The Coeur d'Alene press. (Coeur d'Alene, Idaho) 1906-1907, 1907-11-15
FISH VS., MOSQUITO.
EinnOws Now to Be Used In War
Against the Insect.
Jew JERSEY TRYING PLAN.

Dr.. John q. Smith, state Entomoloaist,
Aims to Kill on the Germ Carriers
by Placing Finny Auxiliariss In
Brael<ish Waters.
Tiny fish which grow no larger than
the length Of your thumb have been
enlisted in the war against the Jersey
mosquito. With the help Of an army
Of these flnny auxilaries once they can
be acclimated to the waters of the
state, Jerseys chief entomoIogist. DR..
John B. Smith. hopes to Danish the
''skeeters." especially the kind that
carry the germs OF malaria, says the
Philadelphia Press.
The fish to be used are members OF
q family called the atherinidae. of
which there are fourteen principal va
Fieties and slxty-five subvarIeties In
different parts OF the world, and those
which are to be set upon the trail Of
the Jersey mosquitoes are called
Gambusia affinis and Heterandria
formosas which are to be found In the
waters Of North Carolina and adjacent
states.
These fish are commonly called top
minnows" because they come to the
surface to feed, and it is known that
they esteem as special delicacy the
eggs of the 'skeeter." Now, it has
been the chief problem Of the Jersey
mosquito fighters to find a way to kill
the eggs before they are Matched in
the various marshes or placid pools.
So 1t is argued that If the water bod
les in which the 'skeeters" breed can
be stocked with these fish the top
minnows" once they become used to
the temperature and surroundings of
their home will soon make short work
Of the mosquito larvae.
While Jerseys mosquito has earned
a hard name for the state, the com
monwealth is by no means the great
est haven of the insect. In fact, the
mosquito is known as the greatest
ravager of mankind. India, for in
stance, loses about 100000 of its
people annually through diseases car
red by the deadlier type. Italy also
Is great sufferer. About 100000 of
its inhabitants contract malaria each
year with the assistance of the ''skeet-
err" and some $1,000 die.
Out in the Philippines the greatest
enemy Of the American soldiers is this
same insect, and to protect themselves
they have to use screens which are al
most gauzy in their fneness, and even
these frequently are pierced by the
mosquitoes.
Italy just now is trying to introduce
into its water fish called Pseudomugil
signifer, which are Of the same fam
ily as those used in New Jersey, but
which were taken there from Aus
tralia. Some thousands were recently
introduced, but SUFFICIENT time has not
elapsed to determine the results.
Over in Hawaii, too, gambusia from
the coastal waters Of Texas have been
placed in canals and irrigation bitches
to exterminate the ''skeeters" which
breed there.
The common Jersey mosquito-the
mlex-is not the worst Of his kind. In
met, though his buzz is louder than
me deadlier kinds, 1t may be said that
bis bark" is worse than his bite. The
two worst species are the anopheles,
which carries the malarial germ, and
me stegomyia, which was found in
Cuba to carry the yellow fever para
Aite. Though anopheles do breed in
Jersey, they are not anywhere as nu-
merous as the culex, which is not
Known to be transmitter Of disease.