Pearl gourami (lat. Trichogaster leerii) increasingly common in aquarium lovers, this fish is surprisingly beautiful, although rather capricious.
They first learned about this species in Europe in 1933, in the Soviet Union it appeared somewhat later – in 1949. The natural habitat of its habitat is the Malay Archipelago, Sumatra, Thailand, Borneo.
Fish lives in small lakes and ponds densely overgrown with grass.
The body of the pearl gourami is oval, strongly flattened from the sides, these individuals grow up to 11 centimeters. The color is very remarkable, in honor of which, in fact, the view got its name – the main background is light silver, with a violet tinge, white mother-of-pearl dots are scattered around the body.
The back is pigmented with a light olive color. The chest, abdomen and part of the gills are colored reddish.
In the center of the body passes a speckled, unevenly colored dark stripe.
photo: Pearl gourami
From the caudal fin to the anus of a fish, an anal fin passes. The dorsal fin is elongated; in males it is sharper, the tail fin is of fork type. The pectoral fins are colorless, and the ventral ones resemble a mustache — with their help, fish can sense objects and other fish, since the eyes of the gourains are rather weak.
The pearl gourami has a rather small mouth, therefore it is necessary to feed it only with small food. These inhabitants of the aquarium are quite shy, so they often hide in the thickets of plants. With good care can live 5-7 years.
During spawning, males are especially easy to distinguish from females – pearls glow on its body, and the belly and chest are painted red.
photo: Pearly gourami with veil fins
- Gourami belong to the order of trichogaster, pearl fish have a very interesting mouth structure – they can slightly protrude the lower jaw and pick up food both in the water column and from the surface;
- These are graceful and peace-loving fish that get along with other neighbors, but on condition that they are not too different in size;
- These are the most capricious members of the goura family, very sensitive to temperature extremes and transportation;
- This is a labyrinth fish that breathes not only by the gills, but also swallows oxygen from the air, so when transporting, make sure that the container is only half full of water.
If you have a specific aquarium, then for 6-7 fish there will be enough volume of 50-60 liters. Most often pearl gouras contain: 2-3 females and 1 male.
The tank is not covered tightly with glass or a lid; the space under the glass must be ventilated to ensure the flow of atmospheric air. Lighting fish like bright – it can be both artificial and natural, and the color in bright light will benefit.
When choosing the soil, pay attention to the large river sand, thick thickets of plants are planted in it – after all, gurus are pretty shy creatures, so they should have a shelter and a place to swim. You can land Elodieu, peristristis, Wallisneria, a little duckweed. Pearl gourami are thermophilic fish, therefore the temperature should be kept within 24-27 degrees.
If it falls below, the fish may catch a cold. Water hardness is not the most critical parameter; water must be slightly acidic or neutral pH 6 or 7.
As for compatibility, problems can arise: gourami are peace-loving fish, so even species can be offended by it several times smaller than fish. If you do not want to organize a species aquarium, then pick up peace-loving neighbors right up to guppies or nitropods. It is better to feed pets with live food, but also with pearl gourami eats dry food with pleasure.
They have a small mouth, so because of their anatomical features they cannot eat large meals. Between spawning, small crustaceans, shredded tubers and bloodworms can be given.
You can find out the price of fry and buy pearl gouras on the bulletin board.
