Thread-bearing gourami: content, description, photo

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

Filter gourami are amazing and beautiful fish, so the attention of many lovers of aquarium fish farming is riveted to them. The spotted gourami was first introduced to Russia in 1904, other species appeared only after 1945. These creatures of the water world were named so because of the long threads into which their first soft rays of the ventral fins were reorganized. They are the organ of touch. The labyrinth family unites more than thirty species of fish. A genus of tropical freshwater labyrinths from the macropod family.

Description

Found in medium-sized with weak streams or stagnant, well-vegetated reservoirs in Asia. The body is high, oval, strongly compressed laterally. The dorsal fin is located in the middle of the back or slightly offset to the tail. The length of its base is several times less than that of the anal fin. The famous threads are located closer to the chest. More precisely, behind the pectoral fins.

The sideline is full. The color is varied, depending on the species.

Almost all fish of this family are small in size, up to 12 centimeters. Serpentine gourami can be up totwenty five centimeters. In an aquarium, they most often grow up to ten centimeters. The intensity of the color indicates he alth, but not in all cases.

The labyrinth organ is located in the supragillary cavity. Very thin bony plates are located in this place. Without atmospheric air, in a tightly closed vessel, the fish die quickly.

Gourami in the aquarium as orderlies. They quickly eat the hydra that comes in with live food, it is an enemy for fish. Hydras are dangerous for both young and adults.

Dwarf gourami

This is a beautiful freshwater fish rarely kept at home. It can live in ditches, small streams, slow-flowing rivers, in rice fields. Small sizes do not exceed four centimeters, hence the name. The color is brown, there may be small red, blue or green scales. In the light, they shimmer beautifully. The eyes are blue, the fins are transparent, the fin on the belly is small with a filiform process. In captivity, they can live no more than five years. Sexual dimorphism is not very pronounced. It is believed that males have a brighter and more attractive color.

Spotted Gourami

The species is divided into two subspecies: spotted and Sumatran (blue). The length can be 11-13 centimeters. Both subspecies have a pointed snout, large reddish eyes located in front of the head.

Coloration silver-olive, bluish or lilac with darker transverse stripes of the same color and two large spots in the middle of the body and at the base of the tail. The fins are almost transparent, withyellowish blotches, anal has a reddish border. During breeding, the colors of the gourami become more intense. The spotted look is divided into three color types: marble, gold, silver.

Marble Gourami

The color is light blue, black spots of irregular shape are scattered on its background. The green-blue fins have white-yellow dots, the anal fin has an orange border. The name was given because of the marble-like color.

Sumatran gourami

Coloration is white-blue with barely visible transverse blue lines and two spots in the center of the body, like in another subspecies. There are milk points on the fins, and on the anal fins there are yellow blotches and an orange border.

Pearl Gourami

This species was first discovered by a Dutch biologist. His karyotype consists of four chromosomes, like in humans. Thread-bearing gouramis have some intellectual abilities. They have an organized hierarchical structure in the pack, they are non-aggressive and curious.

The length of these fish can reach twelve centimeters. Similar in structure to spotted gourami, but unpaired fins are more magnificent, with elongated soft rays that protrude needle-like beyond the fin blade. The color is silvery-violet, may be cream. Scattered across the background are many luminous spots that look like pearls. There is a black stripe from the snout through the eyes to the tail. The color smoothly passes to the fins.

Female pearl gouramis are smaller than males. In males, the dorsal fin is longer, the chest and frontanal orange, red or red-violet. In females, the edge of the anal fin is slightly reddish.

Moon gourami

Individuals can be up to 18 centimeters long. In appearance it looks like a spotted one, but the back and forehead are more elongated. The snout is slightly bent upwards, the lips are large. The dorsal fin is rounder and shorter. The filaments of the pelvic fins extend to the edge of the caudal fin. The body is covered with small scales. The male gourami has a longer and sharper fin than the female. The edge of the anal fin is orange, the filaments are orange-red. In females, only the threads are colored yellow-orange.

Brown or serpentine gourami

Individuals reach a length of 20 centimeters. The silhouette is similar to the spotted one, but the snout is sharper, the lobes of the caudal fin are heart-shaped. The color is silvery, a discontinuous strip of dark spots runs through the entire body. Transversely the body is streaked with dark lines. Juveniles have a solid color.

Blue gourami

Mostly in this type of gourami, green color prevails over blue. The content temperature is the same as the others.

To make it easier and more understandable to get acquainted with each species, you can read about the content of gourami. Photos of fish will help you imagine their appearance.

Contents

Spotted thread-bearing gourami, regardless of shape and species, should be kept in aquariums with a capacity of at least sixty liters. The temperature regime of the water is from 24 to 28 degrees, from 20 to 24 is allowed. These fish are capable offor a short time to withstand a decrease to sixteen. What will be the rigidity and acidity, it does not matter. The soil will suit dark and dense vegetation. No aeration or filtration needed.

The maintenance of the pearl gourami is similar to the care of the spotted one, only the water in the aquarium is advised to be filtered and slightly aerated. This species can live with small and non-aggressive fish.

Moon gourami is kept in the same way, but aquariums should be larger than one hundred liters. After all, as this species prefers to swim freely. The lighting needs to be dim, slightly diffused. The fish are peaceful, compatible only with small and non-aggressive creatures.

Brown gourami have excellent compatibility. They get along well with other fish. Care is the same as for the rest of the family.

The character of dwarf gourami, like other species, is undemanding. It is important that there is no strong current. For this species, it is desirable to place in the aquarium not only plants, but also shelters in the form of caves and grottoes. It is better to keep in small flocks, no more than 6 fish. For balance, there should be a little more females. They do not like loud sounds, so it is better for them to take a quiet place in the house.

Food

Mostly fish need to be given live food, the food is the same for all gourami, species do not matter. A small bloodworm, tubifex, cycle, shrimp meat will do, and it is also necessary to give food of plant origin. To supplement the diet, dry or combined food is needed.

Do not forget that the frequent consumption of artificial dry foodbad for fish. Some gouramis stop breeding or have frail offspring.

Fry should first be fed ciliates, rotifers and egg yolk. It is important to sort young stock by size.

Don't forget that thread bearers have a small mouth, so food should be small. Also, you can not overfeed the fish, if necessary, they can live without food for a week.

Reproduction

Puberty is reached at approximately nine to twelve months of age. Gourami reproduction is different. Fish species carry out this process in different ways.

Spotted gouramis don't spawn in the community tank. To do this, they need a separate container with a volume of up to fifty liters. They should be planted in pairs. Water should be between 26 and 28 degrees. There must be plants, in their midst the female will hide if she is not completely ready for spawning. The male at this time creates a nest about eight centimeters in size and drives the female to it. She spawns up to 2000 eggs, after which she is planted. And the male remains to guard the eggs. When the larvae begin to swim, it should also be transplanted. Spotted gouramis spawn up to four times per season.

To breed a pearl species, maintaining a temperature regime of 29 to 30 degrees is required. The nest is made by males from foam and pieces of plants. During the spawning period, the male grabs the female and turns her belly up towards the nest. Caviar with a high fat content floats, but the male collects it and puts it in a designated place. At one time, the female lays up to 200eggs.

When moon gourami spawns, the temperature must also be raised to 30 degrees. The male creates a foam nest up to 25 cm wide and up to 15 cm high. Fertility - up to 5000 eggs.

Brown gouramis build nests about eight in size, up to one centimeter high. Fertility is the same as that of the lunar species. The larvae hatch after 36 hours and start feeding on the third day.

For effective breeding of a dwarf species, it is better to purchase gourami in pairs. The price depends on the type of fish and the place of purchase and ranges from $0.4 to $3. You can take one male for two females.

Care

As already mentioned, gouramis have lower fins equipped with threadlike whiskers. This is one of the features of these fish. The mustache is a tactile organ. With its help, the fish feel objects and navigate in space. This organ appeared in gourami because of the natural habitat, because they usually live in muddy water, in which it is difficult to see anything. Another amazing feature is also related to the habitat. The gourami has a labyrinth organ, which allows the fish to be without water for up to eight hours. They live in oxygen-poor places and therefore could not do without the ability to breathe air.

Breeders did not learn how to transport fish right away, because at first they used not quite the right way to transport gourami. Care was not so difficult. It is believed that these fish are one of the most picky among aquarium inhabitants. If living conditions are createdThat's right, they can live up to 12 years. Gourami care is similar regardless of species.

Optimal conditions for thread-bearers

Creating the right conditions is easy, as the thread carriers are unpretentious. It is only important to adhere to the minimum requirements:

1. Fish are mobile and curious, they need free space. Therefore, the aquarium must be of the appropriate size.

2. Gourami are able to jump high enough above the water. To prevent them from harming themselves, you should cover the aquarium with a lid with holes for air.

3. The natural habitat for them is tropical countries, therefore, the presence of bright lighting is mandatory. To do this, the aquarium should be located next to the window or special additional lighting is used. The better the light, the more saturated the color of the thread bearers.

4. The presence of live algae is important for shy gourami. The green island will be an excellent refuge. And males will create nests there at the right time.

5. For gourami, the presence of a filter and aeration is not necessary, as they can breathe air. If you equip an aquarium with them, then there will be no harm from the absence of an aerator. Only there should not be strong currents, the fish prefer stagnant water.

6. It is necessary to change the water in the aquarium by 1/3 once a week. Do not forget about maintaining the desired temperature.

Choice of inhabitants by aquarium

Beautiful creations of thread-bearing gourami. The content does not cause any particular difficulties for the owners. However, manyprefer to combine fish of different species in one aquarium. Filth bearers are peaceful, so it is not recommended to put them together with those who have aggressive behavior.

Will not fit as neighbors:

- swordsmen;

- barbs;

- goldfish;

- pseudotropheus;

- labidochromis;

- parrot fish.

Experts also do not advise keeping live-bearing fish in the same aquarium with them, as fry can become easy prey for thread-bearing fish.

Best fit:

-apistograms;

- catfish (ancitruses, corridors);

- characin fish;

- scalars.

Even an inexperienced aquarist can take care of thread bearers. Fish not only have an unusual attractive appearance, but they are always interesting to watch.

When purchasing a threadworm for your own aquarium, it is important to make the right choice. A faded color does not indicate illness or stress. When the fish lives in a permanent home, he will get used to the environment, and the bright coloration will return to him.

Pay attention to the fins and whiskers, they must be in good condition, not torn, not frayed and perfectly opening. Before putting a fish in a common aquarium, you should first put it in a separate tank for a week in quarantine.

This is for the safety of other inhabitants, as if the new thread bearer is a carrier of the disease, others may become infected. During the quarantine period, the fish are bathed every day for 15 minutes. After the procedure, she is placed back in her clean and warm container withfresh water.

Gourami diseases

Thread bearers are usually quite hardy. They can get sick from sick fish or because of poor nutrition. Sick individuals must be isolated from he althy ones.

Most common:

1. Lymphocytosis. It manifests itself in the form of wounds, nodules and swelling. Dark spots and powdery coating appear.

2. Pseudomonosis. First, dark spots appear, which later transform into ulcers.

3. Aeromonosis. Appears due to the change of the aquarium. Signs: refusal to eat, sinking, swollen and bleeding abdomen.

Thread-bearing gourami are beautiful fish. The larger the aquarium, the larger they are. Their peculiarity is that broken pectoral fins are able to grow back in gourami. Photos will help to see their attractiveness and uniqueness.

Gourami are easy to keep and care for, beautiful and interesting in behavior. With their presence, they decorate any aquatic environment, because when the right conditions are created, they look bright and original. And most importantly, even a novice aquarist can take care of them.