Can you see blue rams with pearl gourami?

FishForums.net Pet of the Month
🐶 POTM Poll is Open! 🦎 Click here to Vote! 🐰

Zante

Fish Herder
Joined
Feb 21, 2012
Messages
1,301
Reaction score
77
Location
Italy
I have a 120 litre tank with a pair of blue rams and a small shoal of ember tetras.
It is quite heavily planted and has plenty of nooks and crannies.

My LFS has some very nice pearl gourami and I've been thinking for a while about adding some fish to this tank. How do you think a male and a female gourami would fare in there?

Water is quite soft, temperature 28 celsius, PH acidic, close to neutral.
 
Tbh I don’t think I would do it. For one it’s a risk with the rams having established their territory. The pearls could be viewed as a threat and pearls are quite timid with regard to other species. It could work out but it’s a risk.

Another thing is that it’s a mistake to get just one male and one female. In keeping multiple pearls you should have at least two or more females and a male. You want the males attention to be divided between multiple females. Also females are quite aggressive amongst themselves so you don’t want just two females. They need a male to brake up their fueding. One pearl of either sex is fine but just two is asking for trouble. I have three females and a male and he gets quite amorous at times and I would not want to be the lone female on the receiving end.
 
Hmm... I am quite familiar with cichlids, but my lack of familiarity with gouramis shows :D

Would you say that four pearl gourami, 1m3f, would fit in that tank? I usually prefer to keep tanks underpopulated, so if that's a bit tight I might get just the one.
... or I'm open to other suggestions, but something that'll inhabit the top half of the tank rather than the bottom half.

The rams haven't established much of a territory, They've just been transferred from a smaller tank and have been in there since the last weekend. Basically the new larger tank is why I'm thinking of adding some fish.
 
Generally, combining gourami and cichlids is not advisable unless the tank is very large, and even then depending upon the species it may not work. The two groups of fish are very similar, especially in the territorial nature of males. Both cichlids and gourami, with a very few exceptions, should be one species in a tank.

Having said that, Pearl Gourami are one of the more docile gourami, and this might fare better. Rams are not especially aggressive defending space, though that can depend upon the individual fish.

I digressed. I would also be concerned over the tank size for Pearl Gourami. They attain close to five inches and need at minimum a 36-inch (90 cm) length tank. They are best in a small group, with two females per male, so three or more with more female than male. In a 3-foot tank I would consider five (2 male, 3 female) max.

So I guess that all adds up to the answer "probably no" to your question.

Edit: You typed post #3 as I was typing, so a couple more suggestions. The rams will view this tank as their space, period. Don't think otherwise for a second, that is their nature. I had a male Bolivian Ram (the only cichlid) in a 5-foot tank with over a hundred characins and cories, and there was no doubt among any of the other fish whose tank this was--the Ram's. He exerted his authority periodically when other fish get in his way. He was especially so during feeding when any of them dared nibble "his" food stick/pellet/disk.
 
Point taken.

So, what addition would you suggest for this tank?
Currently it contains two rams and twelve ember tetras. As I said I prefer tanks on the underpopulated side, but this is closer to sparse.

Not sure I'd like to go for another pair of rams. Maybe if I still had to add them, as to add all four at the same time, but not now.
 
Point taken.

So, what addition would you suggest for this tank?
Currently it contains two rams and twelve ember tetras. As I said I prefer tanks on the underpopulated side, but this is closer to sparse.

Not sure I'd like to go for another pair of rams. Maybe if I still had to add them, as to add all four at the same time, but not now.

You haven't mentioned the tank length/width, but this is 120 liters (30+ gallons) and that is pushing the envelope for more than a pair of rams. And as you know, these must go in at the same time to have any chance of them tolerating each other (the males).

Problem with tankmates for rams is the temperature. Not all tropical fish can manage in warm water permanently. The Embers are at the top of their range. Substrate fish like cories are out, possible exception being the few species like C. sterbai that apparently manage, though not every cory enthusiast would agree. Hatchetfish are good upper fish, and considering temperature, Thoracocharax stellatus would be nice. This is a particular nice hatchet as they are much more interactive than the smaller species in Carnegiella. Pencilfish also do well with cichlids, some of them, I would have to check temperatures of species but worth a look.
 
You haven't mentioned the tank length/width, but this is 120 liters (30+ gallons) and that is pushing the envelope for more than a pair of rams. And as you know, these must go in at the same time to have any chance of them tolerating each other (the males).

Yes, that's exactly why I said I wouldn't go for another pair of rams.

Problem with tankmates for rams is the temperature. Not all tropical fish can manage in warm water permanently. The Embers are at the top of their range. Substrate fish like cories are out, possible exception being the few species like C. sterbai that apparently manage, though not every cory enthusiast would agree. Hatchetfish are good upper fish, and considering temperature, Thoracocharax stellatus would be nice. This is a particular nice hatchet as they are much more interactive than the smaller species in Carnegiella. Pencilfish also do well with cichlids, some of them, I would have to check temperatures of species but worth a look.

Ah, should have mentioned... I have emersed and emerging plants, so the tank is open and can't really close it. My alternanthera, for example, is longer outside the water than in it.
So hatchets are out...

The tank has a base of 80x36cm and is 50cm high.
 
I second the hatchets. I have 6 and looking for more and they would look wonderful with your other fish provided you have floating plants to help them feel secure.

Four pearls in your tank would be too many and they do like to explore the bottom of the tank so they would get harassed by the rams. But I must add that I have never kept Rams so everything I know is what I have read. But I do have my pearls with five angels and the only time the angels even notice them is when they have fry to protect. Not sure if that’s relevant to the discussion though.

Edit: just read about your plants. Yeah hatchets are out but so are most top level fish. My pearls have been known to jump when the lid is off.
 
Hmm... I guess I'll get some more embers then...
 
how about honey dwarf gouramis or indian banded gouramis or Betta imbellis?

my concern with pearl gouramis are the ember tetras. They are pretty small and even tho pearl gouramis are peaceful, they might eat the tetras.

rams wont harm pearl gouramis, and are unlikely to bother about any surface dwelling fish in a tank that is 50cm high.

hatchetfish jump and I would never keep them in a tank without a good cover to stop them leaping out.

you could get a group of black phantom tetras. They are mid level fish but are a different colour and shape to the embers, so a group of 10 black phantom tetras would contrast well. Maybe a group of glass catfish, mid level fish that are see through.
 

Most reactions

trending

Staff online

Back
Top