant to release the fish into water bodies and lakes, most of which are polluted. “For example, if these fishes are released into the Hussain Sagar, they would not survive as the lake waters are polluted with chemical waste released by various industries,” he said. “We have selected at least 17 water bodies in the twin cities and will release the fishes in a phased manner while renovating various tanks and lakes to protect from pollution. We hope the new initiative will bring positive results in eradicating mosquitoes,’’ he added.

By Mouli Mareedu

moulimareedu@gmail.com