| Not widely used for the purpose for which it was introduced. Affects native fish populations adversely through its habit of eating their eggs. Severely affected the mirror carp fishery in Ooty Lake which could be reestablished only after the eradication of this species. This species was introduced for mosquito control but found it very destructive in its new habitat particularly in hatchery and nursery due to its high rate of voracity (Ref. 13777). Recorded from the Chalakudy river, part of the Western Ghats, Kerala (Ref. 79567). The fish is also known as mosquito fish because of its looking for mosquito - larvae. It satisfies the prescribed requirements of introduction since it is a surface feeder, larvicidal to a considerable extent and successfully controlled the vector of malarial parasite. It considerably changed the socio-economic scenario of the developing nations by controlling the mosquitoes breeding.
Ref:
Shetty, H.P.C., M.C. Nandeesha and A.G. Jhingran, 1989
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