With our lack of winter, the critters are already out and about. Critters of the insect type have decided that it is time to wreak havoc on the gardens and on us. Those dratted mosquitoes and gnats are out in droves and they have no qualms about eating a person alive. Battling these critters is a long term endeavor and not something that can be done with a simple shot of spray and since I abhor sprays, for the most part, I am searching for more natural ways of ridding the place of them. This means emptying things like the birdbath on a daily basis and planting "smelly" plants (as Son calls them) near the house. Plants such as marigolds, lemongrass, lemon balm, rosemary and even basil help to keep mosquitoes at bay. Since the Frog Pond seems to be a likely spot for the mosquitoes to lay eggs, I encourage dragonflies to also use the pond as their nursery. Dragonfly nymphs love to much on mosquito nymphs! These thing all help but, hey, I live on a bayou and near a creek. What about those likely breeding spots?
With the warm weather, the mosquitoes have been busy but Mother Nature has, too. I noticed thousands of "mosquito fish" (or pot-belly minnows) swirling about the shallows in the marsh. It seems that the overload of mosquito nymphs is a boon to these little fishies! They are happy campers at the moment. Their bright blue scales can be seen flashing in the sunlight as they happily chase the nymphs about the brackish water. While watching them, I had the notion to catch a few to see if I can acclimate them to the fresh water of the Frog Pond. It would be nice to have a family or two of the mosquito fish living there to help the dragonflies. Ponder, ponder.
As an added note, all is well here on the Bayou for any who are interested. After another round of severe storms thrashed about the place, things have settle down for the night. There were sightings of at least six tornadoes in the close proximity of the Little Bayou House and at least two known waterspouts in the Bay near the pier. The sirens sounded for a good hour but we were blessed with no damage. The Little Bayou House held strong once again.
No, I did not misspell the title..it was not a typo. I actually meant "Fish Trip" not "Fishing Trip". This story does not involve me heading out to catch a few fish for my lunch, rather it is a different type of fish tale. One where the fish are actually taking a trip, not through a natural migration but rather a man-made working vacation of sorts. There is a tiny fish that lives in the marshes and in the bayous around here that is making quite a name for itself. These little fishies could very well be classified as heroes! Gambusia Affinis, is a fish that we have always pretty much ignored unless it was needed as bait for larger fish. It is small, never getting more than about two and a half inches long when fully grown. The local nickname is "Pot-belly" minnow and for good reason. It sometimes seems that about ninety percent of these fish are female and these females are always "very" pregnant. I know..that is quite an exaggeration with the ninety percent but the always being pregnant part is not that much of a fabrication as the females are mature enough to give birth at the ripe old age of six weeks. They reproduce at a rapid rate, giving birth to as many as one hundred babies at a time several times a season. You might think this would be a problem at some point but as I said, larger fish feed upon them as do all of the shorebirds. I have even witnessed Garter Snakes catching them in the tide pools during low tide. But back to the story of the travelling fish. It seems that this tiny fish eats masses of mosquito eggs and larvae every day. So many mosquitoes that it has earned the name of Mosquitofish. There is also, the Eastern Mosquitofish which is the Gambusia Holbrooki. They are very much alike and again this one is locally called "Pot-belly" for the same reason as the other. Now, these minuscule minnows with their ample appetites are being raised on fish farms in Mississippi for use worldwide for mosquito control..JPG)
After Katrina, these fishes were used all over the Coast to battle the many mosquitoes that bred out of control in abandoned swimming pools and other stagnant water sources. The latest attempt at this use is in the earthquake stricken Haiti. Thousands of the tiny Mississippi raised fish are being shipped to Haiti to eat the mosquito larvae. This is in an attempt to prevent massive outbreaks of Malaria and other diseases that are spread by the insect. Thus, our wee water friends are headed thousands of miles away to do some very important work. Work hard, Little Friend..eat hearty..save lives! I guess in a sense, this tiny little Mississippi fish is not so small after all!
