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Gambusia affinis (the mosquito fish)


luket

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I've heard these small livebearers can survive Aussie winters (at least in temperate/tropical regions) and I am told they are a fairly widespread species here in NSW.

Does anyone know of any rivers/dams that they can be sourced from?

I have a small pond that would be perfect for a small colony I think :)

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they are posing a massive problem in the northern rivers, out competing native fish and over populaing waterways... why would you want to keep this pest? :dntknw:

Why not invest in your local rainbow fish? :hug:

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they are posing a massive problem in the northern rivers, out competing native fish and over populaing waterways... why would you want to keep this pest? :dntknw:

Why not invest in your local rainbow fish? :hug:

Food for bigger fish :)

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they are posing a massive problem in the northern rivers, out competing native fish and over populaing waterways... why would you want to keep this pest? :dntknw:

Why not invest in your local rainbow fish? :hug:

Food for bigger fish :)

That which we cannot talk about eh? :) the more you remove from the wild the better i think so don't worry about breeding them, just anhialate them

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Don't know the Law in NSW but they are a noxious fish in Queensland....big fines if you have them in your possession....can't be used for fish food or bait and if you catch them you are obligated to kill them.

Why not use native species....."blue-eyes" go well in ponds

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they are posing a massive problem in the northern rivers, out competing native fish and over populaing waterways... why would you want to keep this pest? :dntknw:

Why not invest in your local rainbow fish? :hug:

Food for bigger fish :)

That which we cannot talk about eh? :) the more you remove from the wild the better i think so don't worry about breeding them, just anhialate them

Actually I've just looked at the fisheries website - this fish is classed as a noxious pest and I think its illegal ($11,000 fine max) to keep these in anything but an enclosed environment (fishtank), ponds are a no-no.

Anyway, I've dug up a distribution map for them for NSW and believe I know a place locally where they can be taken.

they are posing a massive problem in the northern rivers, out competing native fish and over populaing waterways... why would you want to keep this pest? :dntknw:

Why not invest in your local rainbow fish? :hug:

Food for bigger fish :)

That which we cannot talk about eh? :) the more you remove from the wild the better i think so don't worry about breeding them, just anhialate them

Yeah, I didn't realise what a pest they were!

I've only just got involved in the hobby again after some time and alot of my old info was based off books decades old - books written by Dr Herbert Axelrod :lol3: .

Anyway catching up fast, I can't believe how much info on fishkeeping the net has these days!

Cheers for the speedy answers!

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  • 2 months later...

In Victoria, they are illegal to transport. I don't know of anyone being caught whilst collecting these, but it could be possible I imagine.

I recently saw an aquarium shop selling them (a big no-no) as feeder fish.

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Around here you can find them at every duckpond around. They are impossible to kill, eat native tadpoles (Almost to the point of extinction) and are a plain nuisance.

Instead of releasing them in your pond just collect them from areas they have already overtaken. Much better for the environment. And its illegal to release anything into a pond i heard? :confused:

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 1 month later...

you can find these guys nearly anywhere

in creeks and in small lagoons/lakes all over the place just

find a local water source and you'll probably find some

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  • 3 months later...

As mentioned, don't transport them, don't keep them, don't breed them, don't introduce them!

KILL THEM!

Thats it.

Besides they are not very fun fish.

Nip the fins of all the other fishes and are a major part of many of the digenetic trematode species found in our water ways.

They have destroyed many native fish species by eating their eggs and ya they are just ugly.

Go with golden medaka, pacific blue eyes or white clouds if you need frog friendly winter surviving pond mozzie eaters.

in some places inspection officers are within their rights to kill all fish on the property if they find gambusia being kept. I know of no cases where this has happened but hey who wants to be the first?

I also noticed national parks and wildlife had them in turtle ponds... the episode where they took all of an old ladies turtles. Not the best message to send out thats fer sure!

I say again, the only thing you should do with gambusia is kill them.

I canna think of a single exception. LFS who sell them are playing with fire and deserve to get burnt. How expensive is it to buy rosey barbs and support a local feeder breeder?

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is the reproduction and keeping of glass shrimp fairly easy? anything special u need or can u just stick em in a tank with some air outside?

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is the reproduction and keeping of glass shrimp fairly easy? anything special u need or can u just stick em in a tank with some air outside?

small scale they are easy... large scale not quite so.

but ya you have the right idea. No impellors to chop up babys. Need to keep the temperature down and the food levels up.

Easier to setup a pond with no fish and plant it right out.

Even so lot less effort to buy frozen prawns from fishermans co-op.

What are ya feeding? if it was a little lion or something and ya only need 1 or 2 every few days it could almost be worth it.

Small scale, put pregga shrimp in a wine glass and knock of young. Then young into grow out tank (greenwater) and ya semi easy to grow up. I have done with marine scavenger shrimp before as well but ya... they grow so f slow. Duckweed is always good to use as shades/feeds and nutrient mines the water

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Mosquitofish are legal to keep and sell in Sydney and surrounding suburbs. Check the fisheries website, they have a very unusual addition to their classification that allows their sale in certain specified council areas around metro Sydney. You need a standard fishing license to collect them yourself, which is about $6 for a weekend. In the rest of NSW they have the same classification as carp, noxious with fines attached for various offenses.

All that being said, I would not stick them in a pond anywhere, too much chance of them escaping. If you catch or buy them, you are responsible for them not escaping. With carp, they are a bit on the large side to be hitching lifts, but the little guys are much easier to spread.

As a fish though, they are really fascinating. I've kept them on and off for years, mainly as feeders, and find them to be one of the more interesting livebearers around. If nothing else those males should be admired for sheer determination, they'll try to mate with anything *lol*

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