Differences Between Sparkling And Croaking Gouramis?

[lljdma06]

My labyrinth book only has scientific names for the genus Trichopsis. The species are schalleri, pumilus, and vittatus. Is it a common trait for all in this genus to make a croaking sound?

My LFS has "sparkling gouramis", but I want to make sure they are what the store says they are. They labled my corydoras as C. habrosus, when in actualilty, they were C. pygmaeus, so I'd like to know for sure what I'm getting.

Thank you very much. Possibly I'd like a pair for a densly planted 10g. They would be sharing the tank with 3 rasbora brigittae.

Have a great day.

 

[cometcattle]

I currently keep all three, and yes, they all croak when breeding or establishing territory. I've noticed the pumilus are a bit more tolerant of each other when kept in a smaller tank. I'd go for at least 3 to 4.

All th fish stores I've seen them at did not differentiate between the pumilus and shalleri, as both were labeled Sparkling gouramis. When full grown, the shalleri are a bit larger. I noticed the pumilas is more common in stores around here.

I have also seen vittatus mixed in with Sparkling gouramis, as that is how I got my first Croaking gourami.

The vittatus can get aggressive with each other, and I'm not sure I'd recommend them for a 10g. If you end up with a breeding pair, you'll have to remove the female after they breed because the male won't let the female anywhere near the eggs or babies.

Here is a great site for IDing them:
http/aquaworld.netfirms.com/Labyrinthfis...byrinthfish.htm

 

[lljdma06]

Thanks for the information. I didn't know you were in Chicago? I live in Champaign, IL, so I guess it may be the pumilus I'm seeing. I'll post what I get on Friday.

If it is pumilus, what should be the ratio to males and females, or should I just get lucky with what I get? They look a little difficult to sex, especially since they tend to be pale at the LFS.

 

[cometcattle]

Sparklers are very difficult to sex. The most reliable way to sex them is by shining a bright light through them. You should be able to see the ovaries in the female. Not he easiest thing to do, especially at your LFS. A less reliable way to sex them is sometimes the males have longer "filaments" extending from their anal and dorsal fins. As far as M-F ratio, I'd aim for 1M - 2F or 2M - 4F.

Have you ever been to the Shedd Aquarium?
Definitely worth a visit if you're in town.

 

[lljdma06]

Sparklers are very difficult to sex. The most reliable way to sex them is by shining a bright light through them. You should be able to see the ovaries in the female. Not he easiest thing to do, especially at your LFS. A less reliable way to sex them is sometimes the males have longer "filaments" extending from their anal and dorsal fins. As far as M-F ratio, I'd aim for 1M - 2F or 2M - 4F.

Have you ever been to the Shedd Aquarium?
Definitely worth a visit if you're in town.

Great, I'm going to have fun in that LFS! Spending four hours sexing sparkling gouramis. I'll bring a flashlight and look for ovaries. I bet the fish would love that. I'll give it a shot. If it's not feasible, I'll look at the fins, buy like four, observe behavior, and remove them if the ratio's not right. It'll be easier to tell sex in my densly planted tannic tank. That LFS is great and they'll take back what doesn't work for store credit. So it's 1:2 M:F ratio, like typical gouramis. I thought so.

They should be alright with bridget rasboras, right? I'd like to increase that school from 3 to about 7 or 8, but they are notoriously hard to find. So the sparklers will have to deal with 3 of them.

Shedd Aquarium rocks! I've been there once, and hopefully I'll go again before I graduate.

 

[sylvia]

Yep, the rasboras are fine.

 

[lljdma06]

Well, I managed to find three T. pumilus yesterday. Still don't know the sexes for sure, but I suspect that I have 2 males and 1 female, which is not so good. But I can't tell absolutely. They won't hold still for the flash light test. If things get agressive, the 15g is densly planted and will easily accomodate one male. They seem to like the tank. They were a bit skittish at first, one got stuck behind my CO2 bubble ladder, but as soon as I played "Operation Rescue", they warmed up to me, and posed for a few lousy pictures. I guess you can't post pictures in this sub forum, unless you have a storage of pictures online, which I don't. There is one that is quite a bit larger than the others, and right now there is no agression, they are just following each other around. Very cute.

I'll post pictures in the members' aquarium section.

 

[cometcattle]

I just saw your pics and they look beautiful. I'm sure you'll love them.