Photo thanks oto Edgar


Photo thanks to Edgar


Name:
Scientific name: Parosphromeus Deissneri
Common name: Liquorice Gourami
AKA:

Country of origin: Southeast Asia

pH: 3.0 - 6.5
Temperature: 22 - 28c
Hardness: 18 - 72 ppm
Water flow: low
Oxygenation: standard

Maximum size: It is about 5cm long (including the tail - the body only is 4cm), body is 1cm high.

Diet: It requires live food in its diet. This can be provided through growing BBS and blackworm, daphnia, etc. In a 6ft tank, with a very large shrimp population and few fish, it might barely be enough to allow it to predate on the shrimplets, which it will anyway.
It has difficulty learning to take frozen or dry foods.

Breeding: With isolated pairs, in caves. Eggs stuck to the top of the cave. Parenting continues for 3 days, then ceases. Fry will need to be provided with suitable live food, and may need a seperate tank.

Tank companions: Actively hunts shrimplets +++
In a small tank it would anihilate the shrimp population.
Although other sources suggest this is a fish better kept alone, or only with boraras, I have successfully kept this fish with bororas; danios; chocolate, liquorice & sparkling gouramis; green neon & ember tetras; male endlers and royal whiptails.

Photo thanks to Edgar

Photo thanks to Edgar

It is an extremely attractive fish, with a body striped in brown & chocolate, a tail fin with an inner chocolate triangle, and all fins with an incredibly beautiful ring of glowing iridescent blue & black rings.

Photo thanks to Edgar

This is not a fish for absolute beginners.

It is extremely shy, but its beauty makes its occasional forays around the tank worth waiting for.


Photo thanks to DiscusEden

If kept in a species tank for breeding purposes, ideally it should have Indian almond leaves in the tank, as their natural habitat has a lot of peat in the water.

Parosphromeus Deissneri are legal imports to Australia as of 20/10/2013 - males only, at a minimum of 4cm length:
http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiv...mport-list.pdf

The IUCN Red List reports Parosphromeus Deissneri as a species which has not yet been assessed at 20/10/2013:
http://www.iucnredlist.org/search

It is very important not to release any aquarium specimens into our waterways. Any that are not sold or re-homed/ given away, can often be re-sold to aquarium stores. If they are homed in ponds, care should be taken that they cannot escape in run-off into our waterways. Even if fish are native & local they should not be moved from one waterway to another, as this can transfer disease. If they are not local fish, they can both spread disease and either out-compete or eat local fish, shrimp & plants, causing their demise.