are mosquito larvae good food?

[mike J]

I have been thinking about feeding live foods to my adult discus, just to make feeding time a little more interesting.

I am not sure which live foods are the easiest to cultivate but I have rain barrels in my back yard and the local mosquito population reproduces quite readily. Naturally the barrels are full of larvae but would this be good food for my discus?

I have read that mosquito larvae are often contaminated but I think that is because of contaminated breeding grounds. My rain barrels are full of nice clean rain water and I've been thinking those larvae would make good food for my fish.

has anybody else tried this method of feeding larvae or heard of others that have done it?

[blaze]

They love it, pure protien... great for babies.
but i normally use it for treats, not as a main course

[tpl*co]

Here in California we have a West Nile Virus outbreak, does anybody know if fish can get it by eating mosquito larvae? Or is it passed only by being bitten by adult mosquitos?

[brewmaster15]

The Virus is thought to be spread thru blood. The mosquito bites an infected bird and picks upthe virus..This is then passed on if it bites you or more likely another bird. It can be spread thru blood transfusions or organ donors in some cases..

I have not seen anything listing cold blooded carriers like fish.


Fish love the Mosquito larvae,but I don't think its worth it...Theres always the chance that they carry a parasite that the fish can get (worms) Better to raise red wigglers, they don't bite you if they escape

I got attacked one year when I tried feeding them...I thought The fish had eaten them all...but They must have hidden in the roots of the pothos in the tank. I think I got 30 bites that day doing a wc

-al

[Moon]

I also have a rain barrel full of mosquita larvae. Last year I fed my Apistos the larvae. They came down with a parasitic infection that I could not cure. This year I put 4 gouramis in the barrel to keep the population under control. Hopefully when I get them into my fish room in the fall they will be nice and plump ready for breeding.
I feed my discus live white worms as a treat once a week. They love white worms. These are quite easy to culture.