FishProfiles.com Message Forums

Hi, I want to know if swordtails,loaches, or somthing like a rainbowfish will eat mosquito larvae. If so, I need to know if the ones i can get to grow in water in my yard are safe to feed to my fish. (do they carry disease, and I cant tell what kind they are, but are some kinds unsuitable for certain fish?)

-Sabrina

i would just go to the lfs and get frozen blood worms. i wouldn't be to sure to say that the things that can grow in the backyard will be safe.

If you are sure that they are safe, than it's fine, but i prefer feeding them frozen Bloodworms, Daphnia, Brine Shrimp & Beef Heart.


http://uk.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/s8xi5heh/my_photos
http://www.geocities.com/s8xi5heh/classic_blue.html
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/buzaqq/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/corydoras/
Member of the Malta Aquarist Society - 1970.
http://www.maltaaquarist.com

They should be fine. I breed and raise Rainbowfish in my back yard tubs from May-Sept, every year. Their main source of food is what ever is in the water, including a lot of insect larva. As I only feed them for about a week after putting them out, then they eat whatever is naturally in the water. I have been doing this for several years now. The funny thing is, when I bring in the small fry to put them into a tank, those that I leave grow about 5 times faster if left outside. Just goes to show you how good our great processed fish foods are, lol.

I also have a tub with no fish in it. And I catch the mosquito larva out of it, for other fish I am trying to intice to breed inside. The killifish relish them. I hardly ever see any last for more than a few seconds.

HTH....

_____________________________________________________________

There is always a bigger fish...

i dunno about the loaches, but the rest should be fine... and yes, they grow pretty well with livefoods.

EDIT: what kind of loaches that you have?

Last edited by ronnfive at 25-Jul-2005 05:53

i say...its relatively safe.

Ronnfive-if anyone is even still looking at this...they are kuhli loaches.

-Sabrina

oh, okie... i feed some of my mollies and platies mosquito larvae from our yard, and they love them...(that's one reason they are here in phils. for malaria control) ... just wash them thoroughly before feeding it to the fish.

about kuhlis, they will eat them maybe, if they can catch them. but i can tell that they can hardly catch the larvae, because they are most at the bottom and other fish might get it first before they do. so, don't rely on the larvae for feeding kuhlis, else they might get starve.

I'd stay away from mosquito larvae you find in backyard sources. Often, many species of mosquitoes will only lay eggs in nasty polluted water. This includes lots of species that will only lay eggs in back yard containers.

What you can do is set up a small bucket of water. There are also species that will lay their eggs in man made containers ONLY if the water is clear and unpolluted. Those are the only larvae I will feed my fish. You can take that one step up if you can learn to identify the mosquito eggs. When eggs are laid in this manner they usually need to go through a period of being completely dry before they will hatch. If you can see the eggs laid around the rim of the bucket it will allow you to control how often you want them to hatch. If you want more larvae, simply add more water.. etc.

You'll need to keep the bucket somewhat sheltered (but still available to the outside so the mosquitoes can access the bucket and lay eggs) because a significant rain will submerge the eggs and cause them to hatch before you may want them too. I currently keep my buckets in the areas of the my house where the basement windows are. You can also try a screened in porch if there are holes in the screens you can bet mosquitoes will find their way to your bucket.

It may seem like a hassle to do all of this but it's important you aren't contributing to a mosquito problem in your neighborhood. They are huge pests but they are also disease causing and you should take care never to let any become biting adults.

just go and buy some worms from the LFS unless u want to attract alot of mosquitoes to your house..lol

Most stores actually sell frozen mosquito larvae...

---

I'm not your neighbor, you Bakersfield trash.