What Are My Honey Gouramis Doing?

[xamy_valox]

I bought two Honey Gouramis yesterday. I don't know what sexes they are, one is slightly larger than the other but other than that they look practically they same. They seem to spend a lot of time around the filter at the moment, I don't know if that is because they are still settling in but as I came home and peered into the tank they were together and acting weird!

My mom had said they had been doing it for a while, and it looks like they were kinda rubbing against each other and intertwining? I know this is supposed to be breeding behaviour but there is no bubble nest to be seen and they weren't properly intertwining, more like wearily squaring up to each other but alongside each other. I did get a video but I am unsure how to post and its not brilliant as it was only the last bit and doesn't show it very well.

Anyone got any ideas?

 

[Timberbatch]

Hm weird, wish I could see the video. Not sure how to upload one myself as I just joined . 
 
My dwarf gouramis sometimes present to each other by showing their sides and wiggling around trying to look all big and tough. And I know when I freak them out by putting the net in or the gravel vac they try to hide behind each other frantically. Are they doing this constantly? And are they still having interest in food?
 
Maybe someone with breeding experience will comment since I have no experience at all in that matter
 
Best of luck though!

 

[Essjay]

Since they are brand new to the tank, I would think they are sizing up to each other. Yes, swimming in circles head to tail is also breeding behaviour, but they do that just before they spawn. Before they get that far, the male displays to the female by swimming in front of her with his nose in the air, so to speak, then he has to entice the female under his bubble nest. This usually takes at least a day or two before the female agrees to spawn.
 
What colour are the gouramis? The wild colour are easy to sex, the red and yellow versions are more tricky. In general terms, males have pointier fins and females have more rounded fins, though that can be misleading as there is a lot of natural variation.
With the yellow ones, a fish with any hint of a stripe from nose to tail is more likely to be a female, but the stripes don't show on the red ones.

 

[xamy_valox]

I can't get a good enough photo to show you! They are orangey with black on the bottom and yellow dorsal fins. One is slightly paler and larger than the other and seems to be the shyest out of the two.

 

[Essjay]

Are both the same? Your description sounds like wild coloured males. Have a look at the pics here in post 3 - http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/34959-gourami-honey/
The amount of black increases when the fish is ready to breed.
Wild coloured females are beige with often a dark stripe from nose to tail. Sometimes one will have a faint bit of colour right on the edges of the fins, but nothing like the amount the male has.
 
 
If yours do match the pics in the link, you have 2 males and the behaviour you witnessed was them sizing each other up. The more colorful one will be the dominant one.

 

[blackops]

of topic but your tank looks  really nice what fish do u have in it

 

[xamy_valox]

Yeah they are the same colour as those shown in that link. Will I be ok with two males then? Or will the aggression get worse over time? They have been fine today as far as I have seen, and are venturing out a little more. 
 
Thanks Blackops At the moment the stocking is:
1 Koi Angelfish
2 German Blue Rams
2 Honey Gourami's
10 Neon Tetras
5 Harlequin Rasboras
3 Pentazona Barbs
1 Large Platy
8 Corydora 
1 BN Pleco
 
It sounds a lot when you write it down but to look at the tank it's really not!!

 

[Essjay]

If the tank is big enough (hard to tell from the photo

) they should be OK together. Unless the plants have grown since you took the photo in your signature, some new tall plants would help to break up their line of sight. Then they could both have a territory without having to see each other all the time.

 

[xamy_valox]

Yeah the vallis on the right and the plant in the middle are taller than they are in the pic now. The tank is 125 litre and at the moment they seem to be sticking to their own quarters!