mos·qui·to·fish

or mosquito fish (mə-skē′tō-fĭsh′)

n. pl. mosquitofish or mos·qui·to·fish·es or mosquito fish or mosquito fish·es

Any of various fishes that feed on the larvae of mosquitoes, especially a small gambusia (Gambusia affinis) native to Mexico and the eastern United States but widely introduced elsewhere for use in controlling mosquitoes.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

mos•qui•to•fish

(məˈski toʊˌfɪʃ)

n., pl. (esp. collectively) -fish, (esp. for kinds or species) -fish•es.

any of several fishes used for mosquito control, esp. Gambusia affinis, native to the southeast U.S.

[1925–30]

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun

mosquitofish - silvery topminnow with rows of black spots of tropical North America and West Indies; important in mosquito control

Gambusia affinis

live-bearer, poeciliid, poeciliid fish, topminnow - small usually brightly-colored viviparous surface-feeding fishes of fresh or brackish warm waters; often used in mosquito control

Gambusia, genus Gambusia - mosquitofish

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References in periodicals archive

The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources-National Integrated Fisheries Technology Development Center (BFAR-NIFTDC) here defended the use of mosquito fish to fight dengue in this city after the measure was criticized by some groups in social media.

BFAR defends distribution of mosquito fish vs. dengue

Among these methods is the release of frogs in areas where the insects proliferate and the discharge of the so-called "mosquito fish" in riverside communities and areas where stagnant water collect.

Philippines: Mosquitos-for-rice scheme to keep disease carriers at bay

City alderman Jihan Edding, chair of the city agriculture panel, said of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Regional Director Isidro Velayo Jr had arranged for the transportation to Zamboanga City of 5,000 mosquito fish from Pangasinan province in northern Philippines' Ilocos Region.

Filipinos fight dengue with frogs and fish

He said that the use of 'mosquito fish' is most effective and environment-friendly biological method of mosquito control.

Commissioner orders steps to eliminate dengue

Stock ornamental ponds with mosquito fish that eat the larva or treat them with larvicide mosquito rings sold at home and garden stores.

How To Kill Mosquitoes Naturally

The Gambusiaaffinis called as western mosquito fish play important role for control of mosquitoes, because it use the larvae of fish as nutrition.

Experts call for control of mosquito larvae through biological agents using larvivorous fish

The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) here needs fresh supply of mosquito fish, which will be distributed to areas where stagnant water has become the breeding ground for mosquitoes, including carriers of the dengue virus.

BFAR runs out of mosquito fish to fight dengue

"As part of our resiliency program, we need to culture our indigenous fish species so that they will not go extinct," said Valente , citing native ar-aru (climbong perch), gurami (gourami), dalag (mudfish), paltat (catfish) and mosquito fish among others, as already rare compared in the old days when they are always present on the Ilokano table.

Ilocos Norte to preserve freshwater fishes, shells

The Plague Minnow (or Eastern Mosquito Fish) Gambusia holbrooki is a small (maximum length 60 mm) freshwater fish that is native to North America; through both deliberate and inadvertent introductions, it has become naturalised throughout many Australian waterways (Pyke 2008; White and Pyke 2011).

The Plague Minnow Gambusia holbrooki as a predator of Spotted Marsh Frog Limnodynastes tasmaniensis tadpoles

The runoff carries a flow of shiners, small-bream, mosquito fish, and other handouts.

Favored waters

Gambusia mosquito fish living among predators in the Bahamas tend to grow smaller sperm-delivery organs (gonopodia) than males in safer waters.

Male genital diversity gets a rethink: female shapes, ecological factors may explain fast evolution