The scientific name for the Mosquito fish is Gambusia affinis. The name of the family is Poeciliidae which are small, live bearing fish. They came from southeastern USA, Texas and Mexico. They were brought to Texas 1905 for mosquito control. The Hawaiians ate the fish salted and dried or cooked in ti leaves. The male mosquito fish can grow from 0.5 to 2 inches and females from 1 to 3 inches. They are brownish grey. Sadly, mosquito fish can only live from 1 to 3 years, but luckily for them, their breeding is super easy.

	Habitat Mosquito fish are usually found in ditches, ponds, lakes, streams and anything left with water. Mosquito fish live in fresh water, brackish water, and salt water environments, with temperatures of 60-75 degrees F. Plants are good hiding places for these small fish, as well as holes in rocks.

Life Cycle The male mosquito fish has a tube shaped fin for mating called a gonopodium. The female mosquito fish has a black patch by their vent where the fry or baby fish grow. The female fish will grow bigger when the fry are growing. The female fish will give live birth to the fry in about 24 days. They are about 3/8" long. There can be between 10 to 100 fry in one batch. Several batches of fry can be produced in one mating.