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Name:
Scientific name: Trichopodus microlepis
Common name: Moonlight gourami
AKA: Moonbeam gourami/ Trichogaster microlepis

Country of origin: South-east Asia – Cambodia, Vietnam

pH: 6.0 – 7.5
Temperature: 25 – 30c
Hardness: 2 – 25 dGH
Water flow: low - standard
Oxygenation: standard

Maximum size: 15 cm

Diet: They eat live, frozen & sinking pellet foods – they are micropredators. They are not fussy eaters. They will benefit from both regular live or frozen food and some vegetable matter (algae pellets, etc) in their diet.

They have been known to eat hydra, eradicating an infestation.

Breeding:
Males: anal & dorsal fin are pointed. Pelvic & dorsal fins – orange/red hue.
Females: anal & dorsal fins are rounded. Pelvic fin – yellow tint.

The male builds a bubble nest. As they spawn they display the typical gourami “wrestling”. Both parents should be removed after spawning – they will predate on the eggs & fry. The female should be removed immediately spawning, the male shortly after the fry have hatched.

Lifespan: 4+ years.

Tank companions:
They are NOT good tank companions with shrimp.

They should only have 1 male to a tank, unless it’s a very large (6ft+) tank, with a lot of visual breaks, in which case, you may get away with 2 males. They can be kept with a group of females, or in groups of 6+ to spread the aggression.

They are a shy gourami species, which is peaceful with other species and can be kept with other peaceful species.

They should not be kept with fin-nippers.

They live in the middle to top of the tank.

As with any fish they will eat any fish small enough to fit in their mouths, and equally can be eaten by any fish large enough to eat them. This should be taken into account when choosing tankmates.

Stocking plans can be checked with aqadvisor.com

Tank:
Minimum tanks size is 3 ft for a pair.

They could be kept in a heavily planted tank with floating plants, open areas for swimming, and tannins from driftwood and Indian Almond Leaves.

They are plant eaters, so hardy bad-tasting plants such as anubias spp. & fava fers varieties should be considered, rather than delicate stem plants.

It needs tightly fitted lids, both to create humid air to breathe, and to prevent jumping from the tank.

Confused with:
Other gouramis, although this is the only one with a concave head. It is pale silver, with a slightly greenish hue, which shines even in low light. The shine increases as the fish matures. The irises are orange/red. Their ventral fins are particularly long & trailing.

They are one of the more rarely seen allowable gouramis in the trade.

They are used as food by humans in their countries of origin.

Many have health issues, including iridovirus, which is invariably fatal, so they (in particular) should be quarantined before being added to the tank.

It has a labyrinth organ, so can breathe air to an extent.

They have been introduced as a feral fish into a number of countries around the world (but not in Australia at this time).

Trichogaster microlepis (synonym) are legal imports to Australia as of 31/10/2013 (list last updated 16/10/13):
http://www.environment.gov.au/system...mport-list.pdf

The IUCN Red List reports Trichopodus microlepis as a species which is of least concerned, with a stable population trend at 03/11/2013:
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.

They are good fish for beginners.

Relevant threads:
Tankmates & pics of planted tank:
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...r+trichopterus
With a mixed group of gouramis – Bolsy’s 4ft:
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...hlight=gourami
Mixed group of gouramis & tankmates – stiny:
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...hlight=gourami
Tankmates with Samurai gourami:
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...hlight=gourami
Tankmates with Dwarf gourami - Jazzy:
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...hlight=gourami
Species of gourami to shoal:
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...hlight=gourami

Gourami with shrimp:
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...hlight=gourami

Pearl gourami eating snails:
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...hlight=gourami

Breeding gouramis:
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...ighlight=honey
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...hlight=gourami
Breeding pearl gouramis:
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...hlight=gourami
Courting vs aggressive behaviour descriptions, with link to video:
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...hlight=gourami
Sexing gouramis – particularly chocolates – unissuh:
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...hlight=gourami

1 male per tank & iridovirus:
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...ighlight=honey
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...ighlight=honey

Feeding chocolate gourami:
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...hlight=gourami

Pink giant gourami info:
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...hlight=gourami
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...hlight=gourami
Giant gourami – diet & tank size:
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...hlight=gourami
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...hlight=gourami

Various types of Trichogaster trichopterus - three spot/gold/blue/opaline gourami:
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...hlight=gourami

Liquorice gouramis:
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...hlight=gourami

Gouramis for small tank:
http://www.aquariumlife.com.au/showt...hlight=gourami

References:
Fishbase:
http://www.fishbase.org/summary/4729

LiveFish:
http://www.livefish.com.au/tropicals...urami-5cm.html

Seriously fish:
http://www.seriouslyfish.com/species...us-microlepis/

Tfh magazine:
http://www.tfhmagazine.com/details/a...ll-article.htm

Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moonlight_gourami

Pics & threads with pics:

DE
3/11/2013