Eastern mosquitofish facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Gambusia holbrooki |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Top: female/Bottom: male | |
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Synonyms | |
|
The eastern mosquitofish (Gambusia holbrooki) is a small fish. It is also known as the eastern gambusia or mosquito fish. This fish belongs to the Poeciliidae family. It originally comes from the eastern United States. However, people have moved it to many other places around the world. These places include Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and Australia. In these new homes, it has become an invasive species, causing problems for local wildlife.
Contents
What Does the Eastern Mosquitofish Look Like?
The eastern mosquitofish is quite small. An adult male grows to about 3.5 centimeters (1.4 inches) long. An adult female can grow a bit larger, up to 6.0 centimeters (2.4 inches).
Its body is usually green or brown on top. The bottom side is blue, white, or silver. It has large eyes. This fish has one dorsal fin on its back. Its tail fin is round.
Where Does This Fish Live?
This fish prefers to live in fresh water. However, it can also live in water that has some salt in it. It is a very tough fish. It can survive in both cold and warm temperatures. The eastern mosquitofish mainly eats insects and their young forms, called larvae.
Why Are Mosquitofish a Problem?
People brought the eastern mosquitofish to new places. For example, they were brought to Hawaii in the 1910s. They arrived in Australia in the 1920s. People released them into the wild. They hoped these fish would eat mosquito larvae. This was supposed to help control mosquito numbers.
However, the eastern mosquitofish did not eat more mosquitoes than the fish already living there. Instead, they caused many problems. They often compete with other fish for food. They can also bite the tails of other fish. Sometimes, they even eat other small fish. They can harm larger fish by damaging their fins.
In the western United States, the eastern mosquitofish harmed or outcompeted many local fish. These local fish were actually better at controlling mosquitoes. After eastern mosquitofish are put into a body of water, there might be an algal bloom. This happens because the mosquitofish eat or kill the fish that usually eat algae.
Threat to Other Animals
This fish also likes to eat frog eggs and tadpoles. Because of this, it is a big problem for some endangered frogs. It is one reason why the green and golden bell frog is endangered in Australia. It also threatens the Chiricahua leopard frog in Arizona.
How Do Mosquitofish Reproduce?
Eastern mosquitofish have many babies at once. A female can have between 50 and 300 eggs at a time. The eggs stay inside the female's body until they hatch. This means the babies are born alive. It takes only about two months for the new fish to become adults. Eastern mosquitofish can have several groups of babies each year.
Eastern vs. Western Mosquitofish
For a long time, people thought the western mosquitofish (G. affinis) and the eastern mosquitofish (G. holbrooki) were the same species. They were both called G. affinis. But scientists later found out they are different species. In Australia, most records that say "G. affinis" are actually talking about G. holbrooki.
Images for kids
-
Eastern mosquitofish in a pond in the Pee Dee region of South Carolina, 2011
See also
In Spanish: Gambusia holbrooki para niños
