Been trying to find some "hardy" fish for my rain barrels and in speaking w/ G. Donald Siemer (our guest speaker from the Spring 2008 Memphis Plant Swap) he hooked me up with the Shelby County Vector Control.

Folks can get FREE fish for mosquito control.

Gambusia Affinis fish, called Mosquito fish are important to mosquito control programs. They eat mosquito larvae as soon as they hatch from the eggs laid by mosquitoes, thus reducing the mosquito population. The Mosquito fish feeding habits also include a variety of insects and plant materials. The mosquito fish is guppy-like, and may be placed in ponds or small bodies of water

The mosquito fish reproduces rapidly, about 21 - 28 days. This small fish is unlike any other fish. It does do not lay eggs; It bears live young. Each female can produce three to four broods in her lifetime and each pregnacy can deliver 40 to 100 young. Births occur usually during the warm spring and summer months. The females are significantly larger then the males. The females are usually about 2 1/2 inches long and the males are about 1 1/2 inches long.

Mosquito fish have been proven to be environmentally friendly and extremely effective controlling mosquitoes. Each fish eats up to 300 mosquito larvae per day. They require little or no feeding and their care is limited to protecting them from gardens sprays, chlorine and other chemicals. The fish inhabit the shallow edges of ponds and creeks because of the abundance of food and to escape predation by larger fish.

You will be able to pick up Mosquito Fish at the Vector Control Office during the Summer months for your ornamental ponds. The address for Vector Control is 2480 Central Ave., Memphis. For more information please call 901-324-5547