In a concrete effort to combat the everlasting and ongoing problem of Malaria in the state of Andhra Pradesh (AP), the government of Andhra Pradesh, under the command of Chief Minister, Jagamohan Reddy and his cabinet has decided to release at least 10 million of Gambusia fish to combat the larvae of mosquitoes and to permanently find a natural solution to the problem of invasion of localities, both in the urban sector as well as the village sector, by mosquitoes. This measure has been executed as a measure experiment in the coastal district of Visakhapatnam, which has seen the maximum surge of diseases that are borne by mosquitoes in recent times. The Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation, also known as the GVMC, has released at least 10 million Gambusia fish into various local water bodies such as local ponds and lakes both in the urban and village areas to test the effectiveness of this measure in controlling the population of the mosquito invaders, which are thirsty for human blood.

Why This Measure is taken

This measure has to be executed by the government of Andhra Pradesh (AP) to help in curbing the huge growth of mosquitoes in recent times in many areas of Andhra Pradesh, one of the districts being Vishakhapatnam. Several reports that have been filed about the diseases that are spread by vectors have revealed that the land of the Kakatiya kingdom has topped the charts in recent times when it has lodged more than 6391 cases of dengue and almost 2022 cases of malaria in the previous year. This report was published by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) in the previous year. Unfortunately, despite several measures that have been taken to control the situation, there has been reported to be a significant rise in the number of cases in the present year itself. This has left the government worried about, what could be the perfect step to be taken to control this worsening situation. There have been 2399 cases of dengue and 1630 cases of malaria that have been reported so far in the last 6 months in the present year itself as per the reports that have been published locally. This time, in an attempt to find a natural measure to control the booming of mosquitoes, the government has taken a step to introduce a different type of fish that is called the Gambusia fish to put a check and balance on the growth of the diseases that are being spread by these tiny vectors.

What is the Gambusia Fish?

The Gambusia fish is a native species that is found in the waters of the southern half of the United States of America (USA). It has a shiny silver body, which is full of scales and has a bluish-blackish spot on either side of the lower half of its body. It has two fins on the lower side of its body and one fin at the tail that helps it to navigate across and through the current of water. It is reported that a fully grown-up Gambusia fish can feed up to at least 100 to 300 larvae of mosquitoes per day as per the reports that have been published by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW).  The scientific name for the fish is Gambusia affinis or better known as G affinis. This species of fish has been used as a strategy for controlling the population of mosquitoes through centuries in various parts of the world and in India too. There is another species of the Gambusia fish, which is popularly known as its sister species. It is known as the Gambusia holbrooki or G Holbrook, better known as the eastern mosquito fish. This mosquito fish has been extremely effective in pruning the growth of mosquitoes in India for a long time, since the year 1928 by the then-British government of India. This strategy comes under the ‘Urban Malaria Scheme’.  These fish are generally considered to be a good step taken by the government to control the spreading of the larvae of mosquitoes as against the harmful measures of using artificial steps of control such as the spraying of artificial chemicals and mosquito repellants that could lead to serious harm on the environment. However, as per the understanding of Desham PR, who works as a practitioner in the area of public health, the introduction of the Gambusia affinis and the Gambusia holbrooki fish can then become effective, when it is coupled with other sources of controlling mosquitoes such as reduction of the source of mosquitoes. “Reducing the number of mosquito breeding sources such as puddles and open drainages and clearing vegetation that mosquitoes eat on must be prioritized over releasing fish into water bodies,” she said.

Effectiveness of Releasing the Fish

Though there has been much benefit in introducing Gambusia affinis and Gambusia holbrooki to control the burst of malaria, there has been much said on the topic as this has brought in much controversy from the side of the environmentalists. These fish have been known to feed on the local population of fish, thereby, drastically reducing the abundance of local water animals. This has been reported to harm the ecological balance of nature in those areas severely by harming the biodiversity in the ecosystem. The invasive nature of the fish has been thought to be quite harmful to the ecosystem as they have even preyed on other local freshwater fish that could have been helpful in controlling of the mosquitoes. These could be proved from many instances, where the fish have eaten up the eggs of other competing fish and tadpoles of frogs that otherwise could have helped repel the mosquitoes. Their ability to adapt to any environment and breed heavily could pose a threat to the native inhabitants of the freshwater bodies. They, therefore, have been counted to be among the top most invasive alien species on the planet.

Alternatives to the Gambusia Species of Fish

One of the best alternatives to the Gambusia variety could be to release the Guppi species of dish as this species of fish is known to be as effective as the Gambusia variety of fish in helping to control the outburst of mosquitoes. At the same time, this species of fish is not at all harmful to the native inhabitants and can coexist peacefully, without posing any threat to the environment. Already some states such as West Bengal have started seeing positive results by introducing the Guppy variety of fish to put an end to the spread of the larvae of mosquitoes. The government of AP should make use of this variety of fish instead of the Gambusia ones as in an attempt to do a smaller good they can end up doing greater harm to the environment in the bigger perspective.