Description
Golden Gourami (Trichopodus trichopterus)
Overview
The Golden Gourami (Trichopodus trichopterus color morph) is a striking, captive-bred color variety of the classic Three-Spot Gourami. Like its wild-type counterpart, it is a hardy labyrinth fish native to Southeast Asia (including Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Malaysia).
- Appearance: Features an elongated, compressed body glowing with a brilliant, solid golden-yellow to deep orange coloration, often marked with faint, shimmering turquoise markings or the species’ characteristic two dark spots along the flank (though these are frequently masked by their bright gold pigmentation). Like other gouramis, they possess modified, thread-like pelvic fins used as tactile feelers.
- Size: Grows to approximately 10 to 12 cm (4 to 5 inches) in length.
- Lifespan: Typically 4 to 6 years (or up to 8 years with optimal care).
Care Requirements
- Aquarium Size: Because of their adult size and active, sometimes territorial nature, a minimum aquarium size of 100 to 150 liters (approx. 3 feet in length) is recommended for a pair or small group.
- Water Parameters:
- Temperature: 24°C to 28°C (75°F to 82°F)
- pH: 6.0 to 8.0 (they are highly adaptable and tolerate a wide range of neutral to slightly soft/hard water conditions)
- General Hardness (GH): 5 to 19°H
- Filtration & Flow: Gentle to moderate filtration is ideal. Because they are labyrinth fish, they possess a specialized organ allowing them to breathe atmospheric air, meaning they prefer relatively calm waters without heavy surface turbulence. A tight-fitting aquarium lid is essential to maintain a warm, humid layer of air above the surface.
Maintenance
- Aquascaping: Recreate a lush, planted environment using dense background and side vegetation (such as Vallisneria, broad-leaved Amazon swords, or stem plants) alongside floating plants to diffuse bright light and provide cozy hiding spots. Driftwood and roots add a natural aesthetic.
- Water Quality & Changes: Perform routine partial water changes (20% to 25% weekly) to maintain low organic waste and keep the water clean.
Diet
- Nature: Omnivorous and enthusiastic eaters. They readily accept almost any food offered.
- Staple Diet: High-quality flakes, micro-pellets, or granules.
- Enhancing Health & Color: Supplement their diet regularly with live or frozen foods such as bloodworms, daphnia, brine shrimp (Artemia), and glassworms. Providing some vegetable matter, spirulina, or blanched vegetables is also beneficial for their digestive health.
Behaviour and Compatibility
- Temperament: Generally hardy and active, but they can display semi-aggressive or territorial tendencies—particularly toward other gouramis or slow-moving, long-finned fish as they mature. They occupy the middle and upper levels of the water column.
- Social Needs: Can be kept singly, as a bonded pair, or in a group of females. Avoid keeping multiple dominant males in a standard tank unless space is very large, as they will squabble.
- Tank Mates: Suitable for peaceful to semi-aggressive community setups with similarly sized tank mates. Good companions include active barbs, medium-sized tetras, rainbowfish, loaches, and bottom-dwelling catfish. Avoid housing them with shy, extremely slow-moving, or long-finned fish (such as fancy guppies, bettas, or angel fish), as their nippy or boisterous behavior can cause stress.
Breeding Behaviour
- Spawning Setup: Set up a separate breeding tank with shallow water (about 15 to 20 cm deep), warm temperatures, dim lighting, and floating plants or pieces of rigid plastic to anchor a bubble nest.
- Conditioning: Condition the breeding pair with frequent, high-quality feedings of live and frozen foods. The male will develop intensified golden colors and begin constructing a large, frothy bubble nest at the surface.
- The Process: During courtship, the male entices the female beneath the nest, wrapping his body around her in a classic labyrinth-fish embrace as she releases hundreds of buoyant, clear eggs. The male carefully gathers the floating eggs in his mouth and tucks them securely into the bubble nest, thereafter driving the female away.
- Raising Fry: Once spawning is complete, it is best to remove the female, as the male will guard the nest aggressively. The tiny fry hatch in 24 to 48 hours and become free-swimming after a few days, at which point the male should also be removed. The fry are microscopic and require infusoria or liquid fry food initially before graduating to newly hatched brine shrimp.
Picture for illustrative purposes only. Either come in store to view available stock or request pictures to be sent to you.
Please Note: Due to variations within species resulting from age, region, sex, etc., the actual livestock may not look identical to the image. Approximate size range may also vary between individual specimens.
