What is up with Paradise fish?

[gwand]

I have not seen anyone on the forum show or talk about paradise fish. Any particular reason?

 

[GaryE]

It's been a while. I find they aren't popular at the moment - I used to see them in every store, but a friend who keeps Anabantoids was having problems sourcing wild type ones. It's a great fish, but fashions are fashions.

 

[Rusty_Shackleford]

Retailers only have so much tank space and we have glo fish and parrot fish now so, sol paradise fish.

 

[Innesfan]

I seem to recall @Mr Limpet posted a month or two ago about a rarely seen Macropodus species that he picked up at a club auction.

Some of the species in the genus have always been 'rare' while the species that has commonly been called "Paradise Fish', M. opercularis, which goes back to Linnaeus in the 1750s, has pretty much always been around since it literally launched the tropical fishkeeping hobby in the 1860s. They appear on retail lists though they are sometimes listed as "Paradise Gourami" which is a recent questionable tweak of the common name.

 

[Mr Limpet]

There’s been a red-bodied, blue-finned form of Macropodus opercularis appearing in big box stores lately. They’re calling it the “Fire and Ice Paradise Fish”, and it’s actually quite impressive.

 

[Innesfan]

There have been several variants of species across genera given the commercial name "Fire and Ice" in recent years. Perhaps inspired by Game of Thrones. There's also a Fire and Ice Betta and, I believe, a Fire and Ice Snakehead. Wouldn't surprise me to learn there are others.

 

[gwand]

This capricious naming is driving me up the proverbial wall.

 

[Innesfan]

This capricious naming is driving me up the proverbial wall.

Don't get me started.

 

[Back in the fold]

I had powder puff blue Paradise Fish some years ago and I liked them but I haven't seen them in ages . It really is too bad that the Paradise Fish isn't more popular these days . If you like Betta’s you will certainly like Paradise Fish . Maybe even more .
Let me quote Dr. William T. Innes from his classic “ Exotic Aquarium Fishes “
“ If ancient lineage is the true basis for aristocracy , then the Paradise Fish is undoubtedly the Exalted Potentate of all tropical aquarium fishes . It was introduced into Paris in 1868 by Carbonnier . This introduction undoubtedly marks the beginning of the study of fresh - warm - water aquarium fishes as we have it today , and if any future enthusiasts wish to observe centenaries of the occasion , that is the year on which to base them .”
Fortunately Dr. Innes lived to see that historic day . He then goes on to tell that the Paradise Fish was introduced into America in 1876 by the famous Adolphus Busch of St. Louis . Dr. Innes , having been born in 1874 , seems to me to be most qualified to write these glowing words about this particular exotic aquarium fish .

 

[Colin_T]

They are angry territorial labyrinth fishes that don't play well with others. Hence most shops don't carry them or don't push them onto customers.

 

[TNG]

I have two, the apricot coloured one for 2.5 years now, and the bluish one for about 4 months. In contrast, I could not keep the bettas alive for longer than a year.

Their availability seems to be seasonal. I only see them in the stores once or twice a year. They are kept together in the same tank just like any other fish, not in individual jars like the bettas. Having said that, I don’t think community tank would work once you bring them home and they have settled down - unless you have a large aquarium.

Although my 2 fish are Macropodus opercularis, the apricot is stocky while the blue is a lot slender.

 

[GaryE]

I got some for a pond at the school I worked in. They bred. And bred. I had a Canadian pond covered in bubble nests.

I kept them in a 75 gallon all winter, and had no aggression issues. I think they're a fish that got a horrible rep in the the small tank, pre silicone era, when they were hellions when cooped up in too small spaces. In larger tanks, I had them in communities for years with zero problems.

Their reputation hurts their sales, and around here we only see them at the start of pond season. They're a Spring fish here.

There was a reference to them in the 1660s, with a single individual being kept my William Penn (for whom the US state of Pennsylvania was later named). The diarist Samuel Pepys thought they were cool.

 

[Magnum Man]

Dan's has sold 4 or 5 different varieties in the last 6 months... none in stock right now, but several listed here, of what was available...

https://dansfish.com/catalog.category/1/Air-Breathers

 

[WhistlingBadger]

I got some for a pond at the school I worked in. They bred. And bred. I had a Canadian pond covered in bubble nests.

I kept them in a 75 gallon all winter, and had no aggression issues. I think they're a fish that got a horrible rep in the the small tank, pre silicone era, when they were hellions when cooped up in too small spaces. In larger tanks, I had them in communities for years with zero problems.

Their reputation hurts their sales, and around here we only see them at the start of pond season. They're a Spring fish here.

There was a reference to them in the 1660s, with a single individual being kept my William Penn (for whom the US state of Pennsylvania was later named). The diarist Samuel Pepys thought they were cool.

Paradise fish have been on my someday list for a long time. I really want one in my Himalayan/Yunnan tank, but everyone on here told me that aggression would be an issue. Gary is making me question that.

 

[gwand]

Now I am more confused than before I posted the question. That’s life on the TFF.